Did you know that there is so much more to learn beyond the four walls of your classroom? Extracurricular activities or out-of-class activities, are any tasks, initiatives, or events that you engage in outside of your regular school activities. They can be in the form of a hobby, recreational sports, joining clubs or organizations, volunteering, and working part-time. While the traditional classroom provides foundational knowledge, extracurricular ventures expose you to experiences that enhance your knowledge and provide many other benefits and opportunities that will shape your success in your academic and personal journey. Here are a few reasons why extracurricular involvement is important:
Development of Soft and Hard Skills
As academic proficiency aims to sharpen your theoretical knowledge, hard and soft skills enable you to apply it in the real world. But first, what are hard skills and soft skills?
Hard skills are technical, quantifiable skills that enable you to perform tasks in general or specific for an industry you want to pursue. On the other hand, soft skills are qualitative interpersonal skills that enable you to develop your character, communicate effectively, and handle social situations appropriately– regardless of the industry you are in.
Hard skills and soft skills are two different types of capabilities an individual can learn and possess that make up a person’s overall skill set. They are both foundational to personal and professional success. However, they have certain similarities and differences to be taken into account for you to develop them properly and efficiently:
Measurability
Hard and soft skills can be measurable, but in different ways. Hard skills are often job-specific and related to expertise in certain areas, and your competence in these areas are measured objectively through methods such as standardized tests and exercises. Contrary, soft skills are more subjective and harder to measure as they are relative to the unique experiences of one individual to another.
Acquisition
Even though both skills can be acquired over time with engagement in extracurricular activities, hard skills are usually acquired through education, training, and hands-on experience– while soft skills are typically acquired through improving personal qualities and emotional intelligence with the help of evaluations, feedback, and self-assessment.
Transferability
Since hard skills are job-specific, these skills can be difficult to transfer between different roles and industries. This is another reason why participating in many different extracurricular activities is important. On the other hand, since soft skills are innate to an individual, it is easily transferable across various roles and industries, enabling you to apply it in any personal or professional situation.
Examples
With the knowledge that both skills are useful in your personal and professional endeavors, they still take form in different ways. Examples of hard skills are reading comprehension, foreign language fluency, computation skills, coding and programming languages, accounting, and many more. For soft skills, examples include communication skills, time management, critical thinking, and creativity.
Standing Out in College Admissions and Job Opportunities
Extracurricular experience as an addition to academic education will significantly differentiate you from others with similar academic qualifications, especially in a competitive environment. Your experiences will help others recognize you further than your test scores and grades. You will also be acknowledged based on your interests, personality, and involvement in important events. Having this advantage will open more doors for you and boost your success in all endeavors, may it be getting accepted into your dream school or dream job.
Finding a Stronger Sense of Purpose
Exposure to various activities will help you learn many abilities in the process and will help you learn deeply about yourself as well. With every experience, you get to know what things you enjoy doing, things you are good at, and things you need to improve on. Embracing the challenges and achievements along the way and continuously grabbing opportunities will equip you with a clearer perspective to navigate the path you want to take in your career and personal life.
Overall, banking on extracurricular knowledge and experience will help you in so many ways in life. While extracurricular activities will give you all these benefits, do not forget that academic experience is just as important, so make sure to keep your efforts in both aspects balanced to become your best well-rounded self. Remember, involvement in extracurricular activities does not have to feel like a chore– what is more important is that you get to enjoy and learn from your experiences, because eventually, you will surely get to where you want to be.
By: Shelsea Cruz
Reference
Nathan, D. (2023, October). The importance of extra-curricular activities. Prospects. Retrieved from https://www.prospects.ac.uk/applying-for-university/university-life/the-importance-of-extra-curricular-activities