Does a boatload of EC make that much more a difference?

College Search & Lists
1

<p>Hi, well I’m a bit intimidated right now.</p>

<p>I’ve seen so many people who posts “chance me” put up at least 5 EC and some of them look so much “bigger” than mine (ex. they’re an intern at a large company while I teach Vietnamese at a small school).</p>

<p>I know that many people on this forum say that it is the dedication of the place you volunteer at, not how many places you volunteer at. I can’t help but still feel intimidated, I can only have time for 3 EC (teaching vietnamese, volunteer at hospital, muay thai as a sport[well maybe]) and I’m going against people who have many volunteer </p>

<p>What are you opinion guys and girls? Are these amounts of volunteers actually common for the usual (as in not by over qualified students, or under qualified students that barely got in) applicants?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>There are only a few hundred people in the nation each year that score a perfect 2400 in one sitting on the SAT. Yet there are several of them that float around on this website. Assuming they’re not lying, this website is full of over-achievers…</p>

<p>Go to Urban Dictionary and look up College Confidential to see what I’m talking about. As a disclaimer, I wouldn’t spend too much time on that site since you may find some of the content offensive…</p>

<p>No, people with ECs on this website aren’t typical…</p>

3

<p>Colleges generally aren’t impressed by a huge amount of ECs, they look down on a person who tries to do too much and ends up not being all that dedicated to anything. And no, the people you see on CC are not usual applicants. As for your ECs, I think teaching Vietnamese at a small school is more impressive than interning at some large company. A prestigious internship may seem “bigger” but that doesn’t mean adcoms will see it as more impressive.</p>

4

<p>Don’t pay any attention to the braggarts who hang around CC. They are NOT typical of college applicants. (I’m constantly amused by the number of CCers who have 5.0/2400/1st in class, do original university-level research, start successful international businesses, win national contests, cure cancer, and rescue kittens from trees – and still have time to hang around on an internet forum.) </p>

<p>Colleges want to see quality ECs, not quantity. What’s important is what you’ve learned from what you’ve done. My daughter only had TWO ECs :eek:and yet she managed to get into a good school. She had very long-term involvement in both of them, and she demonstrated passion, growth, and leadership. That’s what they’re looking for.</p>

5

<p>I agree with what others here have said. Your anxieties are misplaced. It’s the quality of what you do that counts, not quantity.</p>

6

<p>Thanks so much for the answers guys!
Now I feel a little better that I’m not as much of an underachieving “minority” as I thought.</p>

<p>So the people that post the awards/EC that they have in truck loads are only the few?</p>

7

<p>Yes, there are very few people who have truckloads of international awards or incredible ECs. But then again, you have to realize that schools such as HYP have so many ridiculously qualified students to chose from that even the people on this forum can reasonably worry about being admitted. 3 ECs, if they’re good, are all you need.</p>