Extracurriculars that strengthen an application here
Activities matched to the subjects this university teaches, with how each one is read by admissions teams.
National Ocean Sciences Bowl
Tier 1 (Nationals)Marine Science
Academic competition testing oceanography, marine policy, and tech.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
Wharton Investment Contest
Tier 1 GlobalFinance / Portfolio
10-week virtual stock portfolio strategy challenge by UPenn Wharton School.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
Nat. Economics Challenge (Adam)
Tier 1 (Nationals)Advanced Econ
Advanced division covering micro, macro, and international economics.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
Harvard Economics Review Essay
Tier 1 WinnerEconomic Writing
Academic essay evaluating market structures, inflation, and policy.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
USA Computing Olympiad (USACO)
Tier 1 (Gold/Plat)Computer Science
Premier national competitive programming competition (Bronze to Platinum divisions). Official site: usaco.org
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
Google Summer of Code (GSoC)
Tier 1Open Source Dev
Global program pairing student developers with open-source software organizations for stipend projects.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
European Girls' Olympiad in Info (EGOI)
Tier 1Competitive Prog.
Prestigious international programming contest modeled after IOI exclusively for young women.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI)
Tier 1 InternationalCompetitive Prog.
The premier international high school computer science olympiad globally. Official site: ioinformatics.org
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
Conrad Challenge - Aerospace
Tier 1STEM Startup
Commercial pitch competition building aerospace and aviation innovations.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
DECA Principles of Marketing
Tier 1 (ICDC)Marketing
Simulated real-world business scenarios assessing market strategy.
Admissions impact: Tier 1 — national or international selection. Admissions officers read this as strong, externally validated evidence of subject excellence, and it is the most differentiating part of a competitive application.
No activity guarantees admission — these are ways to build evidence of genuine subject interest.
What PathPilot has recorded
Missing items are not guessed. Check the official website for them.