Quote:
Originally Posted by Sperkowsky
Don't convince him. Let him do what he wants. Tell him to do what he likes more. You don't want him regretting his path later.
|
I agree, FRC sells itself. Though, if he is having a difficult time with his decision, you can help him think through it. I know that going through the decision process out loud can be helpful to some people.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ed Law
In general colleges do not like to see people quitting things in the middle of their high school career especially their senior year. Getting involved in high school sports is not all about winning. It is about making a commitment to others, training hard, doing your best, trusting your teammates, sportsmanship etc. Whether he is on a winning team or not does not matter especially if college basketball scholarship is not involved in this case (which is my assumption because otherwise he definitely cannot quit). Some colleges like to have students who were involved in sports. They never asked what your team or personal record is on the application unless you are being recruited. The common app does not even distinguish between varsity or junior varsity teams.
|
I respectfully disagree on this point. While it is true that colleges do like to see commitment, it is just one of many things they look for. I think that people put much too large of an emphasis on getting involved in as many things as possible in high school. I know that when I was a freshman, I was involved in like 12 things, like every other freshman. By the time I was a senior, I was only involved in about 4 things. However, I would not say I was only 1/3 as involved in extracurriculars senior year. In fact, I probably spent 2 or 3 times as much time doing extracurriculars (Thank You Build Season). I didn't quit 8 clubs so I could sleep more, I quit them as I discovered my interests and so I could become more committed to the few things I was really passionate about. I would argue that making the decision to quit a sport to focus on robotics or vice versa (Though why would anyone do that?
), actually shows more commitment because you demonstrate your willingness to make sacrifices for robotics.
Extracurriculars are just one part of the application. There are also essays, leadership positions, interviews, and more. If narrowing your activities makes these other categories stronger, it more than makes up for the slight 'hit' to your extracurriculars. I know that by far my best essay was one I wrote about robotics. People who read it said they felt the passion and personality in it much more than in any other essay. Colleges are looking for a person in the application, not a resume.
I'm going to give you and your friend some advice that you will completely ignore and that I did too until about 3 months ago. STOP THINKING ABOUT WHAT COLLEGES WANT!!!! The extra 10 points on your SAT, or extra AP class, or extra activity DON'T MATTER and won't make a difference. So please ignore everything I wrote above (I only wrote it because I know you won't) and consider this: If your friend (or anyone else) decides to do something solely because it "looks good for college," they will be miserable. I don't think that is true in your friends case, but please just DON'T THINK ABOUT COLLEGE in this decision. You will be much happier with your decision if you don't.
BTW: If your friend is looking for college essay ideas, writing about the difficulty of this decision is not a bad one.