Well-Rounded vs. Dabbling: What Colleges Actually Want to See
- Lynn Hofstad
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
I've mentioned in previous blogs that the mantra everyone my age heard when applying to college was that the best students are "well-rounded." Well-rounded? What does that mean? When trying to envision what I understand "well-rounded" to mean, I often picture a publicity photo that was used in advertising by my college. It captured a student (yes, I attended college with him and did know him personally) in a football uniform standing proudly on the football field while playing the violin. Try as I might, I can't find the image online, but for some reason it stuck in my head. For me this became a visual representation of what it means to be well-rounded: not doing just one thing well, but excelling in multiple fields—often in fields that might seem disparate from each other.
However, while this is my vision of being well-rounded, in the age of busy-ness, some people have equated being well-rounded with doing all-the-things. I'm here to tell you, when it comes to college applications, that isn't well-rounded, it's dabbling (or perhaps more unkindly stated: application padding). Colleges don't want to see a giant list of activities a student has tried out but not committed to. Colleges like to see uniqueness and commitment, not dabbling and over-extending yourself just for the sake of doing more.
Don't get me wrong, exploring and trying out different activities is an important part of early high school. Freshman and sophomores should be doing this, but by the time a student in half-way through high school, they should have found a few things they enjoy, are passionate about, and are committed to. This includes becoming more invested in the activity through leadership and impact. The infographic below is how I suggest approaching activities.
Ideally, those activities and areas of focus aren't just in one area, but help cultivate different aspects of a person. For example, in high school I lettered in volleyball, track, and music (who knew you could letter in music?). I was a member of the all-state and all-northwest choirs and was math student of the month (my parents were proud of that one). Being well-rounded is nurturing and cultivating the unique aspects of you that make you distinctive. Some areas might come easier, while others require more commitment and perseverance. This means trying new things early in high school, sometimes things out of your comfort zone. You might not know you are good at robotics until you try it. Try all the things early on, but if you don't commit to anything by the second half of high school, really you're just dabbling.
I leave you with the image of violin-playing football player. Not the image I remember, but the approximation offered by AI.
It's a whole lot less dramatic and artfully lit than the image in my head (though ironically it does use the same team colors as my college), but may it be the encouragement to go be the musician who excels at football. The student on the cheer and debate teams. The president of FBLA and the captain of the soccer team. But most importantly, may it be encouragement to try something out of your comfort zone; it just might be a hidden talent.
