Photos taken by Jennifer Quezada member of The Daily 

While it’s true that not every student has found themselves with the possibility of serving as crew for the latest lunar mission, winning Olympic gold or discovering a new continent, there will always be something unique that makes you a reasonable and perfect candidate for a spot at a certain program. 

Before you start the journey of submitting an application, you should know there are always two possible outcomes: admittance or rejection. With hundreds of applicants each year, getting accepted can feel like a long shot, especially for an international student; don't let the fear of the improbable make your dreams feel impossible. A golden rule you must remember while you navigate this experience is to not be scared of failure.  

It is undeniable that many competitive students around the globe currently find themselves in the same situation: wanting to attend a summer program but finding themselves confused about the topic. Sometimes we don’t even know what we would truly like to spend our summer doing yet. To help our readers, The Daily brings to you a deep dive on how to thrive on your application and make the most out of what you love doing! 

1. Sit down and assess your daily life: list those activities that you tend to dedicate the most time to, since these are often the biggest indicators of your passions. Based off of this list you will be able to find where your preferences lie whether its STEM, dance, athletics, debate, etc. This is useful to start searching for the activity you’d like to do such as: coding courses, medical internship, dance intensive, a Model UN conference or a music competition. 
    

2. Make time to research programs that relate to your interests: Most of the time you will find yourself romanticizing the goal—feeling eager and excited to make it to a good program—yet you keep delaying the time for research. We trivialize the research phase, assuming it’s all about a few clicks. Tip: Finding the right program/course is the first big step for this process. Because applying tends to be time consuming, I highly recommend you choose maximum 2 options and commit to submitting good applications for those two. 
    

3. Make a target driven search: Already have in mind what career path you would like to pursue? That is a perfect starting point, and you can make this dream a useful resource by making a search that focuses on your top-tier preferences (colleges and careers) to build a consistent profile. 
    

4. Plan out your budget: Prices are going to vary depending on what activity you decide to go for and where it will take place (remember to check for scholarships and financial aid opportunities, as these will require time too). For this phase, it’s important you present the idea to your parents and discuss it with them. They will most likely share valuable insights or raise questions you hadn’t considered before.  
    

5. Execute the narratives: It’s been a long process, by now you might have rationalized the reason for attending this program and envisioned the fun and unvaluable experience that awaits you. Now you must channel your enthusiasm and ambition into your essays. It is time to project your candidacy; you are competing against hundreds of other students who perhaps are just as determined, intellectual and accomplished as you are.  
   Tip: Since both rejection and admittance are a possibility, you should let ambition and enthusiasm be your incentive to complete a good application. Do not let fear or pressure be your motivation; there might be a hundred, if not thousands, of athletes, writers or dancers out there, but I assure you there is only one that has navigated your specific journey, so don’t sell yourself short.  
    

6. Synthetize your profile strategically: The secret to stand out in your application (aside from being truly passionate about what you do). is to strategically showcase your activities and achievements. The answer to the infamous question of whether it’s better to prioritize quantity over quality or vice versa is completely relative, the truth is that both are valuable if they reflect your growth. Depending on how you word your list of activities, evaluators might perceive you as one of these: 
    

• The Multi-Tasker: Your profile is an archive of various projects with visible impact; it signals that you are reliable and versatile. 

  
  

• The Specialist: Your profile shows you have poured your soul into one massive project with significant outcomes, it proves perseverance and tolerance by evidencing you can deal with immense pressure and successfully lead big groups. 

  
  

Tip: Since other students might have your exact same extracurriculars, focus on showcasing what makes you different. In order to successfully explain your profile, use every tool at your disposal from AI for data organization to people like your family and friends for perspective. This is the way you ensure your lists reflect trajectory and impact. Be wise with the usage of the resources available, using AI is not always "cheating": it is automating processes like organizing schedules, designing a work plan, or program scraping so you don’t have to sit for hours googling different options. Let the machine handle the “what” (suggest you "action titles" for your roles, take a long list of tasks you did for a club and summarize them) this person has done, so you can dedicate your time to crafting the “who” the experiences listed have formed. 

Finally, do not let others define how achievable your goals are. Work hard, and always keep in mind that success and the number of awards or trophies received are not directly proportional. True success is reflected in who you are daily: a charismatic leader, an optimistic teammate or a caring friend.