I have been volunteering as a Smithsonian Digital Transcription Volunteer for a little over a year at this point and was wondering if it would be okay to mention it on my application. Basically, I help transcribe and review historical documents so that they are easily searchable for researchers. I think it is a lot of fun (and super interesting) which is why I have stuck with it for so long! I have transcribed and reviewed around 1,500 pages of historical documents which might grant some legitimacy to it.
The thing is that I don’t have enough space for all of my ECs, so I obviously have to prioritize. I want to ignore some of the random clubs I’m in, which were done solely for something to do after school when my parents couldn’t pick me up. However, my counselor said not to mention the transcription thing since it is basically just me sitting around on my computer which just looks bad.
That makes sense, but I am really interested in history, so I want to include it to show how I pursued this interest outside of school. My parents both work, and we couldn’t even afford drivers ed for me, so I never had the opportunity to volunteer at a museum or do stuff like this in person, which is why I turned to the internet. So, I was hoping to get a broader opinion on whether or not to mention it. Thanks!
I vote yes, put it on there. It’s volunteer work that you are passionate about and have put significant time into. Much better than some random club you did little or nothing with and didn’t care about.
I disagree with your counselor; you should definitely write about it! It sounds like something you really care about, and you could always go into more detail in another part of your application so that you can help dispel this notion that you just sit around all day. I say go for it.
Sorry, your counselor is wrong. This is an great extracurricular in every respect. You enjoy it, you have devoted a lot of time to it, and it is for the Smithsonian, so it is credible. If this is the activity you are most interested in and the one you spend the most time in, list it first. I guarantee it is far more interesting than some run of the mill club at school.
Volunteering at the Smithsonian isn’t remotely similar to surfing the net or playing “Donkey Kong” all day. Adcoms can tell the difference. I’d use it on your app. It sounds pretty interesting.
Definitely put it on your application. It is way more interesting and unique than a “random high school club” and even more importantly is something you are passionate about doing. Your counselor is wrong on this one IMO.
You can use additional information your ECs spill over. I think it is unique, and shows a certain endearing geekiness that you find it interesting. (Colleges WANT endearing geekiness!) One of my kids write an essay on why she loved the great speeches competition in high school speech – it was really something she was passionate about. She wrote about things like how it changed her view of current events, made her more interested in the news and speeches in the current world, how she researched for her speeches, and how it made her feel when she was doing it. If you were my kid, I’d suggest you put it as one of your top ECs, and write your essay about it if you are passionate about it. Colleges want people who are interested and interesting, and something a little off the beaten track like this is catnip for them.
Thank you all so much for the help! I definitely will include it since it seems to be at least somewhat interesting. It is probably my second or third favorite and involved EC, so I’m glad that it won’t be negative to mention it.