Is Volunteer Work Absolutely Necessary?

shennie
Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:12:29 +0000

I asked an admissions person on this forum about that a few years ago. The answer I got back was that community service was not required for admission. The committees look for students who are committed to something and show a depth of interest. Students who are doing 3 sports and taking 3-4 AP or Honors classes don’t have much extra time. Same goes for the kids who are playing 2 instruments, taking private lessons on both, and playing in every music group in the school. Or the kid who does both school and community theater. Admission committees know that there are only so many hours in the day.

Community service is a great thing to do. Many of the larger group activities that students are involved in contribute actively to the community. The small music ensemble that plays at the local nursing home, the drama group that performs a skit at the local elementary school, the team that does a benefit for the local sports league, are all doing community service.

If your schedule is full of activities that are meaningful to you, don’t worry about trying to get involved with something just to put it on your application. If you want to do some community service, find ways within your current activities to contribute to the wider community. My guess is that you are already doing it if you look closely at your activities.