Determinants of Dividend Policy In Muscat Security Market - Sample

Question: Discuss about the Determinants of Dividend Policy In Muscat Security Market. Answer: Introduction: Dividend payout policy is regarded as a significant constituent of corporate financial policy. Many of the academic researchers has considerably studied the dividend payout policy. In the year 1956, Linter stated that payout policy is principally a function of earnings stability and earnings. However, this theory was further developed in the year 2012, by Myers and Lambrecht; who emphasized that dividend policy is based upon permanent income. In the year 1961, Modigilani and Miller instigated a debate over a topic i.e. value of dividends; and this topic is still debatable till now. A question is raised by these authors- Did dividends per se add value? Theses authors, anticipated that a firms policy of investment is fixed in perfect market and dividends are not important as investors would treat dividend capital gains and yield as same(hubbabubbabar, 2013). Few authors argued over the MM`s assumption that in perfect markets which are free from transaction costs, taxes as well as other constraints, value of firm is not affected by the dividends. Financial sector has played a vital role in Oman`s economic development. In subsequent to oil and gas, financial sector contributes to nation`s GDP at second place. The financial sector`s prominence can also be comprehended from its demonstration in the stock market; as in the year 2008, it represented 51% of market capitalization(Batainah , 2013). Highest liquidity can be seen in the financial sector in context to the trading of shares in the Muscat Securities Market (MSM). In year 2008, 59% of shares were traded by MSM listed firms with total profit of 45% in the financial sector. A number of significant institutional and economic features has made Oman an interesting and unique setting for examining the dividend policy`s stability(Read, 2014). Several reasons are there, which suggests that financial firms of Oman can adopt a smoothing policy in regards to dividends; whereas some other reasons suggest otherwise. Primarily, firms of Oman pay a huge percentage of their earnings through dividends. This aspect is quite different from the western countries in which moderate dividends are used to be distributed. The attitude of investors of Oman for dividends may possibly contribute to the greater payout ratio. In Oman, most of the investors deliberate that dividends are foremost factor of stock returns. Secondly, in Oman there is no tax charges on dividends. This aspect is also very different from the Western countries, as in these countries dividends falls under taxation at a higher rate in comparison to capital gains. Because of lack of taxation on dividends in Oman, there might be impact on stability of dividend. Managers gets motivation because of the personal income taxes for smoothing the payment of dividends. Smoothening of dividend increases the wealth for investors who pay their taxes, by decreasing the current value of investors estimated liabilities of income tax in future(Al-Yahyaee Pham, 2010). As a result, the absence of personal income taxes is anticipated to decrease the significance for stability of dividend in Oman. Third, companies of Oman depend heavily on bank financing. As the debt from bank reduces the agency problem as well as hazard problem. However, some authors argued that stability of dividend shall be less emphasized in countries like Oman which are more bank centric. As the debt from bank decreases the agency`s value usually fulfilled by payment of dividend. On the other hand, it is also believed by some authors that stability of dividend may not be crucial for firms which depends upon ban debt because of bank monitoring. Therefore, the dependence of Omani companies on financing through bank debt suggests that stability of dividend may not be significant for Omani companies(Batainah , 2013). In concern to corporate dividend policy, a number of rationales are being proposed in the literature, but then again there is little consent among researchers over the topic. For the most part, the literature emphases on several components of hypotheses of dividend policy. Modigilani and Miller`s model of dividend policy is criticized because of following limitations- There is no existence of perfect capital markets and taxes exists in the capital markets. MM`s theory postulates that there is no difference between external and internal financing. Though the flotation costs of new concerns are deliberated, it is false. This theory also believes that wealth of shareholder does not get affected by dividends. On the other hand, to make cash inflows, transaction costs are associated with selling of shares. This aspect motivates the investors to prefer dividends. The assumptions of this theory about uncertainty is unrealistic. The dividends are significant under the assured condition as well(Chesnokova, 2015). Despite the fact, the literature is capacious and is still changing the results remain to be unconvincing. In such context, Oman is an exceptional case to reconsider the issues related to dividend. There are no taxes on capital gains or on dividends in Oman. The nonexistence of taxes may perhaps responsible for an uncluttered or clinical environment to reassess the dividend puzzle. This paper has mainly three objectives, which are- To assess the factors which define the amount of dividends To study the decision in context to pay dividends To outline the prospective changes in dividend policy between non-financial and financial companies from year 2010 to year 2016. References Al-Yahyaee, K., Pham, T. (2010). Dividend stability in a unique environment. University of Wollongong. Retrieved from https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2204context=buspapers Batainah , L. (2013, 11 25). How dividend policies look like. Retrieved from www.2016.omanobserver.om: https://2016.omanobserver.om/how-dividend-policies-look-like/ Chesnokova, M. (2015). Application of Modigliani-Miller Theorem to Banking Sector. diteur inconnu. hubbabubbabar. (2013, 6 7). MILLER AND MODIGLIANI DIVIDEND THEORY. Retrieved from hubbabubbabar.wordpress.com: https://hubbabubbabar.wordpress.com/2013/06/07/miller-and-modigliani-dividend-theory/ Read, C. (2014). The Corporate Financiers. Springer.

Uncommon Article Gives You the Facts on Need Help on Research Paper That Only a Few People Know Exist

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List of Controversial Topics For Research Paper

List of Controversial Topics For Research PaperWhen you are trying to come up with a list of controversial topics for a research paper, try one of the following. If the topic of your paper concerns the environment or something related to it, try a study on air pollution. If you think the topic might be too personal, consider writing about something that is newsworthy but not something that would cause much of a stir among your peers or schoolmates.Writing about politics and political activity is probably one of the most difficult topics to tackle, because it is such a loaded term. But in this case, what you want to do is illustrate why you feel such a certain way or why you think what you believe. For example, if you are a conservative, you may want to talk about why liberals tend to make the wrong political decisions. You might also want to show how liberals or Democrats have gotten their jobs through the system, and all that comes along with it. Just be sure to stay on topic so tha t you don't come off as biased or overly political.Writing a social or sociological study is another topic that requires some thought. But if you know what you're doing, then you may feel more comfortable and even confident about what you have to say.If you're using a research paper as a means of classifying an entire group of people by both their gender and/or age, then you will need to include the category of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons in your list of controversial topics for a research paper. For this, you may want to use the social research method, which involves interviewing a number of participants about their views and opinions about the issue.To find out more about the views of all the participants, ask them about their political affiliation. If they seem to be strongly opposed to the subject matter of your paper, you might want to move on to something else.Another option for doing sociological studies is asking people what they think about their peers. T hey might, for example, say that their friends are too dependent or too controlling, or that their peers are too lazy or uninvolved. You can use this information in conjunction with the subjects of your research to write about whether their behaviors could be viewed as negative or positive.Writing a research paper is something that is often done in a more personal manner than just about any other paper you may be able to write. One of the things that makes writing such a special experience is the fact that you get to use your imagination, and to share a little bit of your life with the reader. No matter what you decide to write about, however, you will want to be sure that you stay on topic so that you don't come off as overbearing or out of touch.

Research Paper Hooks: Helping the Students Write Quality Papers

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Evaluating Yourself - How to Find Good Examples of Assessments

Evaluating Yourself - How to Find Good Examples of AssessmentsThe job market is currently dominated by assessments and there are many different ways to find examples of good, well written assessments. It's not difficult to find some useful examples on the Internet as there are many places you can get sample essays from people you would trust and respect. If you're worried about having a general idea of how to write an assessment essay for work then this article will give you some good insight into what needs to be done.Writing an assessment is important for you to achieve your desired career goals. However, you need to be prepared for your work sample too. So how do you choose which passages to put into your work sample? You should consider the following points. Your reading comprehension is an important skill that can have a big impact on whether or not you get the job you want.In your assessment you need to demonstrate the ability to read and write well enough to be able to read th e work test that your potential employer will be expecting. This means that you should consider working on developing good reading comprehension skills.Good reading comprehension will involve the ability to understand what people are saying and how they say it. You must also show your understanding of grammar and vocabulary, as these words have to be properly pronounced and you have to know how to do this correctly. There are many online resources that can help you develop these skills. It's best to get advice from someone who knows first hand how to prepare to write an assessment.Understanding the way that language works is another skill that you need to develop. You should always try to understand the way that other people use language to express themselves. Also, you should learn the nuances of different ways of making decisions.Reading and writing of essays and reviews that deal with different types of subjects are different to reading and writing of essays and reviews that don' t. However, you need to be aware of the difference between the two because if you fail to develop an understanding of what you should be doing then you'll struggle to do your job effectively.So remember that there are many different sources of excellent assessment essays, but you need to make sure that you have a good grasp of all the main principles before you start searching for examples. You'll find plenty of examples online and if you don't have time to look around, consider checking out some articles for free from the library.

Voodoo research paper Essay Example For Students

Voodoo research paper Essay Voodoo is a religion rich in heiratage and founded in faith and community. The religion has been villianized by western culture and has been wrongly protrayed as malignant and dangerous. The religion is not founded in any of the black magics or fear popularized by Hollywood films, but rather it is based on balance and tradition. The religion is not something which should be encountered with inhibition or fear induced from childhood horror stories, but embraced for it’s strength and history. Voodoo (also known as Vodun, Vodou, Umbanda, Quimbanda, and Candomble) originated as an amalgam of African religions during the slave trade. We will write a custom essay on Voodoo research paper specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now As slaves were shipped from Africa to the Carribean and America, groups of slaves sharing a similier heretage were broken apart to prevent any since of community or bond between them. With no connection beyond the tortures of slavery, the slaves had little chance to establish any relationship to thier fellow captives. Hailing from lifestyles and cultures far removed from each other, the only opportunity for a common bond came from sharing their deep faiths. Though different religions, the intense faiths allowed an intellectual exchange and common bond. With several different religions present in any given group of slaves, the majority of slaves adapted by holding a service which accepted all lineages and respected all ancestreal lines of faith, both aspects being of primary concerns in African religions. These services were effective in blending the rites and practices of many religions into one combination religion. This adaption effectively created a new religion, Voodoo, which translates to spirit in several African languages. This new religion gave the slaves a since of alliance with their nieghboring slaves and, with that alliance, a since of community. This new found unity was viewed as a threat to the French and Brittish plantation owners of the newly settled colonies. As a means to quell the religious unity, the plantation owners forbid the practice of religion and punished slaves who attempted to pursue voodoo. Catholicism was presented as an alternative to the African-based but now independant and Carribean religion. Instead of accepting the Catholic religion, many slaves only incorperated it into the establishing Voodoo religion. Catholicism remains an important aspect of Voodoo, and many of it’s methods and rituals are currently practiced as Voodoo (this is especially accurate in Santeria, a Cuban based Voodoo). The punishments of practicing voodoo forced voodoo to remaine secretive until slavery itself died out. Voodoo became a myth among plantation owners and only to the surface once slaves or former slaves acquired a means to own property through the revolution of 1804. This revolution was spurred by Voodoo priest and priestesses who had worked in secracy and organized the slaves into an army. When the slaves overcame there oppressors voodoo became a publically accepted religion in the Carribean. In the three centuries of religious oppression, Voodoo became a symbol of pride and independence for the slaves. Any pride in a slave is of course regarded as a threat to the slave owner. Rumors of human sacrifice and devil worship became prevalent in the social circles of plantation owners and slave traders. These statements had no validity, but traveled quickly throughout Europe and America. The practicers of Voodoo embraced this fear as means to frighten their former masters and gain some respect in a world where they were deprived of everything. Former slave owners quickly found themselves duped into the beliefs of Voodoo dolls and hexes. This early means of freedom through fear is a reason Voodoo is still treated as a sinister religion. It is not that the Voodoo practice was frightening, but that that image was adopted as a means to assure it’s existance. No historical evidence of human sacrifice or affiliation with western principles of Satan has been discovered. Any affiliation with the occult has occured only recently with the Gothic movement in pop culture, and is not related with any orthadox Voodoo practices. Voodoo redeemed itself throughout the 1800’s with peaceful practice throughout the Carribean and Southern points in America. .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .postImageUrl , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:hover , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:visited , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:active { border:0!important; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:active , .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ue93f973709df7a1b34811c36a71210dc:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Monotheism Vs Polytheism Essay In 1884 S. St.James wrote the book Haiti or the Black Republic. This book possessed graphically described accounts of canabalism, human sacrifice, and the structured teachings of bad or black magic. St. James sources were the testimonies of voodoo priests who were tortured into these false confessions given during the times of revolution. St. James also used the written statements from the deposed plantation masters as accurate accounts as to why voodoo practicers were being executed. Though exagerated, and in some instances simply imagined, the book was widely distributed and read. As the American film industry emerged in the 1930’s, a wealth of horror stories pictured voodoo as a menacing culture. Voodoo, being practiced primarily by individuals without access to the American film society offered no resistance or information while these false protrayals were being made. It was not until the 1950’s that any information from legitimate studies emerged. Primary religions involved in the African aspect of Voodoo are Macumba and Candomble of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, and several now extinct tribes from the Congos and Cameroon. These religions lay the ground work for the course of religious ceremonies and contain the origins for the dieties worshipped in modern voodoo. Voodoo’s principle diety, Olorun (also known as Oloddumare) is the voodoo equivalent to the Christian God. Though the name can be trace to the Yoruba tribe, it is unknown if he is a rimnant of the Catholic involvement in voodoo. Obatala, is a composit of many tribes primary god. He is represented as the giver of life and creator of human kind. Obatala is subserviant to Olorun, but is said to have created the other, lesser Gods. For instance Eleggua, goddess of opportunity and Oya, goddess of fire and wind were both created by Obatala for humanity. In addition to containing the gods of many African cultures, voodoo also expresses the belief in minor spirits who watch or protect specific objects or occurances. Those who were created at the beginning of life are referred to as Rada, and are worshipped as members to the family of Gods. Individuals who lived great lives or led the voodoo followers are often praised and referred to as Petro. Many of the rulers who fought the slave traders in Africa and many of the priests who aided in the revolution have acquired this status. The voodoo culture has ordained the Catholic Saints in this way and acknowledge them as Petro. As Voodoo was founded in necessity, it is one of the more lineant religions in terms of tolerance of relationship with other religions. Voodoo’s belief that all things connect to ones soul stresses the importance to not cause harm. Voodouers, (those who practice voodoo) believe every act can be enjoyed, if not for the act itself, then for the pride or satisfaction one can take in the results of the act. For that fact no act can be considered unselfish and therefore it is most important to accept and spread happiness for the majority of mankind. Voodoo makes certain not to condemn those of other faiths, and does not attempt to disprove or replace any. The relationship with Jesus, the primary aspect of western religions, varies with the denominations of Voodoo. Most Voodoo denominations acknowledge his devine stature as the son of God. Current Voodoo converts are encouraged to retain their prestablished religions and add Voodoo as a means to enhance ones spirituality. Voodoo does not see itself as the Sola Fida, rather as a corallary to the other religions. Those who practice voodoo are avid and devout in thier religion, only they view the afterlife as centering more on ones inner light than on ones external beliefs. The afterlife is believed to be one of learning and of understanding. .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .postImageUrl , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:hover , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:visited , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:active { border:0!important; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:active , .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5 .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u5f5345371b20a929ffd9acc9f78dc9e5:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Albert Einstein Essay About Birth Control Where the questions of the universe will finally rest. Voodoo also teaches that should one gain access here, their past life will not influence their Ti Bon Ange (little guardian angel) which is the human part of the soul.(The other part, Gros Bon Ange, big guardian angel, being one’s conscience and what allows corporeal life) Voodoo contains distinct denominations, but the root faith is constant. The most wide spread voodoo is Yoruban, of orthadox voodoo. The seperations in voodoo varies in the importance of ceremony and the roles of thier clergy. Makaya and Kongo Rite voodoos follow the same structure, but are less rigiorus in ceremony and clergy do not possess such influence. Santeria is an offshoot of voodoo which has grown considerably in Cuba. The Santeria religion is structured tightly after Catholicism, while the objects of worship are the Dahomey, children of Obatala. They are worshipped in ways similier to the treatment of Catholic saints. The religion varies from traditional voodoo in the fact that it still remains secretive and prefers to remain seperated from outside religions. Santeria has no defined structures and the role of priests or priestesses are small if even there in Santeria communities. This is most likely due to the restriction of religious freedom in Cuba. Santeria has recently spread significantly in Miami and New York. Though attempting to remain separate, there exposure and positive influence have shed great positive light on Voodoo. The mystique of voodoo has remained though action to dispell the negative connotations has made great advancements. A common word association with voodoo yields; Haiti, voodoo dolls, zombies, and tools often associated with black magic. Though orthadox voodoo does not practice the arts of voodoo dolls or envoking zombies, but the origins of both are quite intrigueing. Voodoo dolls were used as a mean of cursing or hexing an individual, most commonly a plantation owner. No current Shango or Mambo (priest or priestess) condones this act or grants it validity. It was never practiced religious and is primarily a folklore that has been abandoned by legitimate voodoo. No cases of violence have been linked to voodoo dolls. The term zombie means an individual who is resurrected after death by a voodoo priest or priestess. This resurrected individual will possess typical superhuman traits often associated with the undead in folklore (superhuman strength, resistance to injury). The zombie will be bound to his resurrectors will. In actuality, a zombie was a person gravely ill who was administered heavy narcotics as a means to keep them alive. In the poorly industrialized areas where voodoo emerged, medical utilities were scarce and of poor quality. Often, individuals revived were believed dead. Once resurrected by barely sublethal amounts of strong drugs, the individual would possess enormous strength and resistance to injury equivalent to that of a man on PCP. The individual would also be dependant on the priest to supply thier now life sustaining drug. This dependence is effectivly being bound to a master’s will. In extreme cases the zombie would go through physical effects of drug addiction which leaves the individual looking corpse like. Voodoo has been greatly misrepresented in American society. It is an honorable and thoughtful religion which should be commended for it’s tenacity through history and it’s involvement in the lives of so many. Voodoo is not the stuff myths and horror movies, rather it is a peaceful and loving religion which can benefit many more than only those devout to Obatala. It can be benefiscial to those who care about humanity.

ACT Strategies

Extracurricular Strong Students College Admissions and SAT / ACT Strategies SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Do you have great extracurriculars? Maybe you’re captain of the football team or president of a top debate team. Your approach to college admissions will be quite different than a typical student’s, and your SAT / ACT prep process should be uniquely tailored to you. In this article, we talk about what unique opportunities you have in test prep and what traps you should avoid. In this guide, first we'll discuss the different academic and extracurricular strengths students can have and which categories you fit into. We'll also go over why extracurriculars are important to colleges and why certain schools care about them more than others. In the next sections, we'll discuss specific strategies you can follow based on the strength of your extracurriculars and academics. Our final section is for students who are being recruited or otherwise meet special admissions requirements. How Good Do You Have to Be? The best way to approach admissions and test prep depends on two factors: extracurriculars and academics. First, are you relatively good at extracurriculars (think captain of the chess team), or are you truly stellar (think second-best high school football player inthe entire US)? Second, are you already doing well academically (90 percentile or higher on SAT/ACT) or are you more towards the middle? We'll define each of these terms below and give you advice that best fits your situation. Extracurriculars For this article, Relatively Good extracurriculars means that your percentile in an extracurricular is at least three times as good as your academics. For example, if you are an 85th percentile academic (perhaps a GPA of 3.8 unweighted), then you are Relatively Good in extracurriculars if you are at least a 95th percentile in extracurriculars. Likewise, if you are 97th percentile academically (perhaps a GPA of 3.95 unweighted), then you’re relatively strong in extracurriculars if you’re in the 99th percentile. Having Relatively Good extracurriculars is a challenge, and it does make you stand out. Conversely, for Stellar extracurriculars, I’m not talking about being the president of a chess team that you started with five people. I’m not talking about winning second place in a county track meet. You need to be ranked in the top 500 in the country in a popular area (e.g. football, math, debate), or you need to be ranked top 50 in a less popular area (e.g. javelin throwing, Model UN). When calculating these rankings, do it honestly. Don’t kid yourself by making artificial categories. Top 500 in touch football doesn’t count, nor does being top 500 in the uncommon Mandelbrot math competition. If you have to ask whether you’re within the top500, I would play it safe and count yourself out for now (but you can always improve!). Those who are clearly ranked in the top 500 of a popular extracurricular will know without having to mull over the question for hours. Academics Finally, different advice applies to students with strong academic baselines versus those who are more moderate academically. For the purpose of this article, we define a strong academic baseline as someone performing at the 90th percentile forboth their GPA and SAT / ACT score. That is, you’ve looked up your SAT percentile or ACT percentile, and it’s above 90. You’ve also asked your guidance counselor for your class rank, or informally polled your classmates, and you’ve found that that you’re performing at least 90th percentile there too. Those who are performing much less than this have a standard or moderate academic baseline. Of course, there is some flexibility here. Some may say 80th percentile is a strong baseline, and if you’re targeting an institution outside of the US News top 20, this is true. A GPA or class rank that’s 70th percentile or lower is probably no longer strong enough for the definition of this article. Why Do Colleges Care About Extracurriculars? Which Colleges Care More? To begin understanding why students with great extracurriculars are viewed differently by colleges, it’s useful to review the ideas behind why colleges even look for extracurriculars in the first place. Extracurriculars, in general, allow great colleges to have a student body that is more than just students who did well in school.Colleges have their own values, often shaped by the social landscape to which they belong. They may care about social impact, richness of student character, diversity of student body, and so on. Extracurriculars are the method by which colleges select students in furtherance of these values that they hold. However, colleges, at their core, are academic institutions. They believe the most important things are academic: learning subjects, doing well in classes, furthering knowledge through research, etc. Colleges generally value academics more than other areas. This is demonstrated by their emphasis of SAT/ACT scores and GPAs over other applicant qualities like extracurriculars. Think of academics and extracurriculars as being in a â€Å"pyramid of college needs." The academic layer is the lower half, and extracurriculars are the higher half. Colleges want to fill the lower half before filling the upper half.Only colleges that have already had their fill of strong academics will start caring more about extracurriculars.Analogously, in humans, we say that eating is a more fundamental need than watching a movie. If we don’t have a movie and we’re starving, we look for food first. Only if we have enough food do we start caring about the movie. Figure: The hierarchy of college needs. Academics come before extracurriculars. With this model, it’s easy to see why the top colleges care disproportionately more about extracurriculars.The top colleges (generally defined as US News top 50), can already get their full fill of strong academics. There are hundreds of thousands of students every year with GPAs above 3.8 unweighted or with ACT scores above 30 (SAT scores above 1300). These strong academics are more than enough to fill the academic needs of top colleges. Therefore, these top colleges will start using extracurriculars more to differentiate students. If you’re already strong academically, then you’ll likely be targeting higher ranked schools, and your extracurriculars will matter more. Conversely, colleges ranked below 50 in US News (which can still be great colleges for a number of reasons) will care a lot more about academics. If you’re performing only mediocre academically, extracurriculars won’t carry you (unless you are specially recruited, as we’ll discuss below). The next part of this guide will give you specific strategies depending on your current academic status. If your grades and test scores are about average, read the next section for Moderate Academics. If your grades and test scores put you in at least the 90th percentile, skip two sections down to the section for Strong Academics. The final section is for students who are being recruited or who otherwise have special admissions requirements. Moderate Academic Baseline? Shore Up Your ACT / SAT First! As we saw above, your extracurriculars will only really matter if you're great academically as well. Academics and extracurriculars complement each other. After all, the top-ranked schools care about extracurriculars the most, and only then in students who already have a good academic baseline. If you're not currently in the 90th percentile academically, the advice in this section applies to you, regardless of whether your extracurriculars are Relatively Good or Stellar. As we mentioned previously, our rough cutoff to be academically moderate is being below the 90th percentile on the SAT / ACT. If you’re less than that cutoff academically, the most important thing you can do for college admissions is improve your SAT / ACT score and GPA while maintaining your extracurriculars. The further you are from that 90th percentile transition point, the more important academics become. In the extreme, if you’re scoring average or below average academically (ACT 20 out of 36, SAT 1000 out of 1600), your admissions will depend nearly entirely on your academics. Now, how do you solve this? Of course, don’t lose your extracurricular it will be important to admissions later. Also, if you’re so good at this activity, you probably do it because you enjoy it too. However, recognize that, if you’re mediocre academically, you should mainly focus on improving those scores. How will shoring up your academics be different from normal students trying to raise their grades? For one, since you have a great extracurricular going on, that presumably takes up a lot of time. Therefore, you want to increase your academics in the most efficient way possible. This often means that SAT / ACT prep is probably the best way to improve. Just a few hours of study will increase your points substantially and move you up a few percentiles. It’s not uncommon to see a gain of 20 percentiles on the SAT or ACT in return for just 40 hours of study. Contrast that with improving your GPA. Suppose you put in 40 extra hours on your academics. Over the course of your high school career, between classwork and homework, you’re already putting in over 4000 hours of work into academics. An extra 40 hours moves your GPA less than 1 percent! Maybe your GPA will go up from a 3.50 to a 3.53 barely moving the needle. When it comes to time efficiency for college admissions, classes andGPAs are often a wasteland. Thus, the conclusion is that, if you’re not doing superb academically, definitely work to improve that first. Regardless of whether your extracurriculars are Stellar or Relatively Good, if your academics aren't great, the best way to improve your college chances is to work on improving your academics. And, as we explained above, the easiest and fastest way to significantly improve your academics is through ACT / SAT prep. Strong Academically? Here’s What You Should Do Now, suppose you are already performing at the 90th percentile on both your GPA and the SAT / ACT. That’s great news because you have a goodshot at the top 50 US News ranked schools. This is when your extracurricular will start to shine! First, your extracurricular will be the differentiator at this point, so make sure whatever strategy you do, you don’t ruin your main selling point, your main extracurricular strength. If you are in tennis, I would avoid doing activities that injure your arm. If you’re trying to improve academics, then realize that 90th percentile is already good, and be careful not to take any actions that will endanger your special strength. For example, suppose you are a US ranked tennis player. Your GPA is above the 90th percentile, but your ability to write essays about world literature is merely average. You are considering missing some tennis practice sessions to take an essay-writing improvement course. My strong advice: Don’t do it. Your ability to write a bit better about Shakespeare won’t make an impact on college admissions, whereas your tennis ability will. You should understand at this point that colleges will care more about quality than quantity of extracurriculars.Being state-ranked (top 100) in debate and also state-ranked in math is far worse than being nationally-ranked in just one of the categories. Choose one or two things that you are especially good at. Once you go into the â€Å"three somewhat good extracurriculars† area, you seem like a dilettante to colleges, a negative. If you’re good at three or more activities, focus on the one that you’re strongest in, you’re making the most progress in, or that is most recognized by colleges. Thus, my number one advice to you is to focus on that one great extracurricular. At this point, if you’re Relatively Good at an extracurricular, you want to turn that into a Stellar. If you are already Stellar, you want to improve your rank even more. There are two cases when you should still pay attention to academics. First, you should always pick the low hanging fruit. If an easy project or essay comes your way that will boost your score by a lot for very little work, you should definitely still do it. You should also still invest in some SAT / ACT prep, whether by yourself or some other way.Studies show that the first few hours of prep improve your score by the most. While some students study hundreds of hours, 40 hours of prep often is very low-hanging fruit for you to pick to improve your application by a lot. Also, if you are very Stellar already (but not recruited I’ll talk about recruited below), it is worth re-examining your academics. If you are in the Stellar category, you’re probably in the top 0.1 percentile in terms of extracurriculars. If you are just â€Å"merely† top 90th percentile in academics, then your academics are still trailing behind. In that case, it’s worthwhile to push your academics harder still getting up to 98th or 99th percentile. This doesn’t mean a perfect score: you just need to get around a 1500 out of 1600 on the SAT or a 33 out of 36 on the ACT. Again, ACT / SAT Prep is your friend for the above goal. Being Stellar, you likely won’t have much time to invest. Because ACT / SAT prep is a relatively fast way to boost your percentile, it’s a great fit for you. Extra Advice for Students Stellar at Extracurriculars: Recruitment and Special Slots All students who are strong in extracurriculars have an advantage. Usually this advantage is implicit, a wink or a nod from an admissions officer approving of your math team trophy or debate win. However, for some students who are truly stellar, the implicit becomes explicit. A nudge turns into a likely letter. Waffling about flexibility in ACT scores turns into explicit ACT cutoffs. Therefore, if you are really Stellar in an extracurricular, you should look to see if you have explicit special admissions requirements. Special admissions requirements are more advantageous, so you should definitely find out about this if you can. If you’re a Stellar athlete, I would talk to your coach, your local association, your trainer, or even the school you’re interested in attending. Athletes in popular sports like football, baseball, basketball, and so forth especially are recruited. If you are a top athlete looking to continue playing for a college team, this section applies to you! Special admissions requirements also apply for Stellar students of non-athletic fields. For example, if you are a stellar scorer on the USA Math Olympiad (USAMO), both MIT and Caltech have relaxed admissions requirements. Caltech, in fact, explicitly asks for USAMO type scores. Students admitted to the prestigious RSI science community are even given guaranteed admissions to MIT and Caltech. There is no single rule when it comes to explicit special admissions for stellar students. Explicit special requirements depend on each school and each activity. The special SAT / ACT requirement for a USAMO winner at MIT will look very different from that of a Division 1 recruited football player. The best way to find out more information is by researching your particular field. If you’re stellar in a field, chances are you have much deeper and unique resources than a blog can give you. I should also mention that explicit spots depend very much on school, activity, and year, and the specific interaction of all three parts. If Harvard is looking for a flutist in 2004, being good at the flute will give you a much stronger advantage at Harvard than it would at a similar school (like Yale) not recruiting flutists that year. Similarly, if Harvard has a much greater need for a flutist in 2004 than they do in 2006, a flutist who applies in 2004 will have a much better chance of getting in than a flutist who applies in 2006, even if their applications are identical. If one school offers you explicit admissions requirements one year, don't think all schools will give you the same advantage all years. Luck and timing become are important parts of the process. Once you find out about explicit special requirements, you should follow the specific advice you get from your recruiter or mentor about SAT / ACT guidelines. However, it is very common for recruited students, especially in sports, to need to hit a hard SAT / ACT score quota (which is also called a target, goal, or baseline). Recruited Students: Need to Hit an SAT / ACT Quota? In sports and athletics, it’s very common for the best athletes to have explicit SAT or ACT score cutoffs. This means that a recruiter will call you and literally say that, if you get a 30 on the ACT, you will be admitted. Even if it’s not a guarantee, your chances of admissions jump from 10% to 90% at this hard cutoff. This was the case for one of my tutoring students who was a tennis star, and it’s a very common situation for exceptional athletes to find themselves in. In these cases, you should understand that the reason colleges use the SAT / ACT is because these scores tend to be more objective thanteachers or school districts. Colleges are afraid that an easy high school or an easy teacher will give a popular athletestrong grades despite her performance being poor. The internal politics of the college also revolve around ensuring that the stellar extracurricular student can pass everything. If you’re a basketball star, you don’t need to be getting an A in Organic Chemistry. If you’re a math genius, you don’t need to be writing research papers on Voltaire. However, if you start failing out of classes, that will embarrass your future coach. Having an ACT / SAT cutoff is supposed to reduce admitting students like this. When aiming for the SAT / ACT quotas, you should take the test in ways that are different from usual. Suppose you’re reasonably sure that you’ll hit the quota. Then you’re in a good position, and the name of the game is to play it safe and don’t waste time. Unless you are really above the cutoff by a ton, it’s useful to do some ACT / SAT prep. The prep will take just a few hours (no more than 40 hours, or the same amount of time as 1-2 weeks of rigorous sports practice), and it will very effectively improve your score. You don’t want a program that interrupts your sports training; classes that make you miss practice are a bad idea. Now, suppose you’re getting much lower scores than your quota. For example, you usually score a 28, but the quota is a 30. First, it would an extremely good idea to prep in this case because this one number literally will make or break everything.Most students don’t have the good fortune to be told an ACT score can (virtually) guarantee them admissions. You do have that opportunity, so the gains test prep can give you matter more than ever. Second, you will want to take the ACT / SAT as many times as you need so you can maximize your chance of getting above that score. Each time you take the exam, you will want to have higher variance. Try out different strategies read the passage before the questions during one test and vice versa during another. Any strategy that increases the volatility of your score will increase your maximum score attained, and thus your overall chances of getting over the quota. You should invest every bit of time you need in SAT / ACT prep to hit the quota because if you miss it, at least for admissions to that college, all your talent and hard work in that sport or activity will have amounted to nothing. While having so much depend on the ACT / SAT hardly seems fair, it’s actually an advantageous position to be in because the quota is likely a lot less than what you’d need to get if you were applying normally to that university! Conclusion For students who are strong at extracurriculars, here's a handy chart to guide you through the test prep and college admission process: Advice Strength at Extracurriculars Moderate Academically (90%tile) Strong Academically (90%tile) Relatively Good: Percentile-wise, extracurriculars at least 3x stronger than academics. Academics is your first priority. Focus on SAT / ACT prep while maintaining extracurriculars. Your single best extracurricular is the priority. Get low hanging academic fruit like SAT / ACT prep. Stellar: Top 500 in the US (in a popular activity) See if your stellar extracurriculars qualify you for special admissions. Otherwise, focus equally on improving extracurriculars and academics. Your single best extracurricular is the priority. However, make sure your academics don’t fall too far below extracurriculars. Recruited: Your mentor in your field tells you about special circumstances Follow recruiter guidelines. SAT / ACT quota likely. Take the SAT / ACT multiple times. Follow recruiter guidelines. SAT / ACT quota likely. Take the SAT / ACT safely. Most students who are strong in extracurriculars are in the Relatively Good category, as opposed to the absolutely Stellar category (and that’s not a problem, be proud of your strength!). In the Relatively Good category, those who fall below the 90th percentile are urged to focus mainly on academics. At your target colleges, academics are still the bread and butter, and extracurriculars are merely a garnish. Push academics as hard as you can, and often that will mean SAT / ACT prep. If you are already academically strong, though, you are better off continuing to improve your extracurricular. For students with Stellar extracurriculars, it’s always worthwhile to see if you can berecruited or get special admission requirements. At this point, you should be very careful to keep your extracurricular top-notch.If your academics are moderate, though, they will hold you back improve to at least 90 percentile. Once you’re at 90%, extracurriculars become more important, unless you become so good at extracurriculars that it makes sense to notch up academics just a bit more. Finally, recruited students and special admissions students you have the best deal of the bunch. Follow the advice that your recruiters and mentors give you, and remember that, as a general rule, put your extracurricular first. For students of all types, SAT / ACT prep is a relatively low hanging fruit a fast and efficient way to improve your academic standing. What's Next? Want more information on athletic recruiting?Check out our guide which goes throughthe entire process, from beginning to end. Looking for ways to strengthenyour extracurriculars?Check out four examples of amazing extracurricular activities that are sure to impress colleges. Want more tips for test prep?We have lots of guides for SAT prep and ACT prep!