Violet Wei
By Violet Wei
What is the secret to getting an acceptance letter versus a rejection?
Ultimately, it comes down to the resume. Accepted students have more than just strong academics; they also have been heavily involved in school clubs, volunteer work, and other extracurricular activities.
At Moon Prep, we’ve interviewed dozens of admissions officers and students at top schools, BS/MD programs, medical schools, and summer programs to learn what they are looking for in their applicants. One recurring theme emerged: passion. Admission officers want students who are passionate about a particular thing and figure out a way to use that passion to impact their community. These passion projects can be anything: a research project, a nonprofit, inventions, or advocating for a particular cause.
Here are five passion project examples from real students who were accepted at the most competitive colleges, BS/MD Programs, and summer camps in the world.
Texas Tech Clark Scholars: Summer Program
Michael San Francisco, the dean of Clark Scholars, a competitive research summer program, has worked with top students who have gone on to study at Harvard University, Stanford University, Princeton University and more. In an interview with Moon Prep, he shared one passion project that stood out to him. Through the Clark Scholars program, the student worked with Dean San Francisco to refine a water-purifying device from an environmental perspective. After the program ended, she entered it into national science fairs and won multiple awards. Her project was eventually recognized by President Obama, and Popular Mechanics endorsed her water-purifying device as one of the top ten inventions of the year.
Brown University: Program in Liberal Medical Education
We interviewed Nidhi Bhaskar, a first-year medical student at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and a student in the PLME program. An activity that she dedicated time to in high school was a nonprofit called New Boundaries for Youth. Bhaskar created an annual competition for middle school students across South India, where she helped them research and build action plans related to environmental sanitation and sustainability.
She also trained as a first responder through the Community Emergency Response Team of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency). Bhaskar leveraged this experience to create a similar program at her high school and five other schools to train fellow students about first aid and emergency preparedness.
Research Science Institute: Summer Program
Maite Ballestero, the Executive Vice President of Programs and Administration, revealed that for RSI’s competitive summer program, they would prefer to see students have fewer activities where they can expand more heavily on their passions. “We want students to find out what they are passionate about and explore it deeply.”
She also wants students to “exploit their surroundings in the most positive way.” Some examples she gave were getting research published, earning a gold medal in Science Olympiad, or attending summer programs within your field of passion.
New Jersey Institute of Technology: BS/MD Accelerated Program
Professor Lewis Hamilton, the dean of the Albert Dorman Honors College at NJIT, is especially interested in seeing how people serve their communities. In an interview with Moon Prep, he spoke about various students who had started nonprofits, including ones focused on tutoring underprivileged students, distributing menstrual products, or empowering women in South Asia to become entrepreneurs. He even spoke about a student who was a beekeeping enthusiast who started his own business selling honey.
“What we are interested in is how you are serving your community. The advice we give students is to find what ignites their passion and then do it at the highest level possible, at whatever level they are capable of,” Professor Hamilton said.
Suny Polytechnic Institute: Upstate Accelerate Program
Dr. Carlie Phipps, Ph.D., Interim Dean of the College of Arts + Sciences at Suny Polytechnic Institute, says they are looking for students with an “other-oriented perspective.” In other words, they are looking for students who are volunteering not because it is a requirement for the National Honors Society but because they genuinely want to help others.
Some of the passion projects she highlighted included a student who produced a set of braille blocks and a game patterned after Scrabble called “Brabble” for children who are visually impaired or blind.
Other projects include making artificial arms and hands for children born without them. One student developed golf clubs for veterans who had lost fingers. “All these activities are unique because it’s a multi-disciplinary team working together,” Dr. Phipps said.
Building On Your Passions
While this list has passion projects highlighted by admission officers to programs, it is by no means a blueprint to getting accepted. Instead of following the passions of others, you should explore what makes you excited. By turning your interests into impact, you can create a standout resume that can compete with other top applicants to medical school, direct medical programs, and summer programs.
Violet Wei is a College Counselor and Outreach Coordinator. Website: moonprep.com Contact: violet@moonprep.com.
