Teen community service can enhance a college application by demonstrating how students contribute beyond the classroom. Academic preparedness is always a key factor in the admissions process, but significant involvement in community service can help admissions offices see the character, initiative, and sense of responsibility of an applicant, as well as their ability to participate meaningfully in the college community.
The Making Caring Common project encourages admissions offices to look for significant contributions to others, civic engagement, and participation in community service learning when reviewing college applications. However, community service should complement, not replace, strong academic preparation.
Community service, however, should be complimentary to a rigorous academic background. Grades, course rigor, essays, and recommendation letters are still important. Community service can provide valuable layers of meaning to an application that informational transcripts alone cannot offer by showcasing the volunteer experience teens have gained while developing leadership, responsibility, and community awareness.
What Do Colleges Look for in Community Service?
Colleges typically seek extracurricular impact, consistency, personal growth, and meaningful participation. A student who is passionate about a particular cause and maintains ongoing involvement over a period of time can convey a greater amount of information about their values than a student who has participated in many different and unrelated one-time activities.
In admissions advice published by IvyWise, it is emphasized that quality of involvement in teen community service is more important than quantity of involvement in various activities. Admissions are usually able to tell when students are joining activities for a college application boost. Service learning experiences are more compelling when they reflect authentic interests, sustained participation, and a genuine desire to help.
Meaningful service does not mean that you have to create a nonprofit organization or lead a major campaign. It can be just as beneficial to provide tutoring services for younger students, regularly assist with food distribution and other activities at the local food pantry, help with your local animal shelter, take part in a community project, or volunteer in support of some cause in your area. What matters most is the student’s contribution and willingness to learn from the experience.
How Can Community Service Develop Leadership Skills?
Teen community service builds leadership by placing students in real situations that require initiative, communication, cooperation, flexibility, and problem solving. Students may engage in various activities such as coordinating volunteers, organizing supplies, collaborating with community organizations, mentoring young participants, or responding when an original plan does not work.
How Should Students Include Community Service on College Applications?
A student’s involvement in community service should detail the nature of the student’s responsibilities, extent of involvement, and contributions to the organization. A good description comprises more than merely stating the name of the organization and the total number of community service hours.
Per the guidance of College Board’s BigFuture, colleges examine extracurricular impact and participation as an indication of leadership ability, initiative, and showcases particular specialties and interests outside of academics. With that in mind, BigFuture encourages students to choose extracurricular activities in accordance with their interests and not out of a desire to join as many organizations as possible just to appear impressive to a college.
When accurate and verifiable, students can calculate their accomplishments, such as the number of:
- Students trained
- Food and/or supplies collected
- Money raised for a charitable project
- Volunteers managed during an event
- Resources produced for future use in the community
Volunteer work can appear in the activities section, personal essay, interview, or letter of recommendation. Wherever such information appears, students should concentrate on what they actually did without exaggerating their involvement.
Final Thoughts
While teen community service can be a beneficial college application boost, building an admissions resume should never be the only reason to volunteer. Instead, service should be an opportunity for a teen to learn about themselves and how to be a leader, develop skills, make new friends, and understand how they fit into the bigger picture.
If you haven’t yet, be sure to read our previous article Volunteer Opportunities That Boost College Applications to find ways for students to connect service with their interests and future goals.
