<p>There are many colleges that don’t use rank as an admittance criteria. Many schools just admit by stats…a high GPA and a strong SAT/ACT and perhaps a good essay (if req’d) are enough.</p>
<p>Be sure to include some schools that admit by stats in her college lists. </p>
<p>What colleges are on her current list?</p>
<p>Reiterating not to worry about APs that aren’t offerred. Is she taking the most rigorous schedule offerred at her school? if yes, congrats, and one less worry.</p>
<p>our GC uses this rule of thumb for the application essay: "Could anybody else have written this, except me? If the answer is yes, try again. The “How I scored to win the big game” essay is apparently the stuff of ad com nightmares.</p>
<p>DS’10 had great, uncommon long term ECs that really made him stand out and helped admission to his reach school</p>
<p>DS’12 I have similar concerns to OP. Strong academically, good grades, nice, polite, funny, sensitive, a great kid and I’m very proud of him. That said, for application purposes, there’s nothing to “stand out”, nothing unusual. How do you help a 15yr old whose told “Go find your passion”?</p>
<p>^^ We’ve visited quite a few, but she’s fixated on Tulane at the moment. (Her sister was a Katrina freshman there.) She’ll add to the list of course. But she’s competitive for Tulane (re: SAT/GPA), so that’s the current target.</p>
<p>If the kid doesn’t seem to stand out try asking the student what s/he really loves. The fact that it was Star Wars for my son is certainly out of the box thinking for a college application.</p>
<p>I won’t bore everyone with the specifics of his essay, but it was amazing and encompassed much, much of his personality and later interests. </p>
<p>He started loving Star Wars when he was 7. It helped him get over his fear of aliens. One of his sentences from a different, companion essay: “It’s a big Universe, but I feel at home here.” It was obvious how everything dovetailed.</p>
<p>Every boy has a Star Wars, whether it’s Batman, Pokeman, or West Side Story. It’s a good place to start if nothing else comes to mind.</p>
<p>Girls, too.</p>
<p>^^I hope my 16-year-old can twist Call of Duty into his essays!</p>
<p>One admissions officer said that if your child drops his essay on the floor of the cafeteria and someone else finds it, it should be recognizable whose essay it is. Since my son never went anywhere without his origami, I suspect they’d have found him. His other essay about an EC wouldn’t have been quite so identifiably him, but it definitely had his voice.</p>
<p>More reassurance on the APs–my school is competitive and does offer AP Bio/Chem/Physics; I took none of them, and it didn’t significantly affect my application results (unless you think Swarthmore instead of Yale is a significant effect).</p>
<p>And, MD Mom, one of my supplemental essays (though not the main Common App) was about my experience in MUD gaming. :rolleyes:</p>
<p>MD Mom you made me laugh.</p>
<p>I think the best way to stand out is to have something special outside of school courses which your child likes and adds to the variety of talents/interests in college.</p>
<p>My older son mentioned that he’d worked on a mod for Civ 4 that got great reviews in Gaming magazine. :)</p>
<p>The GC mentioned S2’s love for late-night Risk parties…</p>
<p>How about participating in academic competitions in areas your D is interested in? National History Day, essay contests, science fairs, math league, etc?</p>
<p>Sorry - I have not read all of the posts - but I wanted to say that the Physics B AP test is pretty easy for a kid with a decent background honors h.s. physics.</p>
<p>I honestly think it is better for you not to worry about packaging your daughter for college admissions. I get concerned by the “we” and the “I” rather than “she.”</p>
<p>As a parent, you can help her explore her interests as much as your resources of time and money allow. This is what parents should do, regardless of college: help your kid develop.</p>
<p>But college admissions should be her concern, not yours, or at least, if you can foster the appearance of it being her concern, not yours, things will go better in the long run.</p>
<p>I would not emphasize doing anything for resume building or for college acceptance, but perhaps that is too idealistic. </p>
<p>I feel that when a student’s enthusiasms are genuine, and autonomous (as opposed to parent-driven) it comes through loud and clear in an application anyway.</p>
<p>^ compmom - Well I take your point. I guess I’d ask “Where would D get guidance on collegiate success, if not from the school (which has a solid record of failing in this role)?”</p>
<p>^^^ from all of your friends here on CC, of course! 
Worked for us!</p>