10.06 What are the best extracurricular and summer activities? What are supercurriculars
10.06 SupercurricularsStudents and parents often ask, "What are the extracurricular activities that will really impress college admission committees?"Let's begin with a definition. Extracurricular activities--"extracurriculars," for short--are things you choose to do outside of class. They can be anything! Extracurriculars are a great way to explore directions that may have nothing to do with what goes on in school. They might include championship roller skating, caring for a younger brother or sister, or reading every word of War and Peace.You may engage in extracurricular activities after school, on weekends or during the summer. Some of you may even sneak in a few pages of War and Peace during lunch hour, just to find out what happens next!
Click on the image or on this link to access the video: http://bit.ly/supercurriculars
Athena Advises
Wide-ranging extracurricular activities are an important part of college applications, especially in the United States. But have you heard of supercurriculars?Supercurricular activities are a particular kind of extracurricular activities. The prefix "super-" here means "above and beyond." Supercurriculars push your knowledge of academic or career-oriented subjects beyond the boundaries of what is required for that subject in school. For example, taking a mathematics class at a community college near you is a supercurricular activity, because it goes beyond the limits of what is required (or even offered) at your school.It might help you remember the difference between these two if you think of supercurriculars as proving that you are "super" interested or even "super" good at something you are studying or want to study!Choosing a supercurricular activity demonstrates to an admissions committee that you have tested your commitment to a certain field, and are sufficiently drawn to it to spend your time engaged in this field. Coming in first in an international competition in economics or publishing a literary essay indicates that your work in this area has already been judged to be extremely good!Supercurriculars are especially important in applications to universities in the United Kingdom. Because applicants compete for a place in a particular course of study, it helps a U.K. university to know that you are serious about a given course, and are likely to succeed in your chosen field.Go ahead! Push your limits!Dr. Marlena CorcoranFounder and CEOAuthor of Year by Year to College, on amazon.com, amazon.de and many national amazon sites