Extracurriculars

Ranked by Impact on College Admissions

01

Common Activities

· 85%+ participation

Standard school involvement, aim for a couple as a baseline

Club Member
National Honor Society
National Merit Commended
Beta Club
Honor Roll
Department Award
Key Club Member
Interact Club
Light Volunteering
Personal Website
JV/Rec Sports
School Science Fair
Personal Blog
Family Volunteering
Career Day Attendee
02

Schoolwide and Local Effort

· 50% participation

Shows dedication, good to have a few

Bank of America local awards
Local essay contest win
AP Scholar
Honorable mention in art show
Active in religious youth group
School peer tutor
Freshman orientation leader
Lifeguard certified
CPR / First Aid certified
Active club member (non-leadership)
Band/choir participant (no solo)
Finished online coding course
Founded a casual club
Varsity Letter
Summer camp counselor
Cashier or server job
Helped in local fundraisers
Wrote for school paper (not editor)
Volunteered <100 hrs
Small role in community theater
Local community service award
Scout (non-Eagle)
Attended basic MUN conference
Generic summer program attendee
Regular honor roll
YouTube/blog with low reach
Made personal coding project
History Day participant (regional only)
Scholastic Art & Writing Honorable Mention
03

Local Recognition

· 40% participation

Strong local achievement and leadership roles

Local Science Fair Winner
All-County Music
Eagle Scout
National Merit Finalist
Head of major club (non-founder)
Founder/President of school club
Varsity Letter (multiple years)
100+ hours at one volunteer org
Part-time job for 1+ year
College courses (e.g., community college)
People to People Ambassador
Skill camps (e.g., coding, debate)
Prom Committee or Event Planner
Scholastic Art & Writing Regional Silver Key
04

Competitive Regional/State Honors

· 25% participation

Regional excellence and state-level recognition

USACO Silver
Science Fair Regional Winner
Science Olympiad State Medal
Science Bowl Nationals
Perfect Scores in Language Exams (Multi-Year)
State Music Awards
Academic Decathlon Event Golds
MUN Gavel
AMC School Winner
Scholastic Art & Writing Gold Key
Top 5 FTC Regional
Quiz Bowl Regional Champ
Pit Orchestra
TSA State Medal
Student Body/Class President
05

Complements a Strong Record

· 15% participation

High-level achievements that enhance top applications

USAAAO
USNCO Semifinalist
AIME
National Latin Convention 1st
All-Eastern/All-Regional Music
State History Day Top 3
Top 5 FIRST State (or FRC Regionals)
SkillsUSA Nationals
State Science Fair Winner
Academic Decathlon State + CA Event Gold
Monetized Academic/Creative YouTube or Blog
Notable App Developer
ARML State Top Scorer
HOBY State
FIRST Dean's List Finalist
Top 5 FIRST Super Regionals
Boys/Girls State Delegate
FTC Inspire Award (state level)
VEX Excellence Award (state level)
RYLA Participant
National Language Exam Golds
Certified WFR or EMT in HS
Student Gov President
Congressional Award Gold
USACO Gold
Model UN Head Delegate
Editor-in-Chief of Regional Literary Journal
06

Significant Advantage

· 5% participation

Nationally competitive achievements

USAPhO / USABO Semifinalist
Science Olympiad Nationals Qualifier
Iowa Young Writers Studio
Kenyon Young Writers Studio
HOSA ILC 1st Place
USACO Platinum
AMC 10 Perfect Score
Congressional Award Silver
FBLA Nationals
Science Bowl/NAQT Winner
TSA Nationals
Scholastic Art & Writing National Silver
Academic Decathlon (CA) Top 3
Code Jam/Facebook Hacker Cup Qualifier
MathWorks Challenge Top 10
M&TSI (UPenn)
Stanford SUMaC
Canada/USA Mathcamp
State Poetry Out Loud Champion
ACDA National Honor Choir
Congressional App Challenge State Winner
PEYA Regional Winner
Braille Challenge State Winner
Princeton Prize Regional Winner
NCWIT Aspirations National Winner
Model G20 Best Delegate
Scripps Spelling Bee Top 50
Duke TIP High Honors
FIRST Dean's List Winner
National Shakespeare Winner
Poetry Society of America Top Winner
Ocean Awareness Gold Award
Summer Science Program (SSP)
Simons Summer Research Program
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Internship
Minority Introduction to Engineering and Science (MITES)
Stanford University Mathematics Camp (SUMaC)
Ross Mathematics Program (ROSS)
Program in Mathematics for Young Scientists (PROMYS)
Canada/USA Mathcamp
Governor's School
We the People Nationals
Gloria Barron Prize Winner
07

Exceptional

· 1% participation

Elite national recognition and prestigious programs

Science Olympiad National Medals
PGSS, NJGSS (<15% rate)
ARML Tiebreaker
YES Competition
USAMTS Gold
ISEF Finalist
History Day Nationals Participant
Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold
NSDA Nationals Breaker
TOC Breaker
IPPF Top 64
NYAS Junior Academy
HSMC at Texas State
Life of the Mind (UChicago)
NHSMUN Best Delegate
Coolidge Senator (Finalist)
LEDA Scholars
Aspen Music Festival (HS division)
Perry Outreach Program
NSLI-Y Virtual Intensive
08

National Standout

· 0.1% participation rates

Top-tier national achievements and recognition

USAPhO / USNCO / USABO / USACO National Finalist
Google Science Fair Semifinalist
Siemens Semifinalist
Intel ISEF 1st–4th Place
Intel STS Semifinalist
Regeneron STS Top 300
Running a successful business
USAMO Qualification
AMC 12 Perfect Score
Scholastic Portfolio Gold Award
Top 5 at FIRST Worlds
Bennington Young Writers 1st Place
Google Code Jam R2/3
Facebook Hacker Cup R2/3
MIT PRIMES
IPPF Top 32
All-National Band/Orchestra Performer
Boys Nation Participant
National High School Musical Theatre Awards Finalist
IPPF Overall Winner
EFL Top Participant
Microsoft Imagine Cup Jr. Global Winner
NYT Student Editorial Winner
JFK Profile in Courage Essay Winner
George S. & Stella Knight Essay Winner
Poetry Foundation 'Poetry Ourselves' National Winner
National Young Composers Challenge Winner
CyberPatriot National Top Scorer
National History Day 'Best in Nation'
The Concord Review Published Author
U.S. Physics Team (Top 24)
National Latin/Greek Exam Perfect Scores
CMU SAMS Completion
Milken Scholars Program
Adroit Prizes Winner/Finalist
09

Near-Guaranteed Admission

· <0.1% participation

Elite achievements that virtually guarantee admission

Division I Athlete
Siemens Westinghouse Finalist
Google Science Fair Finalist
Mathematical Olympiad Program (MOP)
Intel STS Finalist
ISEF Best of Category
NSDA Nationals Winner
Tournament of Champions Winner
NCFL Nationals Winner
Research Science Institute (RSI)
Published in a relatively prestigious journal
NSLI-Y (State Dept. full scholarship abroad)
Mensa Education & Research Foundation Top Awards
Concordia Language Villages Full Scholarship
The Bronfman Fellowship
MIT Lincoln Lab LLRISE Program
National Student Poet Program
USAJMO Top Winner
Broadcom MASTERS Top Prize
Jack Kent Cooke College Scholarship
Tanglewood Music Center (as HS student)
Telluride Association Summer Program in Critical Black Studies (TASP-CBS)
USACO Platinum Training Camp (~25 finalists)
National Science Bowl Winners
National History Olympiad Champions
Music Teachers National Association Finalist
International Thespian Festival Main Stage
CyberPatriot National Finalist
VEX Robotics World Champion
EGOI Team
Carnegie Hall Youth Programs (NYO-USA)
The Coca-Cola Scholars Program
10

Guaranteed Admission

· <0.01% participation

International and top-tier national honors

International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) Medalist
International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) Medalist
International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) Medalist
International Biology Olympiad (IBO) Medalist
International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) Medalist
International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) Medalist
International Linguistics Olympiad (IOL) Medalist
International Young Physicists' Tournament (IYPT) Winner
International Geography Olympiad (iGeo) - Gold
International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO) - Gold
Poetry Out Loud National Champion
Davidson Fellows Scholarship
Regeneron Science Talent Search (STS) Top 10
Siemens Competition National Finalist
International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) Grand Prize Winner
Google Science Fair Winner
National History Day National Winner
Single/First Author in a High-Impact Factor Journal
Special Performance/Solo at Carnegie Hall
International Competitor in a Sport
Boys/Girls Nation President
Presidential Scholar
All American High School Film Festival Winner
Individual National Champion (swimming, golf, tennis, etc.)
Olympic Development Program Selection
YoungArts National Gold Award
Stockholm Junior Water Prize - International Winner
World Philosophy Championship (International Philosophy Olympiad) - Gold/Silver
Brain Bee World Champion
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Note: The vast majority of applicants at top schools only have extracurriculars from the first five categories. Even at Yale, anything above a 6 is exceedingly rare. The best extracurriculars are those you're genuinely passionate about.