Even though summer is over or coming to an end for many high school students, many of them took advantage of their free time and spent numerous summer hours chalking up community service. And, according to a recent article in Enhanced Online News, these students are probably ecstatic that they did so.
A recent survey completed by intlliVOL, the publishers of x2VOL, came out with some data concerning the importance of community service. The survey found the following:
- Out of the 73 district and school administration staffs attending the Naviance Summer Institute, 99% agreed or strongly agreed that a student’s community service positively impacts college acceptance.
- 80% of the 30 college admissions officers surveyed agreed or strongly agreed that volunteer and community service in high school positively impacted college acceptance.
These findings continue to prove that a high school student’s community service involvement is extremely important. And the findings back up the 2011 survey by Dosomething.org that showed that 70% of college admissions officers believe community service is vital, especially when the student is “consistently involved with one issue over a variety of causes.”
Michele Pitman, CEO of intelliVOL said, “Intuitively, we know that a student with service on their college application will have a better chance of being accepted over the student without a history of service. This recent survey provides additional evidence that service is important for acceptance and that college admissions officers would like to have certain types of validated information confirming a student’s record of service.”
In addition, Stephen M. Smith, president of Hobsons, K-12 and co-founder of Naviance added, “Community service is becoming a critical part of the education experience. It is not only increasingly important for helping students meet graduation requirements, but it provides meaningful experience to students who want to explore post-secondary options that are aligned with their skills and interests.”
Pitman also explained that her company has “tracked over a million student service hours in the last two years alone” and that they “know first-hand how a high school student’s service record affects their acceptance to college.”
If you need to become involved in community service and need some guidance, please give us a call and set up an appointment. Our goal is to help students find their special niche so they can develop leadership skills and compassion within a community service activity.