30 Extracurricular Ideas For Your College Application
Choosing students for top colleges has grown more qualitative as more universities make testing optional. Universities, therefore, consider the narratives students present in their essays and the projects they produce to support their application profiles. As a result, many students interpret and develop a unique project of their own, sometimes known as a passion project. This might be a business venture, an internet fundraiser, a student group, a research project, or any other array of potential undertakings.
30 Extracurricular Ideas For Your College Application
Do you want to improve your chances of getting into a top-tier university? Schedule your consultation with Tokyo Academics today!
How to choose a passion project to work on
Finding your area of passion is the first step in choosing a passion project. This may be a particular cause, subject of study, or perhaps something that piques your curiosity or interest! Your motivation will increase and it will be easier to put in the necessary time and effort if you are working on something that truly interests you. Additionally, it will make universities know more about your identity and motivations.
It might be beneficial to consider your favorite academic subject, your natural talents, the subjects you can talk about for hours on end, and the global issues that actually interest you. You’ll probably notice trends and themes when you answer these questions that keep coming up. Think about how you might combine these subjects to create a project that best displays your expertise and enthusiasm. Your level of enthusiasm for a concept will let you know if it’s the right one.
What kinds of passion projects might you undertake then? We’ll provide you with five examples of each of the six major categories of passion projects.
Here Are 30 Inspiring Suggestions For High School Students’ Passion Projects:
Category #1: Complete a Research Study
Research is a great approach to show that you are dedicated to your passions and have the initiative to pursue them. Your application’s research experience demonstrates a significant and early interest in the topic you wish to study.
Using data from subreddits to create a machine learning algorithm to forecast the price of bitcoin (and then tracking a portfolio over a year to see its effectiveness).
Developing a study project on Mumbai, India’s black market.
Analyzing Billboard trends to perform a study on the escalating appeal of hip-hop music.
Constructing a study on the existence of fractals in nature
Contacting professors in the field of your academic interest to secure a position as a research assistant.
Category #2: Create a Project That is Externally Focused and Academically Aligned
Colleges are looking for students who can generate and seize opportunities on their own. Setting yourself apart from other applicants for your contributions to your field involves showcasing a creative engagement with your academic interests.
Create a blog with a neuroscience emphasis.
Create a podcast including conversations with machine learning researchers.
Create and publish a book about surgeons who handle intriguing, unorthodox cases in a hospital.
Create a website or app that lets users practice their language skills with others.
Design social media marketing campaigns for regional charities that support causes you care about.
Category #3: Event Planning or Hosting
Live events are a fantastic method to demonstrate community involvement. Do not forget to capture, upload, and publish your live events so that they can be seen by more people and so that you have a tangible record of them.
Create an internet live concert series with a lineup of your favorite local musicians.
Organize a live Instagram or Zoom event for an astronomy trivia contest.
Go live on YouTube to discuss noteworthy happenings in world politics.
Hold workshops on subjects including diversity and inclusion, job possibilities, mental health, and self-sustainability.
Get a group together to collect gifts for the holidays and give them to underprivileged kids or kids in the nearby hospital.
Do you want to improve your chances of getting into a top-tier university? Schedule your consultation with Tokyo Academics today!
Category #4: Create a Social Media Presence
Building and expanding your audience requires a social media presence. The number of people who identify with a project or interest can frequently determine its influence. Building your social media presence will help you attract more people who are interested in your work.
Make a website that showcases your initiatives, work, and hobbies.
Create Instagram posts that showcase your academic interests.
Produce material and regularly post it; communicate with your audience through discussions, games, and live events that are engaging.
To increase your audience, work with other artists who provide similar material and have similar interests to you.
Promote your social media accounts and website by discussing them on podcasts, writing about them on blogs, and aggressively sharing links with your loved ones.
Category #5: Showcase Your Writing in Magazines or Journals
A project that has been published displays a very high level of credibility, particularly if it has been featured on renowned or well-known platforms.
Send a research paper to a reputable journal, like Concord Review.
Have a magazine that covers comparable subjects including your podcast.
Speak with online journals about publishing a guest article of yours.
Release a book of poetry or short stories, a novel, or both.
Interview an academic in your area of interest and publish the results in a magazine.
Category #6: Start Your Own Business
A great method to promote your interests and innovations in a profitable way while also demonstrating responsibility and dedication is to launch your own business.
Establish a blockchain summer camp for kids between the ages of 10 and 14.
Establish a drop shipping company in your State selling Korean cosmetics.
If you are an expert in a certain field, start an online or local tutoring service to assist other students.
Provide internet businesses and periodicals with content authoring and SEO services.
Start a drop shipping company with your favorite things, such as clothing, books, or other items.
How A Passion Project Makes You Stand Out While Applying To Universities
While significant, strong academic credentials, high test scores, and a wide choice of extracurricular activities are also typical in applications to most prestigious universities, they won’t make you stand out from the crowd. Students that take the initiative and follow their passions are valued by colleges since it demonstrates that you care about what you are doing. An effective method to show who you are as a person, your capacity for initiative, and your proficiency at execution is through a passion project in your application. They distinguish you from the competition and add interest and engagement to your application.
Colleges seek out applicants who have not only excelled academically but have actively participated in their communities and pursued their interests. A passion project exhibits a high level of dedication and motivation because they are challenging to execute.
So what are you waiting for? It’s time to start your own passion project!
We would also like to remind you that Tokyo Academics has a great admissions counseling program to help you build your narrative into a competitive application. You can find more information about it here!