A fellowship is a group of people meeting to pursue a shared interest or aim, where you can volunteer to help that association. Volunteering for fellowships as a high school student further enhances the credibility of your application to college. Participating in volunteer work demonstrates the capability of key character traits that interest colleges- specifically: leadership, willingness to take risks, initiative, open mindedness, sense of social responsibility, commitment to service, and special talents or abilities.
Applying for a fellowship as a high schooler is not as hard as people may think. The easiest way to register is to search objectively for applications in your area. The example below focuses on marine biology. However, it does not have to be something you’re specifically interested in – it can be anything.
First, explore Safari or any search engine by entering something along the lines of: “Fellowships or volunteer work NH marine biology”, according to what you’re interested in engaging with.
Then, look at the websites to see what the requirements are before signing up. Most websites give information as to what their goal is, what their company’s goals are, and where it will occur. Make sure that the website found is reliable and is not taking advantage of the internet. Ways to check whether the website is reliable, is to personally contact the number or email given or check if the website presents what the group’s past fellowships have looked like and what the impact was. It should provide pictures.
For instance, there is a Hampton Beach Cleanup that took place on January 3rd and will occur again on February 1st.
On the website, it mentions the exact location, date, time, contacts, and resources available to the person trying to volunteer.
I took part in this beach cleanup on January 4th with friends and family. The Blue Ocean Society, the group responsible for organizing the clean-up, iterated how this cleanup works and what participants need to look out for as they are conducting an experiment with our results. They handed us each a clipboard that listed plausible items we would pick up on the beach. You would be split into groups of your own choice, and this introduced me to new people. The event lasted two hours and you were free to leave early. The items the supervisor told us to look for were plastic bands – similar to the ones on lobster claws, and plastic discs. These items track the flow of plastic throughout the ocean and have been found from as far away as Ireland! From my experience, I find that bringing friends along will be more enjoyable, however these events do bring the chance to make new friends!
Applying for a fellowship as a high school student opens up opportunities to explore possible career fields someone may want to pursue in the future. It can change people’s minds about what they may want to do. For example, people who are interested in a specific field would apply for a fellowship to gain experience in that career path. However, after finishing the volunteer work it may alter what they thought would suit them. It’s better to have the experience first, then to figure out in the future it’s not as ideal as the limerence of that job upcoming.
