I’ve met many students (often encouraged by their parents) who choose a particular activity because they think it will lead to a great college essay. It often happens in the summer before college applications start. They’ll plan a community service project, commit to a summer academic or leadership program, or schedule a trip to a foreign country with intentions of writing about the experience at its conclusion.
Great college essays come from looking backwards, not planning forward. There are ways to evaluate if an experience will be worthwhile. But just because an experience is valuable doesn’t necessarily make it a good essay topic. Great stories in college essays 1) are honest, 2) could only be told by the writer, 3) don’t just repeat information from the application. Sure, I’ve seen them come from big summer experiences. But great stories have also come from family traditions, part-time jobs at the mall, and rebuilding a home computer. And none of those great stories were planned ahead of time.
Choose activities and experiences because you think they help you learn, grow or have fun. Don’t do them for the essay.