Why are extracurriculars so hard to join in college now?

[Anonymous]

This hasn't been my kid's experience, but she's at a small school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most clubs are open to anyone. It's just that people make a ton of noise when they encounter the ones that have a tryout/application/etc.

Not true for Greek life and club sports

Again, not true for all schools. For example, Davidson has different eating houses for female students, which are social clubs like a sorority, and anyone who wants to join will receive a spot. Same for club sports at Duke, if I remember correctly. No cuts.

How are there no cuts for club sports at Duke? That makes no sense. Club women's soccer at UVA is like D3 level soccer (many kids chose not playing soccer at UVA over attending a D3 to play soccer). Tryouts had about several hundred kids for a half dozen spots. I have a hard time believing Duke is different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Be kind. We all want our kids to find their people in college. With iPhones, casual hanging-out and chatting in common rooms and dining halls isn’t as much of a thing at a lot of colleges now. Kids are trying to join clubs not only to get a leg up in the job market but also to find their people.

I understand that. I really do.

Encourage your kid to try clubs that are not focused on professional goals or restrictive social circles.

For example, there are a ton of service clubs or opportunities at all of these schools. These groups are focused on activities that do not require prior experience, achievement, or connections.

Doing a common activity together is a great way to meet people - arguably more so than just attending meetings. I truly don't understand why parents aren't encouraging their kids to participate in one of the many service clubs or activities that these colleges work so hard to create. So many are low commitment. Just sign up to help with a one-day service project. See what you think. If you like the experience or the people, come back to do another one. Take it a step at a time.

There are a ton of options out there. If your kid doesn't like the artificial scarcity or exclusivity created by the selective clubs, encourage them to be more resourceful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s really sad. I’ve heard it’s intense and competitive for clubs even at the private level - ivys, Georgetown, Boston College, etc.

I think it’s a huge reason to opt for a smaller school where there are more opportunities to participate and not as much exclusivity.

How do you know this to be true? I assume the Williams investment club is just as exclusive as anywhere.

It isn’t. Open admission is a requirement for school recognition and funding. At least it was when I was there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most clubs are open to anyone. It's just that people make a ton of noise when they encounter the ones that have a tryout/application/etc.

Not true for Greek life and club sports

Again, not true for all schools. For example, Davidson has different eating houses for female students, which are social clubs like a sorority, and anyone who wants to join will receive a spot. Same for club sports at Duke, if I remember correctly. No cuts.

Really? I went to UCLA, and most guys who rushed the fraternities for zero bids, and club sports teams expected state titles in high school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:College is no longer a time to explore sadly. Many engineering clubs at top schools have applications and interviews you have to pass to make it into the club. Greek life is selective as always. Club sports are even more selective than varsity sports teams at large high schools. It’s insane

What colleges are you talking about? Can you cite any examples?

Virginia Tech. All the engineering clubs there reject like 95% of the students that apply

This is not true. There are design teams that take all comers. The issue comes if all the kids want to do the same one. With thousands of engineering students, they can't have hundreds on one team. My Hokie is on concrete canoe - doesn't align with her engineering major (full disclosure, there's not a Club that does align). They placed 2nd at Nationals last year and it's been a great experience socially, educationally, leadership-wise and with excellent transferable skills that she's been able to talk about to recruiters and put on her resume.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most clubs are open to anyone. It's just that people make a ton of noise when they encounter the ones that have a tryout/application/etc.

Not true for Greek life and club sports

Again, not true for all schools. For example, Davidson has different eating houses for female students, which are social clubs like a sorority, and anyone who wants to join will receive a spot. Same for club sports at Duke, if I remember correctly. No cuts.

How are there no cuts for club sports at Duke? That makes no sense. Club women's soccer at UVA is like D3 level soccer (many kids chose not playing soccer at UVA over attending a D3 to play soccer). Tryouts had about several hundred kids for a half dozen spots. I have a hard time believing Duke is different.

We were told this is true for women's club lacrosse at Duke. Maybe they have an A team that travels and a B team that does not?

I think that's the case at Wake Forest. When we visited, we watched the women's club lacrosse B team play William & Mary. The level of play was strong, but not upper D1 level. My kid's assessment was that it was more lower D1 / D3, which is perfect for her. Maybe Duke is the same with multiple teams?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The thing is - you don’t need the clubs. You don’t need the consulting club to get to McKinsey. And you don’t need the engineering club to get into an internship. For once, get your kid off the rat race, just tell them to get great grades in college and The doors will open. Trust

- F500 HR

F500 HR. If you are at an Ivy you really do need one of consulting clubs to get to McKinsey. Too much recruiting flow goes through club activities. That is one reason why as someone pointed out earlier top SLACs are in many ways a better path.

[Anonymous]

UCLA, UCB and Georgetown are way too competitive. Williams is not, including the investment club. Students at top tier SLACs are welcomed with open arms to almost all clubs and club sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most clubs are open to anyone. It's just that people make a ton of noise when they encounter the ones that have a tryout/application/etc.

Not true for Greek life and club sports

Again, not true for all schools. For example, Davidson has different eating houses for female students, which are social clubs like a sorority, and anyone who wants to join will receive a spot. Same for club sports at Duke, if I remember correctly. No cuts.

Really? I went to UCLA, and most guys who rushed the fraternities for zero bids, and club sports teams expected state titles in high school

Ok. I believe you when you say that was true for UCLA when you were there.

But to state the obvious, your experience at UCLA 20+ years ago says nothing about the current situation at Duke, Davidson, or any other school.

Also, what's true for fraternities at a school is not always the same for sororities, eating houses, sports, engineering clubs, musical performance groups etc.

Let's focus on specifics in 2025, not generalizations based on back in the day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:College is no longer a time to explore sadly. Many engineering clubs at top schools have applications and interviews you have to pass to make it into the club. Greek life is selective as always. Club sports are even more selective than varsity sports teams at large high schools. It’s insane

What colleges are you talking about? Can you cite any examples?

Virginia Tech. All the engineering clubs there reject like 95% of the students that apply

This is not true. There are design teams that take all comers. The issue comes if all the kids want to do the same one. With thousands of engineering students, they can't have hundreds on one team. My Hokie is on concrete canoe - doesn't align with her engineering major (full disclosure, there's not a Club that does align). They placed 2nd at Nationals last year and it's been a great experience socially, educationally, leadership-wise and with excellent transferable skills that she's been able to talk about to recruiters and put on her resume.

Exactly. Parents and kids get so worked up about the exclusive clubs that they miss all the other open opportunities.

Don't fall into the "exclusivity" trap. Rather than complain about the closed doors, look for all the open ones.

These schools are FULL of opportunities! Kids need to seek them out by thinking for themselves rather than just trying to follow the herd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most clubs are open to anyone. It's just that people make a ton of noise when they encounter the ones that have a tryout/application/etc.

Not true for Greek life and club sports

Again, not true for all schools. For example, Davidson has different eating houses for female students, which are social clubs like a sorority, and anyone who wants to join will receive a spot. Same for club sports at Duke, if I remember correctly. No cuts.

How are there no cuts for club sports at Duke? That makes no sense. Club women's soccer at UVA is like D3 level soccer (many kids chose not playing soccer at UVA over attending a D3 to play soccer). Tryouts had about several hundred kids for a half dozen spots. I have a hard time believing Duke is different.

Why is it hard to believe that different schools have different approaches to these things?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

How are there no cuts for club sports at Duke? That makes no sense. Club women's soccer at UVA is like D3 level soccer (many kids chose not playing soccer at UVA over attending a D3 to play soccer). Tryouts had about several hundred kids for a half dozen spots. I have a hard time believing Duke is different.

Why is it hard to believe that different schools have different approaches to these things?

I don’t know about Duke personally, but I know someone who went to Stanford, and most club sports teams there are extremely selective. I have a hard time believe Duke someone isn’t selective

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

How are there no cuts for club sports at Duke? That makes no sense. Club women's soccer at UVA is like D3 level soccer (many kids chose not playing soccer at UVA over attending a D3 to play soccer). Tryouts had about several hundred kids for a half dozen spots. I have a hard time believing Duke is different.

Why is it hard to believe that different schools have different approaches to these things?

I don’t know about Duke personally, but I know someone who went to Stanford, and most club sports teams there are extremely selective. I have a hard time believe Duke someone isn’t selective

Again, what is true at UVA and Stanford is not necessarily true everywhere, even if you have a "hard time" believing it . . .

https://recreation.duke.edu/programs/sport-clubs/

"Join one of the 30+ Sport Clubs for the opportunity to represent the Duke community in local, regional, national, and international competitions. Teams are formed, organized, and governed by their members and welcome both veteran athletes and newcomers. Sport Clubs operate in an inclusive environment and require no tryouts or cuts to participate.

Participation in Sport Clubs affords individuals the ability to continue playing organized sports at a competitive level post-high school, or to try a new sport that they have always wanted to learn while representing Duke University. Each club seeks to foster exciting athletic experiences for participants of all skill levels, while fostering inclusive communities. Sport Club participants can find a sense of community, have a chance to build lifelong friendships, hone and develop their sport specific skills, and develop team-oriented leadership and transferable skills that will pave the path to a successful future."

[Anonymous]

I have said this in other threads. I used to be a banker at a bulge bracket and did some recruiting. I despise these pre-professional clubs. I think they are ponzi schemes full of insufferable suck-ups and feel like clubs. If I was still in my old role, I would steer far away from most of these kids.

Unfortunately, I think the banks and consulting firms have created this monster. They increasingly give specialized interviews so the institutional knowledge of the clubs in helping you prepare for those is very valuable. And given how many resumes they are getting they use these as a pre-screen.

If the banks and consulting firms signaled to the schools that they don't care about the clubs by hiring non-club members, it would go a long way.

I worked on my daily college newspaper at a TT school without a journalism program, so most people were doing it for fun. I had an incredible experience and made lifelong friends. We generally took anyone, though we "encouraged" those with more talent to get more involved. Companies across all industries, including top tier investment banks and consulting firms, loved the experience, though that is not why we did it.