"Extra Curricula" or "Extracurricular"

Question

Need help again.I'm wondering, which one is correct. Basically, I always use the former one, but found the following in Dictionaries:Oxford: Extra-curricularWebster's & AHDEL: ExtracurricularMS Office Dictionary Plugin: need to search for "Extra" and "Curricula" in separation. (Of course, "curricular", "Extra-curricular" or "Extracurricular")Which one is the most commonly used worldwide?Which one is the safest one for me to use if readers are mostly the English-as-2nd-language users, and Singlish (Singaporean English) native speakers.WW

Usenet · Accepted Answer

Oops! Just found that "Curricular" can be found on MS Office's Dictionary, but problem wasn't solved anyway.
WW

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Oops! Just found that "Curricular" can be found on MS Office's Dictionary, but problem wasn't solved anyway.[/nq]
The one with a space between is wrong, as it gives a false impression "extra curricular activities" seems to mean "additional activities included in the curriculum". I'd write "extracurricular" as one word without a hyphen, as I would "extraterrestrial".

Mike.

Usenet · Answer

So, in your meaning, "extra curricular" means parts of the courses. Am I correct?
Is the "extracurricular activities" mean only "paid jobs while studying" or also include all paid part-time jobs while working?

a) paid jobs while studying
b) paid jobs while studying and part-time ones while having a permanent job.
Thanks.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]So, in your meaning, "extra curricular" means parts of the courses. Am I correct?[/nq]
(Could you quote the text you're replying to, please?)

No, what I meant was that the way we use "extra", *"extra curricular activities" would mean "extra activities which are part of the curriculum", and that is in practice meaningless.
[nq:1]Is the "extracurricular activities" mean only "paid jobs while studying" or also include all paid part-time jobs while working? a) paid jobs while studying b) paid jobs while studying and part-time ones while having a permanent job.[/nq]
To me, the expression doesn't refer to paid work at all. From a school's point of view, "extracurricular activities" would be things like the school orchestra, or a sailing club: things a pupil could do at school which are not part of the teaching programme. I suppose "extracurricular studies" would be additional subjects taught in the school, but which aren't in the standard teaching programme.

A pupil's part-time job isn't connected with the school or its curriculum, so I wouldn't describe it in terms of the curriculum, even negatively. On the pupil's c.v. that would be an "out-of-school" activity.

Mike.

Usenet · Answer

Ok, Mike. Sorry, I'll start quoting from now on. (but don't know how to change text color, like in your response.
[nq:1]"extra activities which are part of the curriculum", and that is in practice meaningless.[/nq]
This means I have misused it for years.
[nq:1]To me, the expression doesn't refer to paid work at all. From a school's point of view, "extracurricular activities" would ... I suppose "extracurricular studies" would be additional subjects taught in the school, but which aren't in the standard teaching programme.[/nq]
Well, then. Which of the following considered "Extracurricular Activities"? If not calling as such, what should they be called, supposed, in the CV?
Non-paid ones, while studying:
- Members of a club at University
- Members of a professional club (e.g. IEEE, National Computer Association, etc.)
Paid ones, while studying:
- Research project (also as a part of Marketing Research course), but was sponsored by a company.
- Fund raising; from corporate sponsors for activities of the club at the university. (Got some incentives)
Non-paid ones, while working:
- Translate books for charity organizations
Paid ones, while working:
- Business/Technical consultancy for the government on temp. consultancy contract, but also have a permanent job at another company.

Now, you must already understand why I need this.

Thank you very much, Mike.
Thanks to everyone else in advance.
WW

Usenet · Answer

You should simply NEVER use "extra curricular". There will always be a better alternative to that questionable phrase.
/I'm sayin' never!

Tweek

Usenet · Answer

"WW" inquired thusly in
[nq:1]Well, then. Which of the following considered "Extracurricular Activities"? If not calling as such, what should they be called, supposed, ... must already understand why I need this.

Thank you very much, Mike. Thanks to everyone else in advance. WW[/nq]
In my experience, all of these fall under the umbrella of "extracurricular." Unless they in some way were part of course work, or requirements for advancement or graduation, or prerequisites for course work, they would be extracurricular.
By the way, in AmE "extracurricular activities" is often jokingly used to refer to unscrupulous activity, especially extramarital affairs.

Peace,
Tor

Bored? Check out Tor's Rants!
http://torsrants.blogspot.com

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]"extra activities which are part of the curriculum", and that is in practice meaningless.[/nq]
[nq:2]To me, the expression doesn't refer to paid work at ... the school, but which aren't in the standard teaching programme.[/nq]
[nq:1]Well, then. Which of the following considered "Extracurricular Activities"? If not calling as such, what should they be called, supposed, ... contract, but also have a permanent job at another company. Now, you must already understand why I need this.

[/nq]
If your time is contracted on an individual or consultancy position, you may consider yourself self-employed. If that is the case, and you find yourself working on other contracts, as long as you keep the billing separate for tax and contracting purposes, you should be OK. It is the double billing that becomes illegal, fraudulent, etc.
If you are paid by an employer, and while putting in your time to meet that employer's expectations you find other work to do, you might do well to ask your employer's permission to fill in your time with the extra job. I think that, as long as you meet your main job requirements satisfactorily, you may find that your boss will let you continue the extra work (as long as it is legal, and doesn't bring weird strangers into your work place).

Some jobs require that an employee not spend off hours working on other jobs. That extra or second job is usually called "moonlighting", and the employer may feel that exhaustion from the second job may prevent good performance on the main job. When I was a teacher, it was required for me to mention if I worked as a bartender in the evenings. That would have been mentioned in any comments made about my performance. Male teachers and coaches got prime offers to referee many evening athletic activities. I suppose that nowadays, women also are able to pick up extra money that way. Those jobs are easy for school administrators to approve, since the people are already certified to work with minors. . .but we know how wrong some things can go, don't we?
Many "safety" employees are under such restrictions. Firefighters, airline pilots, police, bus drivers, truck drivers, and ambulance (first responders) may be under such restrictions, in addition to working while taking medications, or drinking within a certain time of being at work. Not all, however, but what do I know? Some of those workers are forced to retire early (as in 50 or 55 years of age), and then their lives are their own. I understand some airline pilots' associations are now pushing to extend the "working life" of professional commercial pilots.

Usenet · Answer

[nq:2]Well, then. Which of the following considered "Extracurricular Activities"? If ... very much, Mike. Thanks to everyone else in advance. WW[/nq]
[nq:1]In my experience, all of these fall under the umbrella of "extracurricular." Unless they in some way were part of ... extracurricular. By the way, in AmE "extracurricular activities" is often jokingly used to refer to unscrupulous activity, especially extramarital affairs.[/nq]
In BrE we also have, colloquially, Tor's "unscrupulous activities" sense, but otherwise "extracurricular" is used for activities that are voluntary parts of school life, as Mike Lyle explained earlier. (NB that to be extracurricular the activity has to be connected with the school in some way. If a schoolboy sings in a voluntary school choir, that's an extracurricular activity: if he joins the local choral society, it isn't.) I might use the word for university activities outside a student's course, such as those in WW's first group, but not for paid work and certainly not for work outside the main job one does as an employee.

Alan Jones

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]No, what I meant was that the way we use "extra", *"extra curricular activities" would mean "extra activities which are part of the curriculum", and that is in practice meaningless.[/nq]
It could have a valid maning in some contexts ...
If the curriculum were being expanded to include new subjects, these new subjects would be the extra curricular activities. (Before they were added to the crriculum they might have been studied as extra-curricular (with or without the hyphen) activities.)
In practice, outside those few contexts in which "extra curricular activities" are clearly extra activities that are curricular I'd understand them to activities that are extracurricular, so I don't think there's any danger of actual ambiguity.
Cheers,
Daniel.

"Extra Curricula" or "Extracurricular"

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions