<p>Virtually all the people on this forum who I’ve seen accepted to Northwestern tend to have done a ton of volunteer work. I’m not completely lacking in volunteering, but the only volunteer work I have to my name is being the vice president of my school’s chapter of this local peace-keeping organization that raises money for education and health in generally war-torn countries. I certainly don’t have 100+ hours to it, and I have no volunteer work outside my school aside from an ~20 hour stint at a library over summer.
I’m a junior, but should I try to do some last-minute volunteering over summer to make up for it? I don’t want to sound like I would only do it for the hours (since I do actually care), but I also don’t want to get rejected from NU based off my comparatively shoddy record.</p>
<p>Not evaluated as any different from any other EC unless you frame it differently.</p>
<p>Northwestern is not looking for anything specific with regard to community service but it certainly would help to have it if you’re wealthy and want to show you haven’t been living in a bubble. This is because Northwestern does not want to be a breeding ground for students who don’t care/think about the social good. Even members of the frats/sororities have done incredible things community-wise. Alternatively, you can convey genuine interest in social service through your intellectual interests, e.g. studying poverty, the developing world, etc. </p>
<p>If you’re not wealthy, it might not be as important but it could certainly help depending on the message you’re trying to convey to admissions. In the end, the nature of your ECs matters less than the impact you’ve done with whatever it is, whether it be music, drama, math, etc. Impact can be measured in many different ways, including leadership and influence in a team, changing the culture of a school or the way things are usually done, and bettering the lives of others. A college community needs many different interests and talents represented on campus in order to function, and Northwestern simply wants to know what your specific contributions will be if you’re admitted.</p>