text: Being an active member in extracurricular activities shows that the person is not just good at memorizing notes, but that they are also able to partake in deeper thinking. Colleges want people that can use all of their brain, and not just one side of it. If someone had a perfect SAT/ACT score, a 5.0 GPA, and no extracurricular activities, they would probably not be chosen over someone with an SAT score of 1539, a 4.35 GPA and multiple extracurricular activities.