My son enjoys competing in the U.S. History Bee nationals and for that reason alone I encourage him to do so, however I wonder its merits for college admissions? Any thoughts? It is a considerable effort to compete each year… Is it worth it in terms of augmenting a college application? Said another way, would 4 consecutive years competing in the nationals with an upward trend improve his college app or have little to no bearing on it? He is in it purely for the joy of it, but as Dad I am looking a little further down the road and feel the need to assess the merits of this particularly since he has to forego other extracurriculars (school play) to do this. A liberal arts admission dean that I know told me play to his strengths and history is it. He also told me that he would have to have the history bee explained on a app to consider it. Thoughts?
I only know of the History Bee on the middle school level, but if by four years you mean four HS years, then, yeah, it’ll be a great EC. Does he think he might major in history? If so, this will show his interest in the subject outside the classroom.
Yes this is the high school version now in its second year. He definitely will major in history. Thanks for the reply.
I think it’s a plus application-wise for a kid to compete in anything at an elite level regardless of whether he wins or loses.He will gain many insights from this competion so an insightful essay would be an asset to his application. If he winds up winning, then he needs to put it on his application as an award as well as the great essay
I think if he likes it and has a passion for it, he should go for it. It’s better than doing something for a college application or doing something he doesn’t enjoy. If I remember correctly, you were also the one asking about the WM NIAHD summer program, so it definitely seems that he has a passion for history.
One thing I have learned from doing college applications is that it helps to be able to craft it into a story, and show a narrative within the context of both the essay and the extracurriculars. If history is one of his strengths and his interests, I would recommend doing extracurriculars related to it (which it sounds like he is already doing). If he sacrifices it for the school play or other activities, it may seem kind of random and just a jumble of different activities. Anyways, that is just my two cents. Did he end up deciding whether or not to do the program btw?
He should live his life authentically and do what he really enjoys.
@shawnspencer he will be attending the W&M summer program. Thanks so much for your advice in that regard. Thanks all for your replies!
Another approach, if your son applies to schools that require letters of recommendation, is to get a letter of recommendation from an advisor or coach involved with the US History Bee.
@MrMicawber Congratulations, I am happy to hear that! If you need any recommendations about dorms, good places to eat, stuff to do in the local area, or whatever else feel free to PM me. I may not have done the program before, but I am pretty familiar with campus and its surroundings. There is a cool program in Colonial Williamsburg if you get a cider mug, you get free refills with drinks and soft serve ice cream throughout the year. Pretty neat