Sharing your passions: how hobbies and interests can make your UWC application shine

Studying at a UWC school is a challenging and rewarding experience. Alongside the academic rigour of the IB Diploma, you’ll take part in a wide range of activities, service projects and team-based learning – all designed to help you grow as a person and contribute to your community.

To understand whether you're ready for this challenge, we want to know how you spend your time now. One key part of your application is sharing your hobbies, interests and activities outside of the classroom.

For example, the Global Selection Programme application asks about your involvement in cultural activities, sport, youth groups, community projects and more. But we don’t just want to know what you do – we want to know why it matters to you, what you’ve learned and how you’ve grown.

What your interest can show us

As you write about your hobbies and interests, think about how they demonstrate qualities such as:

Curiosity and self-motivation
Passion and commitment
Resilience in balancing different priorities
Teamwork and leadership
Care for your wellbeing and personal growth
Dedication to your community and to helping others.
There is no “perfect” activity or preferred type of interest. What matters is how your experiences reflect your values, your character and your potential to contribute at UWC.

Tell us your story

We encourage you to focus on the moments that meant the most to you. This might be:

A particular project where you took the lead or worked as part of a team.
A meaningful moment while volunteering or supporting someone in need.
A challenge you overcame or a time when you discovered something new about yourself.

Your examples don’t need to be dramatic or impressive – they just need to be real. We want to hear what shaped you and how you made a difference, whether that’s through years of service or a single act of kindness.

There’s no one way to be a UWC student. Share what makes you you.

We look forward to learning more.