I had one major EC that consumed the majority of my time–ice skating! I trained approximately 30-40 hours per week and traveled extensively. I was nationally ranked. My grades definetely suffered but I still took a rigorus load–7 AP’s and 5 honors, ranked 18th in a class of 300,attended girls state, and was in NHS. SAT’s–only 1800 but I still got into UCLA! I think they saw what I was capable of doing–not a long list of EC’s that I was not very committed to. Foloow your passion–it worked for me!
I have a question, I’m applying as a transfer applicant, do my ec’s from high school hold a significant weight?
Also, I’ve been interning at the Orange County Board of Supervisors office all summer, that doesn’t count as an EC, I realize, but I can still write about that as a significant activity/time commitment, right?
Great response dude. Exactly how I feel. In my junior-college (I’m an international student), I just did whatever I interested me and had a passion unlike most of my peers who were trying to fill out their CVs. Sure, I may not have CVs as long as theirs, but I know I’m more passionate and involved than most of them and I think ultimately taht’s what we have to show to the Admissions people. Thank god for essays yeah! 8]
Why of course research is an EC. Most colleges will accept a research paper under the additional info page or as a supplimental material. Talk about the feeling that research gives you and why you donate so much time to it. Make it a passionate EC. I assume you’re applying to a science program or college?
Great article, could not agree more. After reading this one, I thought about another article that I read that I thought was very helpful in a similar fashion - namely, how to present yourself during an interview to leave a lasting impression.
[Successful</a> College Interviews with Admission Officers or Alumni - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com](<a href=“http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2099105/successful_college_interviews_with.html?cat=4]Successful”>http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2099105/successful_college_interviews_with.html?cat=4)
@Millancad: If your school requires documentation to get credit for graduation, you’ll need to have that documentation. For the purpose of colleges (as I said above and that you directly quoted), you don’t need documentation but it certainly can’t hurt. I’ve actually met (and been very disappointed) one girl that changed her numbers around on her applications to make her seem more competitive. Needless to say, this is a pretty obvious lie as her letters of rec and essays aren’t going to prove it. My point was that its better to have more proof than you need rather than none at all, but if you’re as honest as you can be and have no proof its fine as well.
Ok, so I’m looking to transfer for Fall 2010 and I have a question about EC’s. I recently started to get really into cake decorating. I started doing it because I had to take this semester off because of medical reasons and wanted to do something to feel productive. I’ve never taken any cake decorating classes but I’m actually pretty good with fondant (not so much with a pastry bag). I’ve made some cool cakes (one that looked like a present, a tshirt cake, carved the jonas tv show logo out of cake, etc), and I usually do them for free because they are either for a friend’s birthday, a family member or a Leo Club activity or just make them for fun and donate them to a local homeless shelter. My question is do I put it under activities or under work (even though I rarely charge)? I wouldn’t know how to calculate the hours for it if I put it under activities cos it’s not something I do every week, it depends on the orders I get. I don’t really want to put in the additional info section cos there’s already a bunch of stuff I have to explain there (junior year of high school to now have been very difficult years for me; illnesses, deaths, etc.)
Thank you!
As this is asked repeatedly, I’ll add the thread link <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/790803-music-hook.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/790803-music-hook.html</a>
Please take the time to open the links within the threads. A number of various scenarios, levels of ability, effect at specific types of schools and a few out of the box scenarios are presented.
What if I have a lot of extracurriculars that I genuinely like (which is why I do them of course), but I don’t win any awards or competitions for them? 
I mean, I’m the kind of person who likes to do everything, so that’s what I do. But obviously, by doing so many things, I don’t focus enough on one to become #1 at it (and I really don’t have any interest in receiving that lauded title or whatever…it’s like doing something just to get into college). I just do these things to improve myself personally and because I enjoy learning new things. There also is no particular theme for my hobbies; I’ve got sports, arts, instruments, research, performance, and so on. Am I officially an EC fail because of that?
I think we need to step back and ask what colleges are looking for in an applicant’s list of ECs. The top schools are looking for students that have qualities that correlate with leadership and success. The goal is not much different from a firm seeking to hire a new employee. Many firms avoid hiring someone who changes jobs every 3 months. The top schools want to devote their precise resources on students with high potential. Imagine what it must feel like to review a thousand applicant folders knowing that 90% are qualified academically. The challenge is to identify those students that have the intellectual, technical and leadership qualities to innovate and to lead. I know this may sound a bit trite but I think it is part of admissions game. However, I think it should not be part of the application game. In the long run you need to be true to yourself. Each student should do what feels right. It is up to each individual college to determine if your application fits their profile. Unfortunately, many applicants try to play the admissions game. In some cases the results can be a bit messy. The applicant gains admission to an elite school only to find the fit is a bad one.
Below is an link to an interesting article on the admissions process.<br>
[In</a> or Out: Inside College Admissions - TIME](<a href=“http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,57724,00.html]In”>http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,57724,00.html)
I love what appdad said about being true to yourself. My D applied to the school she thought fit her best and had her application reflect her – not an idealized college applicant, but who she really is. She promises she’ll be happy to be accepted to a school that wants her, not someone she pretends to be for the process. My only concern is that in her effort to not “play the game” she may have undersold herself.
Should I put all these ECs on my application?
My counselor said I could put them on because it shows my talents which have not get a chance to be proven in the United State.
(They are done by the time I was 8th grade)
I played Sheng for two years in the Chinese Orchestra in Hong Kong. Sheng is one of the most ancient Chinese mouth-blown instruments. It is rarely known that not too many people have learned how to play it even in China.
Highly Commended Award from the Western Dance of Upper Primary School at the 41st Hong Kong Schools Dance competition 2005(All regions from Hong Kong)
Second Place for the Badminton Double of the North District of Hong Kong Badminton Competition in 2005 (A district that has a population of 300,000)(I also started the first Badminton Club in my current high school)
I know they are not such a big deal, but please help me with it.
Thank you so much.
Hamstering:
Yes, of course, your years playing/studying an instrument will qualify. Certainly the activities that led to your being given the other awards would also qualify as extracurriculars. You probably took dance lessons for years to be good enough to have been given the award? Then the time spent in class would be your EC. Similarly, your hours perfecting your badminton skills would be your EC. Not just the awards themselves.
The adcoms are interested in the time and effort you have devoted to your other “passions” (I am assuming they are music, dance and badminton) in addition to your schoolwork.
Good luck!
Thank you so much Mamagee!
I did’nt know that I could count the hours of practices as well!
Now I may have 1000+ hours of badminton practicing!
Hey guys, is there any recommended format I should follow when writing out my resume/extracurricular record? How should I list my activities? Right now, I’m doing it like this:
For eg.
<ol>
<li>Helping out at a child care centre:
Volunteer; 7 hours/event; Grade 12 </li>
</ol>
Should I write slightly more to explain that helping out there is not a weekly thing. Instead, I help when I can and when they need it.
Also, I am planning to provide a supplement, an essay, of sort where I’m going to try to link up all or most of the activities in my ECs together 'cause I was/am the kind of person who did/does my ECs 'only I felt/feel something strongly about it so I don’t think I have as much as other students. And also because, as I was typing the list of ECs out, I realised that I could more or less link them up chronologically and present a solid picture of me and my beliefs. I know the power in that essay will lie in its execution but assuming I will be able to execute exquisitely, would anyone recommend such an essay?
Thank you!
Or should I just focus on one particular meaningful EC activity and write an essay about it? I have actually but I feel like it doesn’t present a holistic view of me. And also, like I said earlier on, I only do meaningful(to me anyway) ECs so just choosing one EC to write an essay about makes me feel like my other ECs weren’t as meaningful y’know.
Ok, these were 2 long posts. Please answer. Thank you! Again!
Writing about your EC’s in your essays is certainly one way to tell the adcoms your passion outside the curriculum, but there are other ways.
You can give a brief description of each EC on the app or in your resume. Your passion and talent can further be supported by any award you may have won. Give a description of the work that went into each of the awards. Your GC and teachers can address your EC’s in their LOR’s - it must be important to you if your teacher is familiar enough to write it. You can also send in a supplement that address your EC’s.
'tis true. Thanks for the great advice. I’ve also heard from all sources that it’s best to write about one event or experience (though relate it to a wider world or your life if possible) to show true passion and depth. I followed this advice, and… we’ll see!
RAIRAIRAI, I think either choice, if executed with care, can produce a good essay. Just remember, your goal is to to the best job you can of presenting yourself, your essence if you will, in 500-1000 words (usually). I caution a list of extracurriculars only because more time should be devoted to you and your values and how the events affected you. Good luck! (Don’t be discouraged if you don’t like your first essay. It took me 4 or 5 abortive attempts before I got an essay I really liked, and even then it still went through lots of revision and editing before I finalized it.)
I have two main EC’s, Robotics and Science Olympiad. Robotics I have been part of since my freshman year and have gone on trips with, probably accumulated over 400 hours within 2 years alone, and have had many memories with. And Science Olympiad is my creation at our school. I have been so active in its creation and have had so much involvement with it, and I feel we’re going to have a lot of memories with it as well, so idk which one I should write about. Would it be bad if I had one as my main college essay and the other as a supplemental essay?