How to use your summer to boost your application and bolster your personal growth
Summer is fast approaching, so it’s time to focus on your extracurricular plans. Using your summer to pursue meaningful experiences that reflect your values, highlight your passions, and demonstrate your commitment to social causes will enrich your life and help you stand out in your university applications.
How to identify activities of interest that set you apart
There is a misconception that universities require and value particular extracurricular activities. If you like an activity, universities like the activity. Genuine commitment to your passions and sustained involvement in areas of interest are key to creating unique and authentic personal profiles.
What do universities value?
Universities look favourably at activities demonstrating intellectual curiosity, highlighting leadership and initiative, showing collaboration, indicating consistent engagement, and providing service to others. These broad categories can encompass diverse activities, from organized programs to self-study and independent research. Dedicating this summer to scaling up your involvement in one or two of these categories by doing what you love is the perfect start to creating an authentic profile.
Ideas for authentic profile creation
Conducting a personal audit is the first step in determining your summer projects. Reflect on areas of yourself you would like to evolve and skills you would like to cultivate and develop. Next, identify values, roles, and identities that make you who you are and how they influence your decisions. Finally, determine what you learned from your involvement in each activity and how you can use this knowledge or skills to impact your community. For example, if you would like to develop your leadership skills, value connection, and love music, consider playing music at a local senior home and organizing a concert there. If you want to improve your research skills and currently help at a homeless shelter, take your involvement further by researching systemic issues surrounding homelessness and identifying ways to add to your current service role.
Prestige versus passion
Participating in an expensive paid academic program or language study experience, while worthwhile if you are interested in the subject or language, is considered a “bought” experience with a hint of privilege. Another approach is to engage in a self-directed or self-earned endeavour. Embark on a passion project like creating a podcast or blog on a topic of interest, initiating a lawn mowing or power washing business in your neighbourhood, or designing a logo for a local charity event. It doesn’t matter what you select and where you put your energy; your initiative, creativity, and dedication will be evident if they align with your passions.
Self-learning and independent study
The summer is a perfect time to dive deeply into academic areas of interest. Use open-access journals, sign up for free learning programs, study a new language on Duolingo, or write a research paper. Independent study demonstrates intellectual curiosity and critical thinking, both highly valued by universities. Self-learning highlights your interests and develops your authentic self.
Summer Employment
Universities recognize students who demonstrate a consistent work ethic and collaborative skills. Summer is ideal for breaking out of your school bubble and exploring the broader community. Summer jobs offer the opportunity to try new things, engage with diverse people, collaborate with your team, and show you can roll up your sleeves and get to work. Whether you are busing at a restaurant, filling shelves at a grocery store, guiding kids at day camp, or tutoring math, summer jobs help develop teamwork, collaboration, and leadership skills and can add to your authentic profile creation.
Volunteering and Service to Others
If you already volunteer during the year, the summer is the time to up-level your involvement. Find a cause that you are passionate about and make an impact. If you volunteer with your sports team, try initiating a sports charity event, start a social media account for the team, or plan an outreach program for local kids to participate in the sport. Do what you currently do and then do more. Authenticity is evident when you do what you love.
Designing a summer extracurricular plan does not require an overpacked schedule or an extensive list of activities — it means following your passion to choose experiences that reflect your values and who you want to become. Use the summer to enhance your repertoire and build an authentic personal profile.
If you need help selecting, designing, and narrating your personal profile, Options Solutions’ consultants and writing coaches are available and ready to assist you in creating unique, authentic stories. Contact us today!
