Confused about how to build a strong profile for admission to top colleges? This article offers a practical, step-by-step guide for Indian students on choosing the right MOOCs, research mentorships, and summer programs—so you can build genuine academic depth and a college profile that truly stands out.

High Schoolers are often confused about Profile Building for College Admissions

At Inomi, we meet two kinds of students:

• The first has excellent grades but doesn’t feel like they have “done enough” beyond school.
• The second has signed up for every online course they could find—and still feels unsure whether any of it really matters.

Both are completely normal concerns to have. With all the noise around profile building for college admissions, it’s easy to succumb to the feeling that one needs to do more, more, more. But real academic exploration isn’t about chasing certificates. It’s about depth-showing universities and, more importantly, yourself what you truly care about and how far you’re willing to go to understand it.

Now we’ll break down three important pathways for exploration: MOOCs, research mentorships, and summer programs. We’ll also be honest about the Indian context—where structured research opportunities are limited, internships are tricky, and international summer programs can be expensive.

Related Article: What do Ivy League and Top Elite Universities Look For in Indian Applicants?

How to Build a Strong Profile for College Admissions Beyond Academics

Whether you’re in Class 9, 10, 11, or 12, let this be a roadmap to authentic choices that mean something to your interests, not just to your résumé.

Why Academic Exploration Matters: Beyond College Admissions

Before talking about courses or programs, let’s talk about purpose:

• Academic exploration will enable you to:
• Discover what truly excites you
• Understand the subjects that you enjoy enough to do in college
• Develop the discipline to learn independently
• Develop clarity about career pathways
• Strengthen your essays and interviews naturally because you’re writing from real experience, not forced activities

This, therefore, makes academic exploration all the more critical for Indian students applying to competitive global universities.

For a majority of Indian students, their schools allow little freedom compared with their US counterparts: very limited access to research labs, fewer interdisciplinary electives, and a generally rigid academic calendar.

Therefore, universities look for self-driven learning as evidence of curiosity and initiative.

But remember: to explore is not to accomplish.

You are not supposed to write a research paper when you’re 16; you’re supposed to participate.

MOOCs: Your Most Accessible, Affordable, and Flexible Option

MOOCs, or Massive Open Online Courses, form a great starting point for Indian high schoolers, not because of the fancy-schmancy certificates that they provide, but because they help you test your interests in low-pressure and inexpensive ways.

Where to Find High Quality MOOCs

There are hundreds of platforms, but these are the ones we most recommend to students at Inomi:

• Coursera (classes from Stanford, Michigan, Imperial, etc.)
• edX (MIT, Harvard, Berkeley)
• Udemy: practical skills, especially CS, design, and finance.
• FutureLearn (UK university–aligned courses)
• Swayam (Government of India platform; some great IIT/NPTEL options)

How to Choose the Right Course: Not Just a Popular One

Too many students take random courses (“I did AI, Philosophy, Marketing, Blockchain, and Python…”) and then feel lost when asked: But what did you learn about yourself?

Instead, at Inomi, we guide students to choose using these questions:

1. What subject(s) are you really interested in?

Instead of “What looks impressive?”, ask:
“What do I like learning even when it’s not about school?

2. Does the course help you to delve deeper into an existing interest?

Example:

• You like psychology: take a course in developmental psychology or cognitive science.
• You like economics: try behavioural economics or game theory.

3. Does the course teach real skills?

Many students benefit more from application-oriented courses like:

• Data analysis
• Coding
• Science problem-solving
• Creative writing
• Finance fundamentals
• Entrepreneurship Basics

4. Is the instructor of the course credible?

Look for courses taught by professors or professionals in the field.

5. Finish the Course

Yes, you read it right. This matters more than enrolling. Here is the breakdown of the statistics as of 2024–2025.

If you look at every single person who clicks “Enroll” on a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform like Coursera, edX, or Udacity:

• Average Completion Rate: ~12.6%
• Typical Range: 3% – 15%

This number has remained notoriously low for a decade. Early studies (like those from MIT/Harvard) found completion rates as low as 3-6%.

How to Get the Most Out of MOOCs

• Universities don’t care about the certificate. They are interested in your learning behaviour. So you have to engage deeply.
• Keep a short reflection notebook: What did I learn? What surprised me? What do I want to explore next?
• Try applying the learning to a small research project, a blog post, a model, an experiment, case study.
• Be honest with yourself, and if you don’t like the course, pivot.
• One excellent course + clear application is far more impressive than ten certificates.

Research Mentorships: High-Value; But Choose Carefully

Let’s be real: India doesn’t really have ample, structured research opportunities available for high schoolers. Most college labs cannot legally onboard minors; professors are usually too busy, and schools seldom encourage formal research projects. However, you shouldn’t lose hope. Academic research certainly boosts your college admission chances.

Here are a few ways to explore research opportunities as high school students in India:

1. Guided Research Programs (Online Mentorship)

A number of global platforms match students with PhD mentors, but not all are credible, and many are expensive.

Before enrolling, ask:

• Who are the mentors?
• What exactly will I produce by the end?
• Will the project be original, or is it some kind of preset template?
• Are there opportunities to present or showcase the work?

Remember, publication is not a requirement.

What matters is the process you go through: by exploring a question, collecting information, and forming an argument.

2. Independent Research Projects

This is frequently the best and least expensive alternative.

Examples:

• A psychology student writes a paper analyzing the stress patterns among peers.
• A CS student builds a small algorithm or app.
• A political science aspirant studies election data and voter behaviour.
• A biology enthusiast carries out simple experiments at home and documents results.

Independent research shows initiative and creativity, qualities colleges value highly. Read Academic Research for High Schoolers: A way to boost college applications beyond textbooks.

3. Emailing Professors (But With Realistic Expectations)

Some professors do reply.

Most won’t.

But if they send sophisticated, respectful e-mails displaying real interest, they sometimes get advice, suggestions of things to read, or an opportunity to observe briefly.

We at Inomi help students draft such emails, and if it’s done correctly, the experience could turn out to be powerful, even if that outcome happens to be small.

Signs of Quality Research Engagement: If you can demonstrate the following

• Understand the research topic and its impact
• Explain your topic clearly
• Explain why it matters
• Have questions you want to explore next
• Gained perspective, not just output

This is the kind of depth that strengthens essays and interviews naturally.

Summer Programs: A Great Opportunity, But Not the Only One

Parents frequently ask us: “Should we send our child to a foreign summer program?”

Here’s the thing- summer programs are beneficial, yet not crucial.

For Indian students, the biggest hurdles are:

• High cost: ₹3–6 lakh is common
• Visa and travel logistics
• Opportunity mismatch: programs are either too basic or too “camp”-like

When does a summer program make sense?

• When the program offers exposure that the schools of India cannot provide.
• When it fits extremely well with the interests of a student academically
• When the student is mature enough to benefit from independent learning
• When finances allow without strain

Affordable or India-Based Alternatives

If international programs are not an option, consider:

• Workshops at IIT/NIT/IIIT (often very good)
• Symbiosis, Ashoka, Krea short-term programs
• Online academic bootcamps
• Specialized NGO-run summer programs in the environment, debate, coding, etc.

These are cost-effective but still rich academically.

Related Articles:

4 Best Summer Enrichment Programs in India

List of Summer Programs for High School Students in India

If You Can’t Attend Any Program — That’s Okay. Really!

Universities know these programs come with a price.

What they care about is initiative.

A student who develops their own research project, internships, or reading list can be just as impressive, even more so at times.

How Students Should Plan Exploration (Classes 9 to 12) to Build a Strong Profile for College Admissions

A simple roadmap:

Class 9–10: Explore

Try 1–2 MOOCs in different subjects

Read broadly: books, magazines, podcasts, lectures

Explore interests through clubs and school activities

No pressure to specialize

Class 11: Deepen

Choose one or two academic interests

Take more advanced courses or skill-based modules

Try a small research project or an extended activity

Start documenting learning

Class 12: Apply and Demonstrate

Use your past exploration to write strong college essays
Work on one focused project – do not add new activities.

Take a rigorous course only if you have time besides board prep.

What Colleges Ultimately Want to See in Your Applications?

Regardless of the pathway—MOOCs, research, summer programs—universities want to see:

• Curiosity: Did I ask good questions?
• Initiative: Did you do something on your own initiative?
• Depth: Did I go beyond superficial learning?
• Reflection: Do you understand why it matters to you?
• Consistency: Has your interest grown naturally over time?

This is why we tell students and parents: It’s not about doing everything. It’s about doing the right things well.

Related Articles:

How to Build a Strong Profile for STEM Majors While in High School

How to Build a Strong Profile for Pre-Med as a High Schooler

Final Advice by Team Inomi:

The sense of academic exploration should be that of growth, without feeling pressured at all. Don’t compare yourself with friends doing ten online courses or posting certificates on LinkedIn. Their journey is not yours. Start small. Follow your curiosity.

Stick to what really interests you. And remember, depth beats quantity—always. If you ever feel confused about where to begin or how much is “enough,” that’s exactly the kind of guidance we offer at Inomi. We believe in helping students build meaningful, personal, and sustainable pathways—not superficial ones. You don’t need a perfect résumé.

You just need an honest one. And real academic exploration, done thoughtfully, gets you there.

Acknowledgement: This article has been co-authored by Richa Saklani.

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