For the most competitive colleges, Harvard, Stanford, MIT, the Ivies, and the rest, a student’s extracurriculars (alongside their essays) are one of the biggest factors that set applicants apart.
The hard part is knowing how to approach them: how to build a set of activities that stands out to admissions officers. This post walks through the extracurricular strategy I, Harvard undergraduate Rishab Jain, used to get into Harvard, Stanford, MIT, and more.
The extracurricular strategy that got me into Harvard
Why do so few applications make it through? It usually comes down to what you do outside of class. Too many students join every club they can, trying to impress admissions officers with a long list. But quality matters more than quantity.
Spreading yourself across a lot of groups actually makes you harder to notice. If Harvard just wanted well-rounded generalists, they could fill a class with them. What they’re really looking for is a clear passion, a “spike” that makes you stand out.
So how do you find your spike? Start by identifying your “avatar,” the one word that captures who you are and what drives you. It works like a compass for your extracurricular choices, whether it’s “biologist,” “compassionate,” or “curious,” like me.
Next, ask people who’ve already been through it. Alumni and upperclassmen are usually happy to share what they know. Make sure your choices line up with your goals instead of just following the crowd.
When it comes to joining clubs, quality beats quantity. Pick a few where you can genuinely make a difference and that actually interest you. And don’t fall for the sunk cost fallacy: it’s fine to leave a club that no longer fits your goals. You don’t have time to spend on things that don’t build your passion or your spike.
Take two hypothetical students, Sheldon and Missy. Sheldon overcommitted to a bunch of clubs to look impressive, while Missy focused on a few that matched her interests in science and volunteering. Who do you think caught the admissions officers’ attention? Missy. What matters is the impact you make and the passion you show, not the number of clubs you join.
Sharpen your spike and you clear your path to Harvard or any other school you’re aiming for. For a more detailed breakdown of this strategy, watch my full video below.
What was my main extracurricular?
So what was the “spike” I used to get into Harvard, and how can you follow a similar path?
In short, I did lab research, with mentorship, to build an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm to guide radiotherapy on the pancreas and help cancer patients during treatment. As impressive as that sounds on its own, it took months of work and careful planning to get there.
So how can you do something similar, and present it well to admissions officers?
First, a quick tour of my activities and how I described them, then three tips you can apply to your own Common Application right away.
The Common Application asks you to categorize and describe each activity, and the description is where you can really fine-tune things. For one of my research roles, I first wrote: “Completed software engineering internship at Lattice Automation focusing on improving codon optimization and won Regeneron Young Scientist Award.” I later revised it to: “Conducted novel bioengineering research, won top award ($50K) at Regeneron ISEF, licensed tool to Lattice Automation, and authored first research paper.”
See the difference? Admissions officers won’t stop to look up what the Regeneron Young Scientist Award is, so make your achievements instantly clear and impressive.
A lot of students unintentionally undersell their achievements, which muddies the real value of what they did. I made a point of stating my accomplishments clearly so the impact was obvious, across every activity, whether that was additional research roles, leading a nonprofit, or founding a tech company.
For example, my computational pathology research at Oregon Health and Science University led to two published papers and a win at a national science competition. In another activity, I was CEO of my own startup, reaching millions of users and generating significant revenue.
Now for the three tips I promised:
- Do activities you genuinely enjoy, not ones you join because they’re expected. I never joined NHS or similar clubs that didn’t interest me.
- Show impact, both with concrete results and by conveying that you actually care about the work.
- Build a distinctive strength, your “spike,” that sets you apart (covered above).
How to do your own STEM research as an extracurricular
That’s the strategy. If you have questions or want to learn how to do STEM research, check out this free guide: rishabacademy.com/guide. Good luck.
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