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<p>I’m an international EC, and I can assure you that most of what I have read in this thread is wrong. If anything, well-roundedness matters more in internationals than in domestic applicants, if only because admissions is much more competitive. Further, the international applicant pool tends to be much, much more self selective than the US applicant pool. It is very rare for an international applicant to apply to the traditional reach/reasonable/safety school breadth that an American applicant does, if only because their safety schools and indeed often their reasonable ones tend to be in their home countries, so if they are taking the SATs and going through all of the other rigmarole associated with applying to a US institution from abroad, then they usually think that they have a viable chance. This makes the average applicant stronger in the international pool than the domestic pool, and then you pile on the harder ratio.</p>
<p>I can recall no student admitted from my region in the last five years, who did not have more than mere academic excellence. And we have had international medalists from my region who have not gotten in.</p>
<p>Yes, at some schools there is an established group of sports, clubs, and similar activities provided by and encouraged by the school. At these schools, participation in extracurricular activities is relatively straightforward. At others, the school provides nothing. That does not diminish the importance of the extracurricular question “What does the student do outside the regular curriculum or program of courses?” I have seen students who have significant extracurricular activities, despite the fact that the school provides little or no support for the same. If anything these kids are more impressive as they have managed to provide evidence for the idea that these activities are important to them, rather than having had a guidance counselor suggest that they join the community service club as it might look good on an application. That is not to suggest that students are penalised because they go to a school where there is an extracurricular program.</p>
<p>The idea that because a student is not applying from a school system that encourages extracurricular activities, that out of the classroom accomplishments are not part of the application is very, very, very wrong.</p>
<p>For what it is worth, MIT and Harvard have a similar proportion of international students in their entering classes, and the criteria for entry is more similar than it is different.</p>