At least 1,000 times in my career, I have been asked the following questions by parents seeking to have their children attend Ivy League or equivalent colleges:

• How prestigious is being a member of National Honor Society?
• How prestigious is being an AP Scholar with Honor or Distinction?
• How important is making Honor Roll or Dean’s List?
• How important is it to have your research published?
• How important is it to have a creative portfolio?

In almost all cases, I answer, “It is very nice,” which usually, and understandably, results in a head tilt or a few follow-up questions. Suffice it to say, it is neither the response they were hoping for nor expecting. After all, these “honors” are usually thrust upon us by those who benefit from them, financially or otherwise, directly or indirectly. In other cases, I provide the very frustrating, “Well, it depends…” response. Let me clarify.

National Honor Society

The National Honor Society wants you to be a member—not out of goodwill but for the financial benefit they reap. With this particular organization, fundraising is done locally, so it is beneficial for local chapters to enlist as many students as possible. In exchange, local chapters pay an affiliation fee to the national organization. If they could invite every single student in America to join NHS without losing prestige, they would do it. Of course, doing so would negate any value it would bestow upon students. At that point, the equation would shift from:

“NHS = Student with High GPA” to

“NHS = Any Student”

In which case, the value of NHS would drop to absolute zero.

Instead, they assign a reasonable GPA cutoff point to decide which students they will invite. This cutoff point varies from school to school, ranging from 3.0 to 3.75. And yes, there are a few other factors that contribute to actual acceptance into the society, but GPA is by far the biggest contributor. This fact alone places National Honor Society into the column of “validators” rather than “needle movers.” In other words, acceptance into NHS merely validates what colleges already know: that the NHS member has a high GPA. One more point about NHS—despite having the word “National” in its name, it is considered a local award rather than a national one.

There are also many NHS wannabes with similar names, whose impact is negligible. Some even exploit the prestige of celebrities speaking at their “national conventions” to lure students into joining. These famous people serve as validators, but they are just paid performers whose fees are paid out of your membership dues.

I’m not implying that these organizations are bad or dishonest, although some are better and more honest than others. My point is that they are not needle movers. They are, at best, validators and, at worst, valueless. You cannot rely on them to give your child’s application any more weight than it would have had without them.

AP Scholar

This honorary title is bestowed upon students who have at least a modicum of success on AP tests. For students aspiring to Ivy League colleges or the equivalent, the standards for achieving AP Scholar are quite low. There are two levels:

• AP Scholar with Honor: Scores of 3 or higher on at least four AP exams with an average of at least 3.25.
• AP Scholar with Distinction: Scores of 3 or higher on at least five AP exams with an average of at least 3.50.

Most students who hope to attend elite colleges consider anything less than a 4 on any AP exam unworthy of inclusion on their applications. So, should these academic honors be included on college applications? Yes. Are they needle movers? No. They are validators, since colleges will already be aware of your AP scores if you decide to report them. It is better to have some honors than to have none. So, while these titles will do little more than take up space in the

application’s honors section, it is better than having empty space.

Honor Roll or Dean’s List

These and similar school-based honors that are based almost exclusively on grades are validators, not needle movers, since they add nothing to the application that is not already known. However, as with AP Scholar, making Honor Roll or Dean’s List can be added to the academic honors section of your application and will look better than empty space.

Published Research

Published research can either be a needle mover or a validator, depending on where it is published. Scientific research that is published in a respected, peer-reviewed science journal is a needle mover. Historical research published in The Concord Review is also a needle mover. As for the plethora of other journals available to students, you must do your homework to determine their value. If they accept the vast majority of papers submitted, they are not helpful. They are, at best, validators, and at worst, enablers. In the case of research, it is the quality of the research paper or project itself that is the needle mover. If it is high-quality work, it can be very helpful in college admission. If it is not, then regardless of where it is published, colleges will consider it a waste of time to review.

Creative Portfolio

If you are extremely, legitimately talented in one of the arts, then you should absolutely submit a portfolio. This is especially true if you are considering a major or minor related to your art. If you are moderately or slightly talented and are applying to college with no intention of pursuing a major or minor in your art, you should not submit a portfolio. Not only will it not help you, it will hurt you. A mediocre portfolio serves as a needle mover in the wrong direction.

Conclusion

To determine whether something is a needle mover or a validator, ask yourself: “Does it add new and useful information to the application?” If it does, it is likely a needle mover. If it merely aggregates information already known to the college, it is a validator. Needle movers are obviously more valuable than validators, but both can be useful in the right contexts.