Do I quit an extra curricular if I've already invested a lot of time?Answered
I'm a junior, 3.8 gpa, and I've been a member of Student Council for the last 3 years. However, I've been contemplating quitting it in my senior year for several reasons, the largest of which is that its become a bit toxic and I'm not having fun. The other reasons include freeing up time to pursue other initiatives, including activism and community involvement, as well as potentially studying abroad. I would love to hear thoughts on the validity of these reasons. Should I just tough it out for senior year in order to show commitment, or is it reasonable to leave after junior year? I don't hold any leadership positions and it's very unlikely that I will, so I don't have to worry about that. Will this affect my applications in a massive way?
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3 answers
This is a good question! Of course colleges are looking for commitment to your extracurriculars, but they are also looking for passion. It will be obvious in your application that this is something you don't enjoy and only serves to pad your resume. Even more importantly, your well-being should always come first. You are under no obligation to (and should not!) remain in a toxic environment. At the end of the day, a single extracurricular (especially, one where you aren't in leadership or achieving at the highest level) is not going to be what makes or or breaks your application. And it's not like you'll be doing nothing! It seems that you have lots of other opportunities that are a better, more rewarding use of your time. I'd recommend dropping it.
I just wanted to say that if you’re in a toxic environment and unhappy, don’t keep doing it! I played on the varsity tennis team for three years, but once I got to senior year I was so completely burnt out and miserable that I made the choice to quit. One of the hardest things I’ve had to do was make that decision. I felt like I had given up, and I had invested so much time into the team. But ultimately it was the best decision I could have made, and my senior year was sooooo much better because of it. One of the best things you can do for yourself is know when to quit. :)
You absolutely should. There is no reason for you to continue in a program that you're not happy in. It's not healthy either. Honestly activism and community involvement looks way better on a college resume than student council does. So there's a good reason to leave. You shouldn't have to stick it out. Go where you are celebrated not tolerated.
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Props to @Aja.Altenhof! I love your answer! Absolutes, @sdellota, feel free to quit!