By: Tianyou Lee, Staff Writer

I am, unfortunately, a junior. That means I have to start seriously thinking about colleges and how to appeal to them.

Besides the standard high GPA and standardized testing scores, there is something else which can heavily benefit my — and your — college applications: extracurriculars.

Extracurriculars, or activities outside of regular school classes, can show to colleges what you’re like as a person much more than numbers from your grades or tests. They also demonstrate commitment, a connection to your community, and the practical skills you’ve developed.

Colleges don’t only consider academic success anymore. Of course, taking hard classes like APs and maintaining your GPA is important, but it’s hard to differentiate yourself from others doing the same if that’s your only selling point. (Especially at Mills, where academic competitiveness is very high.)

Tests like the SAT and the ACT can be useful for private colleges, but currently UCs “will not consider SAT, ACT or SAT Subject Test scores when making admission decisions or awarding scholarships,” according to the University of California website. They eliminated their standardized testing requirement back in 2020. For those of us aiming for UCs (which are many), our focus shouldn’t be on these tests.

Instead, extracurriculars serve as a very valuable addition to college applications and work well in conjunction with grades. Your GPA can show your dedication as a student; your extracurriculars can show your life beyond school, what your interests and talents are.

Jayde Tijero, a School Counselor at Mills whom I spoke with for this article, gave me valuable insights about the specific benefits of extracurriculars.

“I would say showing that you have leadership skills or that you care about the community often connects with being involved in an extracurricular activity,” she told me. 

Whether you have a job or are a member of a school club, your involvement shows a level of proactiveness for seeking out these opportunities. Gaining a higher position within an extracurricular is also proof of your value there. By working with others, you improve your collaboration and leadership, important and appealing soft skills.

As a part of their college application process, UCs have a series of eight personal insight questions, and applicants are required to answer four of them. The first reads, “Describe an example of your leadership experience in which you have positively influenced others, helped resolve disputes or contributed to group efforts over time.” The third says, “What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?” And the seventh is, “What have you done to make your school or your community a better place?” Your experiences in your extracurriculars can serve as good material for essay prompts like these.

Knowing the importance of extracurriculars, it can still be hard to choose which you’d like to be a part of, with various types of part-time jobs, clubs, sports teams, and volunteering opportunities. Tijero brought up an important point about this: your extracurriculars should ideally be connected to what you want to major in.

“You might want to do something that’s related to what you want to study to get that experience,” she said. “For example, [for] the medical field, you might want to do something science related, maybe a science club or a science-related volunteer or internship opportunity.”

For more general extracurricular activities, Tijero mentioned that “getting involved in just supporting the community is always really appealing” and noted the Interact Club as one example.

I also interviewed Olive Aguilar (11), who participates in nine (nine!) extracurriculars between Mills and Middle College. Some include the Mills’ robotics team, the Boba Bots; Sunshine Club, which plans fun events for Middle College; and Ambassadors, who recruit high schoolers to Middle College. Many of their clubs provide good experience for the majors they’re planning to study in college.

“I’m looking to [go] into political science or environmental science,” she said. “And so I think robotics, Environmental Club, Sunshine, and Ambassadors are all clubs … where they are actually actively helping my application, that process of trying to get to that place … because I’m either looking to go into science or into something that we’re asked to talk to people all the time.”

Aguilar also emphasized the importance of balancing out different time commitments to avoid burnout.

“This is what I recommend,” they told me. “You have two large, time-dedicated extracurriculars. At least three of them you only go once a month. … And then the rest can be for either fun or for leadership opportunities.”

As for the best time to join extracurriculars, Tijero recommended sophomore year as you’re still transitioning from middle school to high school as a freshman. Aguilar said to “test out everything in freshman year” to then be more dedicated to a few as a sophomore and aim for leadership positions as a junior. 

Personally, I’ve found a lot of benefits from participating in the Boba Bots myself. Since I joined as a sophomore in the nontechnical Operations department, I’ve improved a lot in my collaboration and writing skills. This year, now that I’m a lead and a mentor for our program at Taylor Middle School, I’ve gained a lot of experience in teaching others, which is helpful since I’m looking to go into education.

If you’re looking to go to college, I’d highly recommend looking into extracurriculars which suit you and your future major to add to your application. Good luck to everyone applying, now or in the future, and I hope you all get into where you want!