When I was young and considering college in the 80's, I knew that they considered grades as well as extracurriculars - sports, clubs, activities, volunteerism,

When I was young and considering college in the 80's, I knew that they considered grades as well as extracurriculars - sports, clubs, activities, volunteerism, etc. Where I lived, there were few opportunities for that sort of thing and I couldn't afford the ones that there were, so I hoped my grades would be enough. I did OK, I suppose, but now that I'm a parent and coaching my own teenagers through college prep, I can't help but notice how expensive, time-consuming and out-of-reach all of these college-admissions-approved extracurricular activities are for all but the upper-middle class. My kids have done sports, band, dance, church and camps their whole lives, and all of those have been time consuming, expensive or both.