Research Opportunities
Ralph Becker
The Importance of High School Research

Many applicants to the most selective university programs share high grades, high test scores, solid recommendations and generous doses of community service and volunteer activities. Yet, if they want to set themselves apart from the pool of exceptional students, a significant research experience in STEM or the social sciences helps.

The Importance of High School Research

Job Shadowing

Encountering the World of Enterprise through Job Shadowing

Encountering the World of Enterprise through Job Shadowing

Students are usually so immersed in their studies and extracurricular activities that they are hard pressed to venture into the real world, and try to figure out how they might fit into it. Often, their first approaches are through internship programs, or through volunteer efforts in hospitals and other venues. Some students, of course, must work part time to supplement their family’s income but, they also, many times, find it difficult to look beyond their daily efforts. No matter the circumstances, all of us need to actively explore the range of career opportunities available. One of the best means of doing so is job shadowing.

Searching for Internships

Searching for Internships

According to a 2005 NACAC (National Association of College Academic Counselors) survey on factors that are given "considerable importance" in the admissions process, 'Grades in college prep courses/along with strength of curriculum' were most important, with just under 75% of schools surveyed citing this factor; admissions test scores were second, with 60%; then came class rank (which to me is just another way of asking for grades) with 30%; next, the essay with 23%, and then extracurricular activities with 8%. ("Dramatic Challenge to SAT and ACT" by Scott Jaschik, www.insidehighered.com.--Yes, the schools surveyed were allowed to select multiple factors.) Naturally, the one area that tends to consume many students and most parents is extracurricular, the least important factor according to the schools. Further, among the extracurricular activities, the elusive internship always seems the most difficult to discover and arrange.