Confused young female Asian student in front of colored Post-Its with activities

Making Time for Things You Love: How to Mix Schoolwork With Your Passions

Blending your interests with your schoolwork makes life as a student a lot more enjoyable! Here’s how to mix some fun into all your responsibilities.

High school can be a whirlwind, and finding time for everything can be a challenge, including any passion projects or hobbies you love. But with a little creative thinking, you can not only tackle the demands of your academics and hobbies but also add a touch of excitement and fun to your life. Here’s how to mix your schoolwork with other interests for a more enjoyable high school experience.

Connect the dots

Your schoolwork and hobbies may seem unrelated, but it's like finding where two paths meet in a forest. For example, if you enjoy drawing, think about how your artistic skills can shine in your history or English projects. If you're part of an athletic team, think about how your sports knowledge can influence your math or biology assignments. These hidden connections can not only save time but also make your learning adventure more fun.

Take advantage of your extracurricular groups

Study groups may be dull, but they’ll get more interesting if you can turn to your clubs and teams for help with homework. Ask your science or coding club for feedback on a project you’re working on for class or to help you understand a concept you’re struggling with. Teaming up will not only boost your grades but also connect the skills and ideas you need to master your classes and your hobbies.

Related: 5 Quick Tips to Help You Choose Your High School Extracurriculars

Build a comprehensive portfolio

Your journey through high school is more than just grades, and so is college admission. That’s why it’s helpful to create a portfolio that tells your unique story. Showcase how your school achievements and hobbies came together and paint a picture that goes beyond what a transcript can show. You can then use this portfolio to help support your future college and scholarship applications.

Blend technology creatively

Technology isn't just for homework; it can be the magic wand that blends your school life and hobbies with ease. Design a digital portfolio, add creative touches to school presentations with videos and pictures, or explore tech solutions for real-world issues as a final project or essay topic. Tech-savvy strategies like these make assignments more fun and also stand out to schools, scholarship sponsors, and even future employers.

Related: How to Utilize Technology to Get Ahead of the Class

Connect through mentorship

Mentorship can be the ultimate bridge between your academic and extracurricular interests. Mentors are like wise travelers who've been where you want to be and can offer advice as you follow a similar path. Connecting with adults at your school or in your community who share your personal or career interests will help you learn, grow, network, and work toward your goals. They also become great references when you need them for college, scholarship, or job applications!

Innovate with a capstone project

Capstones are culminating projects that demonstrate a student's mastery of a particular subject, and they’re not just for college students! You can step away from ordinary high school projects and envision creating something extraordinary with a capstone that blends lessons you’ve learned in school with your favorite hobby or dream career. It can be like a grand finale that involves researching, writing, and presenting what you’ve learned or what you’re passionate about (all of which impresses colleges). It's not just a project—it's your masterpiece that lets you display your hard work, spread knowledge, and share your interests with a larger audience.

Reflect for growth

Taking a moment to reflect isn't just about looking back; it's about understanding how far you've come. If you find that you’re not as passionate about something as you thought you were, don’t feel tied to it; move on and find something else that interests you! On the other hand, if you find something you love to do, dig even deeper to see if you can make it into a career or even a side hustle. Like checkpoints in a game, reflecting will help you gauge your progress and ensure you're on the right track in balancing all aspects of your life as a student. 

Related: Cultivating a Growth Mindset: How to Embrace Your Unique Creative Abilities

By intertwining your academic journey with your extracurricular pursuits, you're not just balancing your school and personal life but unleashing your full potential. This unique strategy will set you apart when it comes to applying to college and help you find more value from your high school experience. So go ahead—blend your worlds and watch your success story unfold!

Looking for great colleges that let you pursue all your extracurricular interests? Check out our Lists & Rankings by Activities to find and connect with schools that fit your vibe!

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 Isabel Kumar

Isabel Kumar is a future author and business owner pursuing a career in entrepreneurship. “Writing, to me, is simply thinking through my fingers.” — Isaac Asimov

 

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

College Quick Connect

Swipe right to request information.
Swipe left if you're not interested.

The University of Tampa

Tampa, FL


Fabiola Rodriguez

Fabiola Rodriguez

High School Class of 2022

CollegeXpress helped me on my journey to get to the school of my first choice by showing me all the options I have. I didn’t know of the College of Southern Nevada until I went on this website, and it helped me look for other choices and compare what colleges would be right for me.

Maliha

Maliha

High School Class of 2019

My college search began at CollegeXpress. Due to this helpful tool, I was able to gather a lot of information to guide my college planning decisions. Through CollegeXpress, I was also able to apply to several scholarships to help pay for my tuition. I would definitely recommend this website to anyone who wants to explore colleges and get more information from admission experts, counselors, and real students.

Jeannie Borin, MEd

Jeannie Borin, MEd

President and Founder, College Connections

I frequently visit CollegeXpress to answer questions from students and parents. There are countless hot topics in admissions that need to be addressed. I enjoy reading what my colleagues post and gain additional insight from different perspectives.

Kory Gilbertson

Kory Gilbertson

High School Class of 2022

CollegeXpress has helped me explore my views on college in that "why do I wanna go to a certain school" way. It’s helped me explore the best fits in all of these outstanding choices. All these college admission counselors can access my accolades showing them how I could help their college. This source of information helps me show these admission directors who I am and what I'm interested in. Thanks to this platform, my experience for education will be better than most, and I'm so grateful for all that it has provided for me.

Yuhlani Patterson

Yuhlani Patterson

High School Student

CollegeXpress has helped me find so many scholarships that fit me. They match me to colleges I have specific interest in to make searching for colleges way easier and more efficient. CollegeXpress refers me to schools that have my major of interest and backup schools if I want to change my mind. CollegeXpress also gives out their own scholarships, so you have even more of a chance at gaining multiple scholarships. This website has helped me de-stress from the pressure of not being able to afford college, [of finding] what schools are right for me, and how to find easy access to scholarships that most people never knew existed.