What do you feel “looks good” on ucas form or job applications?

[Bonappetite]

People always say that Duke of Edinburgh looks good on ucas form. But what else does?
my dc are particularly sporty or musically minded. Although they have enjoyed scouts. And have recently done some beginner training in sailing. I am on the look out for other things that may look good. All their friends seem to be virtually county level in various sports, but what if you aren’t sporty?

*careers

ds did DofE (it did not require any character as school managed it all for them!) and didn't even mention any of it in his PS.

He never did anything else, or similar, on the list. He is very active and does sports (but not "to a good standard") but again didn't mention it on his PS.

He read, did podcasts, webinars, a free online course etc around his subject which lead to extra reading, and wrote about his passion for it. He got 4 unconditional offer for integrated masters (he didn't apply for a 5th as had 2 offers before the deadline). His friends did the same in their PS and had plenty of offers.

Unless the items in the list are related to the subject they want to study, ime they really are irrelevant for uni applications.

Some, such as getting a PT job or similar are good to do for overall development, experience and confidence though as it helps them to mature before uni. Good luck with his application.

I would just ensure they have something to put down that isn't computer games, movies or partying. Scouts and sailing is fine

D of E shows character.
Volunteering.
St Johns Ambulance.
Scouts, getting Chief Scouts Awards.
Army cadets.
Anything showing leadership qualities or cricket team captain.
Sports to a good standard.
Karate black belt.
Musical theatre group.
Won competition in photography etc.
Part time jobs can show committment and responsibility
I disagree with this list.

An UCAS application shoudl be 95% geared to the subject being studied. One sentence about extra curricular suffices.

My DD has done some volunteering in a charity shop. She doesn't have any hobbies. She's just got all 5 offers from her uni choices.

That brings it back tobeing relevant to the degree. Dd and ds did not mention that they had been young carers both for their dad when he was long term ill and their nan who had dementia but they would have done if they were applying for anything care related.

@Survey99 thank you.

This thread all seems aimed at a certain demographic, with engaged parents with disposable income to invest in extra curricular activities. “Scouts and sailing is fine” for instance, or being outstanding in a sport. I feel for the dc who are trying to do this by themselves, or he families who would love their dc to do activities but can’t afford it, or can’t get them there due to work or lack of transport.

This thread all seems aimed at a certain demographic, with engaged parents with disposable income to invest in extra curricular activities. “Scouts and sailing is fine” for instance, or being outstanding in a sport. I feel for the dc who are trying to do this by themselves, or he families who would love their dc to do activities but can’t afford it, or can’t get them there due to work or lack of transport
DC don’t need to these activities for their UCAS personal statement. The no 1 thing is predicted grades, closely followed by demonstrating an enthusiasm for the subject they are applying to.

I remember reading a PS from a student with o work or volunteering experience which normally for my course would be required but she talked about how she was a carer for her disabled mum (no dad on the scene). She talked about what transferable skills she had learnt from this, communication with health professionals, good organisational skills, etc. she got an interview.

if however she hadn’t mentioned the reason for her lack of work experience she probably wouldn’t have.

I hope that this thread has proven that expensive extra curricular activities and engaged parents aren’t needed. I thought I had to run around providing these activities as many parents around me do. But so many are disagreeing on this thread and I am glad so. I would like to think the opposite it required and engaged child is all that is needed.

Most are saying it’s not needed anymore

Things have changed, thankfully

Bonappetite
This might be controversial but I've long thought that the way some parents fawn over certain (expensive) activities is more about them wanting nice bragging rights than anything else.
Often there's nothing wrong with the activities, especially if the child enjoys them, but it seems like some parents like to try and convince themselves and the world that it's a sign of how great their parenting is.

Came on to say basically this. DS1 isn't part of any sporting teams etc but he has done work experience, online courses, read books about his chosen subject for uni. He is also doing a relevant EPQ. His personal statement was mostly about the relevant experience / studying around his subject plus a little about helping with a Beavers group and his job in an office part time. He has got 4 uni offers so far.

Yes pp are saying this, but the majority are expecting most dc to have access to activities a lot of dc can only dream of.

Yes pp are saying this, but the majority are expecting most dc to have access to activities a lot of dc can only dream of.
Some are, but it's really not needed.

At the 6th forms I've taught at it's common for students to pick a couple of the following based on what interests them, what they want to do at university, what their career interests are and what they've already done for hobbies when they were younger:
Sport
Music
Drama
College leadership
College charity fundraising teams
Mentoring younger students
Community outreach
Volunteering, especially if it's in an area linked to their course interests
Coaching younger children in the sport they do
EPQ
Duke of Edinburgh
First aid/ St John's ambulance

There's a whole afternoon each week in many colleges near me for students to do enrichment, with the college offering opportunities too.

It's possible for students to access enrichment if they want to and it doesn't have to cost the earth either.

Someone upthread suggested you Google "super curricular" - it's actually "supra-curricular", and is definitely worth Googling.

D of E is not important. Neither of my DC did it (both at Oxford), and I wouldn't particularly recommend it to anyone. I wouldn't not recommend it, either - I just think there are more useful things you can do if you're thinking of jobs/university courses.

However... Year 7 and 8? I wouldn't be thinking about either thing at all, tbh. I'd be encouraging them to have a wide range of interests and friends, to do their best, and not to worry about what comes afterwards.

That said, I do think that parental engagement is important. Not in a 'providing expensive activities' way, but in the way of taking them to places, talking to them, providing reading matter and conversation, discussing things with them, etc, etc, etc. It's hard (not impossible, but hard) for a bright child with completely unengaged parents to do well.

I think it's difficult, if not impossible, to generalise about what looks good on a UCAS or job application form without knowing more specifics about what you're applying for. Anecdotally, for many courses at many universities no one even reads the personal statement and the key thing that will determine whether you get an offer or not is your predicted A level grades. For purely academic degrees, the university may well genuinely not care whether you have any interests outside the subject you want to study. For competitive healthcare degrees, relevant work experience and/or volunteering appears to be very important.