Admissions counselors look for students who have tangible experiences and skills from advanced extracurricular projects because they demonstrate students’ genuine passion.
More importantly, for student’s to be changemakers in our innovation driven economy they need to equip themselves with skills and strategies like project planning, leadership and critical thinking while igniting their internal drive to visualize their long term goals.
“Learning about your extracurricular activities and nonacademic interests helps us to discover your potential contributions to the Stanford community. ... an exceptional depth of experience in one or two activities may demonstrate your passion ... We want to see the impact you have had on that club, in your school, or in the larger community, and we want to learn of the impact that experience has had on you.”
“... we ask not only for your academic information, but also for your personal story — the experiences and opportunities you have had, the challenges and obstacles you have faced, the talents and cultures you can share. Therefore, we use a process of application assessment called holistic review.”
“We’re Interested in Who You Really Are
In your essay, tell me something I can’t find anywhere else in the application.”