MIT's Summer Activities Section: How can I make the most of it?

Hey everyone, I heard that MIT's application has a section where we can include our summer activities. How should I approach this section to make my application stronger? Should I focus on depth or variety?

Hi there! Great question. The summer activities section on MIT's application is an excellent opportunity to showcase how you have spent your summers, and how those involvements relate to your interests or goals. In order to make the most of this section, consider the following tips:

1. Focus on depth: Rather than listing many unrelated activities to show variety, it's better to exhibit depth in a few activities that demonstrate your passion, commitment, or growth in a specific area. For example, if you participated in a research internship at a local university that's related to a lab you did in your chemistry class, be sure to provide specific details about your project, your role, and any outcomes or accomplishments.

2. Align with your "spike" or narrative: Ideally, your summer activities should complement your overall application narrative or your "spike" (your highly-developed specialty). Being consistent and purposeful about pursuing your interests, even during your summer break, can help set you apart at a school as selective as MIT. For example, if several of your essays are focused on using technology to make mental health resources more accessible, maybe during the summer you volunteered at a crisis hotline, or learned about app design through a camp, to help you present information in a user-friendly way.

3. Include any significant accomplishments or impact: If any of your summer activities resulted in achievements, such as winning an award, publishing a paper, or contributing to a meaningful cause, be sure to mention those. Demonstrating that your summer experiences had a tangible impact or resulted in growth will make them more compelling.

4. Emphasize meaningful experiences: You might also choose to highlight summer experiences that were personally significant to you or that were transformative in some way. For example, if you spent your summer volunteering with a non-profit organization that works with underprivileged children, and that experience shaped your interest in pursuing a career in education policy, make sure to share that story.

Overall, your approach to the summer activities section should be to provide depth and context for your experiences, align them with your overall application narrative, and showcase any significant accomplishments or impact. Balance quality over quantity, and make sure to showcase how your summer activities have contributed to the development of your passions and interests.

If you want to get a more concrete sense of how to use this space most effectively, I'd check out this blog post from CollegeVine: https://blog.collegevine.com/the-common-app-analyzed-4-successful-activity-entries-explained/. While this post focuses on the Common App activities list, and the one in MIT's school-specific platform is slightly different, many of the same general ideas apply.

Finally, if you'd like additional guidance on your overall application to MIT, I'd check out this CollegeVine blog post, which breaks down how to tackle MIT's application essays: https://blog.collegevine.com/how-to-write-the-mit-application-essays/. These essays can be a great opportunity to provide even more detail about an especially meaningful summer activity, or even to share a side of yourself that you haven't been able to convey anywhere else in your application!

Good luck!