How Can Extracurricular Activities Give You a Leg Up?

THAT EXTRA PUSH HOW EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES CAN GIVE YOU A LEG UP WHAT ARE EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES? ECAS are anything you do outside of your school work that is not directly class-related. Most Prominent ECAS Fun Fact 6.7% 22.9% 70% Inter-Collegiate Sport Team Volunteer Work of CEOS held at least Then Now 32.5% 35.6% one office in a club or organization during college. DOES THAT MEAN THAT ECAS ARE THE KEYS TO SUCCESSS? Work Other EXTRACURRICULARS AND ACADEMIC SUCCESS HIGH SCHOOL It all starts at a young age. Studies show that high school students who engage in extracurricular activities have higher indicators of school success and SAT test scores. Indicators of School Success Path Model Effects In a separate study by the College Board, researches found high school participation is correlated with higher SAT scores. The study found that participation in ECAS increased SAT math scores by 45 points and SAT verbal scores by 53 points. Research conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics found that participation in extracurricular activities have a positive correlation to the students' attendance, GPA, test scores, and expected educational goals. I ECA Participants I Non-participants ISAT-Math SAT-Verbal 50.4% 36.2% 50.7% 42.3% 30.6% 10.8% At Extracurricular Activites 45 pts 53 pts No Unexcused Absences* Never Skipped Classes* have a GPA of 3.0 or Higher 29.8% 68.2% 14.2% 48.2% High School Achievement 26 13 pts Highest Quartile On A Composite Math And Reading Assessment Expect To Earn a Bachelor's Degree or Higher * During first semester of their senior year The results of a California State University, Sacramento study from 2002-2007 strongly suggests the academic benefits of extracurricular activities. Over the course of four terms, students involved in ECAS consistently outperformed students not involved in ECAS. COLLEGE Students with Good-Standing Rates Average Cumulative GPA Good-standing: Undergraduate students whose cumulative grade point average is 2.0 or above. 2.9 90.4% 2.825 2.8 2.575 A 89.9% 87.4% 88.9% 2.75 78.9% 2.47 2.4 2.525 76.3% 71.7% 64.5% FIRST TERM SECOND THIRD FOURTH FIRST SECOND THIRD FOURTH TERM TERM TERM TERM TERM TERM TERM Non-Participants ECA Participants In a Graduate Management Admission Council Survey (2007) of more than 150 business schools and 5,641 respondents, researchers discovered that participation in ECAS allowed students to learn life skills that benefit both their professional and academic careers. MBA PROGRAM Skills That Will Improve Based on Participation SKILL IMPROVMENT Knowledge Managing Decision- Knowledge of General Interpersonal Foundation ECA Managing of Human Human Capital Business Skills Skills Making Process Behavior Functions Internships Student Career/Professional Clubs Work Projects Volunteer Activites Diversity/Multi-cultural Events Academic Competitions Leadership Programs Study-Abroad Programs Community Service Organizations Student Government The figure above provides evidence that participation in ECAS is linked to the improvement of communication and leadership skills in a management role. Leadership programs consistently improved all skills in the regression analysis, while student government improved none. LANDING A JOB Your academic transcript may be what gets your foot in the door, but employers look for candidates with relevant experience when making hiring decisions. Extra-curricular activities help you gain the key skills and experiences to help you land that job. "The biggest challenge is showing relevant experience, which employers say is one of the most important factors they look for in applica- tions form recent college graduates. This isn't limited to professional work experience. school activities and volunteering also qualify as relevant experience and can be included in your resume as well." - Brent Rasmussen, president of CareerBuilder North America THE LEADER OF THE ECA PAC: THE INTERN 31% 53% 75% Benefits for New Grads with Intern %24 Experience When it comes to landing a job, an internship is far and away the most valuable extra-curricular to have on your resume. According to 2010 Boston University survey and 2008 NACE survey: Higher Salary Job Offer by Graduation Preferred in Hiring Course Hero SOURCES: CSUS, CAREERBUILDER, HARRIS INTERACTIVE, NACE STUDY, COLLEGIATE ASSESSMENT, BU SENIOR SURVEY, STANFORD UNIVERSITY, NATIONAL CENTER FOR EDUCATION STATISTICS, COLLEGE BOARD, GRADUATE MANAGEMENT ADMISSION COUNCIL Learn. Share. Teach. Achieve.