Diverse group of student learning to play tennis from White blond female coach

5 Quick Tips to Help You Choose Your High School Extracurriculars

Extracurriculars look super good on your college applications. Here are a few tips for picking out which activities to participate in to impress schools.

Extracurriculars are always stressed in the college application process. It might seem important to be involved in tons of activities in various areas to seem well-rounded, but what’s more important is discovering, doing, and committing to what you love to do. For students deciding what teams and clubs they want to be involved in during high school or looking to join new extracurriculars, here are a few things to consider.

1. Don’t join just to join

This may be the most important piece of advice when contemplating extracurriculars. Don’t join anything just for a résumé builder! When deciding what groups to choose, think about what you want, not what you think colleges will like best. Pick what you love and your passion will show through on any résumé or application. Colleges look for students who stick with what they love, so try to join early and be involved regularly.

Related: How Extracurriculars Benefit Your College Applications

2. Don’t let friends sway you

Although it can be beneficial to hear your friends’ opinions on what extracurriculars they like, don’t let anyone convince you to join a group you know you won’t enjoy. While having fun and spending time with your friends is important, you should have a focus and a passion for whatever the group is. Joining an extracurricular just because your friends are doesn’t contribute to that. Besides, you could make some new friends if you join a group you like!

3. Try something new

Joining a new activity with no previous experience or connections to anyone in the group can be daunting. No matter how intimidating, it’s well worth giving a new experience a shot if it’s something you’re interested in. You never know what could turn into a lifelong passion or possible career route. Whether it’s working up the courage to try out for the lacrosse team, join mock trial, or take part in a community service group, it’s always worth it to go to at least one day of tryouts or one meeting just to see if it interests you. If it does, you’ve found a great new activity to love. If not, you haven’t wasted time—it’s just a step in the process of elimination.

Related: How to Get Involved in Extracurricular Activities in High School

4. Create a group

If your school doesn’t have a specific club or sport you’re interested in, don’t be afraid to find others with that common interest and create your own extracurricular. Most schools will require a minimum number of people interested before they’ll allow a new group, so having friends supporting it is always a plus. If your school doesn’t allow new activities to be added, don’t be discouraged. You can always find a way to get involved with it in your local community.

5. Show your passion

When you finally discover a group that interests you, don’t participate halfway. If you’re truly passionate about the activity, it’s always worth giving it 110%. Not only will this involvement be enjoyable, but your love of the activity will shine through on college applications and in recommendation letters. Whether practicing a sport on your own to earn that starting spot or spending time memorizing lines for a performance, outside commitment to an activity will show.

Related: 3 Easy Ways to Pursue Your Passions in High School

There's a lot of advice out there on how to get and stay involved in extracurricular activities, but these are the basics. If you take nothing else away, it's that while your extracurriculars will certainly help your college applications, they should also be fun for you and bring fulfillment to your life. Dedicate your time to the activities you truly care about, find value in, and grow from—and those things will shine through on your future applications. 

Did you know you can win a lot of scholarships related to your extracurriculars too? With our Scholarship Search tool, you can start applying today!

Like what you’re reading?

Join the CollegeXpress community! Create a free account and we’ll notify you about new articles, scholarship deadlines, and more.

Join Now

Tags:

About Charlotte Varnes

Charlotte is an aspiring journalist and storyteller, working toward her passion one article at a time. She has lived in Florida her whole life but has had the opportunity to travel to over 30 countries and numerous states. When she's not busy with schoolwork or traveling across the globe, she loves to run, play lacrosse, write, jam out to Taylor Swift, keep up with politics, and watch the Washington Nationals.

 

Join our community of
over 5 million students!

CollegeXpress has everything you need to simplify your college search, get connected to schools, and find your perfect fit.

Join CollegeXpress
Kayla

Kayla

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress helped me organize the schools I wanted to choose from in one place, which I could then easily compare and find the school that was right for me!

Laura Wallace

Laura Wallace

High School Class of 2019

My favorite part of CollegeXpress is that it features student writers so I get an inside perspective from students slightly older and farther along than me. I realize that other college websites also utilize student writers; however, I relate the most to the college writers that I read articles from on CollegeXpress.

Rhiannon Teeter

Rhiannon Teeter

$2,000 Community Service Scholarship Winner, 2012

I have spent a lot of time aggressively searching for scholarships. It was a long and frustrating process until I found the CollegeXpress network. This site made my search so much easier. With the simple check of a few boxes, the site sorted out scholarships I was eligible for and led me directly to the correct websites. Winning this scholarship has definitely given me and my family some financial relief, and CollegeXpress has allowed me to improve my chances of winning further financial aid. Thank you so much!

Monica

Monica

High School Class of 2023

Being a sophomore in high school, I never really worried about college. I thought it wasn't important to worry about until senior year. Through this program opportunity I came across, I realized how important it is to start looking at colleges early and start planning ahead. CollegeXpress has opened my eyes to what colleges require, what colleges are near me, and what they offer. The daily emails I get from CollegeXpress really help me look at the different options I have and what colleges I fit into. Without this website, I would not be taking the time out of my day to worry about what my future will be nor what opportunities I have. I could not be more grateful for such an amazing and useful website. It's thanks to CollegeXpress that not only me but my family now know how much potential I have in to getting into these colleges/universities that we thought were out of my reach.

Keaun Brown

Keaun Brown

$2,000 Community Service Scholarship Winner, 2020

As I transition to furthering my education, I can say with certainty that it simply wouldn’t be possible without the help of generous organizations such as CollegeXpress. Those who initially founded CX had no idea their platform would give a plethora of information to a first-generation homeless kid native to the ghettos of over half a dozen states. Everyone at CX and Carnegie Dartlet gave me a chance at a future when the statistics said I had none. And for that, I thank them.

College Matches
X

Colleges You May Be Interested In

University of Indianapolis

Indianapolis, IN

Geneva College

Beaver Falls, PA

Catawba College

Salisbury, NC