Please help me choose extracurriculars!!!

don't worry your not screwed. as for extracuriculars, i'd suggest theatre if your school has a program joinging pit orchestra would let you do soem music EC. If your shcool has a model U.N team that would incorperate your passion on world issues. if you like art see if your school has an art club. tutoring is another good option and maybe you can even tutor in piano. there are plenty of options you just have to find what fits you best. for example i love music, trivia, writing, and am decent in leadership so i found ecs that fit me there. I captain my schools scholastic bowl team, sing in advanced treble choir, am a part of NHS and Tri-M (music honors society), and try to find voulenteer oppertunities when i can. i am also going to be involved with my schools musical and take vocal lessosns. you just have to find what fits you and who you are.

I'll start by saying I think you're definitely NOT screwed and community college is definitely NOT your only option (although it's not necessarily a bad option!)

I'm not involved in any sports. I know several athletes who can say differently, but I made the active choice to not do sports and I stand by it. I found other communities that I really love being a part of. I also have a lot of music experience and I'm currently in band. I won't lie, high school doesn't allow me to be as musically involved as I was in junior high (band, orchestra, choir, jazz band, chamber orchestra, and show choir), but I love band. If your school has a theatre program, you could look into joining the pit orchestra if the production requires one! I'm not involved in any art extracurriculars either; also not one of my strong points. APs and honours classes are not required, but I would highly recommend them. You don't have to fill your junior and senior years with AP and honours classes, but even just a few will introduce you to a different learning environment and maybe even spark an interest in you.

Volunteering is also another great way to find out what you like. I volunteer with the local food pantry and public library, and I know several others who volunteer with shelter houses, animal shelters, and local nonprofit organisations. If volunteering is something that interests you and you're not sure where to start looking, reach out and talk to others! That part scared me the most, but it was so worth it once I started volunteering at places I really care about. When it comes to clubs at my school, we hold a club fair at the beginning of each year where clubs recruit new members. I typically walk around once and just glance at what's available, then I walk around a second time and put my name down for whatever seems interesting to me. I recommend doing something similar to this; you can dip your toes in and there's no shame in leaving if you learn that a club isn't really for you. When it comes to knowing what you want to major in, I'll tell you that I genuinely didn't know what I wanted to study until very recently (I'm at the end of my junior year). Don't stress yourself out too much thinking about it. I prioritised branching out and finding what I actually like doing (which was scary at times) before settling on what I want to major in.

It is so much easier said than done, but keep a somewhat positive attitude about all of this. Keep an open mind and be open to new opportunities and possibilities, you might surprise yourself with what you discover. You've still got time. Enjoy your time in high school as much as you can. I promise you won't always feel this lost. Good luck! :)

Does your school have a speech and debate team? I always recommend this for people who enjoy socializing and performing but feel self-conscious about going all in. It's a very fun competitive environment where you can discuss all sorts of social issues. And I've seen it bring the shyest of people out of their shells! It's also a very respectable use of your time. Consider it, but know that even if you don't you will be more than okay. You're in grade 10, focus on finding your thing and enjoy your high school experience.

Hi @Aperson,

I understand your emotional state. I had a similar experience when deciding between STEM and Humanities. Despite the fact that I have already spent a lot of time and effort studying Math and Computer Science, I enjoy them. I eventually chose Humanities because I discovered it was what I truly loved and was passionate about. That is, I am willing to forego the high pay of a STEM career in order to pursue humanities for the rest of my life. My advice is to ask yourself soul questions. Are you willing to do it for the rest of your life? What if you must pick one of the areas the following day? Where does your true passion lie? Etc.

Also, no matter what career path you choose, having APs and honors is essential. If you want to attend a top 100 or 50 university, you should have at least the following qualifications:

4 consecutive credits of English Honors or AP

4 consecutive credits of Math Honors covering Alg 1, Geometry, Alg 2/Trig (Also SAT/ACT includes them too)

4 consecutive credits in Science Honors or AP, the area may include but not limited to (Biology, Chemistry, Physics)

As much credit honors/AP, you can take if you handle it academically and mentally basically is my recommendation. Because colleges do weigh in on them very seriously. It shows the student's interest in high rigor courses.

Music appears to be your strongest extracurricular activity. So I recommend that you continue to study it for the next three years. Because you play the piano, you should have the (1) ABRSM Practical Grade Piano exams. That would be extremely beneficial. I believe a private teacher is required for such an instrument. You should enter two (2) local/state/national piano competitions. Check to see if your school has the (3) Tri-M Music Honor Society. Since that shows, you could join your (4) school theater. Participate in a music-related pre-college program at one of your local universities.

However, in Music, particularly in instrument playing. The most important factors are your piano mastery and skill. You should prioritize that. Music Academies will expect you to perform advanced pieces.

If you are still unable to choose in the fullness of time. I suggest you simply walk down a path and observe what happens years later. Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken" serves as a metaphor for life's difficult and unpredictable decisions. It says: Making errors in decision-making is unavoidable; however, it should not be used as an excuse to avoid making decisions. So, when you see two or more paths in front of you that are all equally laid. Then you need to just make a choice and act on it.

I wish you the best luck

You don't have to be good at something to do it. It takes time to get good at anything. If you want to do a sport then just do the sport. If you want to do music just do it. If you like art then keep doing art. You're having a hard time to pick because you start with it but you don't continue it because you're not the best of the best and really no one is. Doing extracurriculars could help you improve to be better that's for sure at least. You have time to choose don't ever feel like it's too late to get back into the things you like. Community college isn't your only option but it's seriously the best option money wise. Unless you learn how to look for and win scholarships then you could go into a four year college. And depending what you actually profession in you don't have to go to either and go somewhere completely different. I don't much about trade schools or other options because they weren't known to me and I didn't understand them. Understand what you're getting into and then plan on how you're going about it. Just have fun with the extracurriculars but don't let your grades drop badly because of them. It'll be hard but having both good grades and any kind of extracurricular could get you very far. Also there's more ways to be involved with global problems other than being a lawyer or judge. That's literally only laws, or things inside a country or idk how to explain it. And a lot of the time trying to deal with problems of the world doesn't get you any money. If you expect money for contributing then you should NOT be getting involved with world problems. That's probably the number reason why there are world problems, because people want money for even trying to fix it and then get paid to not fix the problems.

Sorry for the assumptions.