What Your Hobbies Say About Your Academic Future

Once you enter high school, your teachers, counselors, and parents make sure to let you know that everything you do should be setting yourself up for your future. “Make sure you study for the test.” “Have you participated in any extracurricular activities this year, honey?” They want your entire existence to be consumed by activities that will set up a good college resume. But, what they do not realize is that someone of the seemingly meaningless activities that students want to do in their free time can indicate a lot about their academic future.

So, what do you do in your free time? Do you like to write, make music, draw, or something creative like that? Well, this would indicate that you have a future as an artist, which opens up a lot of options for you in technical college. These highly specific, artistically-minded colleges rely less on math, science, and history and worry more about how you can hone your skills as an artist, so you can get a job in your given field. If you have a hobby being an artist or a creator, this can open up a lot of options for you in these types of schools. In order to be accepted, you have to show that you are a committed student, as well as having a passion for the art you wish to study. This is a case where spending time with a hobby as opposed to activities that look good on an application can help you and light a flare for your academic future.

But, what if your hobbies do not feature actual activities that you can use? What if you spend your time socially, using social media, hanging out with friends, or going to parties? These are the types of activities that your parents will complain won’t help you, but I would argue developing social skills can turn into an academic path for post-high school. There are plenty of career paths, including counseling, therapy, and teaching, whose number one skill necessary is the ability to talk to someone. You could participate in as many activities to secure a spot in a university, but your time would be better spent improving your social skills and learning about human behavior through social interaction.

One of the most rote things ever said was that if you love your job, you never work a day in your life. While this isn’t true, it is important that you think about finding a job in something you love. Your education after high school is always about getting the experience, so you can find a career. So, as you set yourself up for your future education, examine your hobbies and what you enjoy doing to craft your academic future for after your finish high school. How you behave and enjoy life in your teenage years will provide you the blueprint for your academic future, as you should study something you love in high school, so you can find a great career you can enjoy for your whole life.