Apply to symposium not in my area of interest?

[LemonadeStripes]

Two questions I would love opinions on:

 

1) Is it worthwhile to apply to a conference that is not in my area of interest? I have a paper that works well for an upcoming symposium but they are both in areas totally unrelated to what I want to study and apply for in PhD apps. I was wondering about whether or not it is worth it to apply because on the slim chance it is accepted there are associated fees and time/work in order to prepare. Any thoughts?

 

2) I was lucky enough to win several awards during undergrad but I am wondering if I should keep stuff like that on my CV when I apply for PhD programs? My CV will thin out quite a bit without them (but I still have a year to apply) but I'm not sure how relevant they will be for my applications. Opinions?

 

Many thanks.