Collegewise counselors will soon be getting frequent questions from families about what their students should be doing this summer. And our replies almost always start with the same question:
What do you want to do?
Summers are important in college planning. Kids deserve downtime to do fun things that have nothing to do with college. But work ethic, curiosity, and passion aren’t seasonal traits. Kids who love to learn want to do it all the time. Kids who enjoy being productive don’t just suppress that trait for three summer months. And a student who loves playing soccer, programming computers or playing guitar will probably find some (enjoyable) way to maintain a connection with that interest over the summer.
For summer planning, don’t worry so much about what the colleges want you to do. Instead, think about what you want to do. Choosing a summer activity based only on the hopes that it will impress colleges is usually an ineffective strategy (paying big money to attend Harvard Summer School doesn’t necessarily prove you’re an intellectual student, especially if a love of learning isn’t evident in other areas of your life).
Whether you take a cooking class, learn Spanish, play softball or bag groceries, make your own choice. If you work hard at it and make an impact, colleges will be impressed.