I might say they’re better because a lot of the in school clubs (academic clubs, etc.) don’t do meaningful things. Not all but a lot and it probably crosses a mind - as opposed to band or sports, or outside things.
ECs outside of school:
Scouts
Food bank / Church volunteer
Job -McDonalds, Starbuck’s, Grocery, Zoo, Bakery, etc.
Volunteer- Library aide, Senior center
Community Orchestra
Tutor
Lawn care
Junior lifeguard
Camp Counselor
These are the ECs that, either my kids had, or their friends had. As you can tell, none of them were on campus.
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Of course not all helpful ECs are competitive in nature. And then some involve team competitions, and it can sometimes be hard (or expensive) to participate in competitive teams outside of a school context.
I’m mentioning this just because I think a certain perspective on what counts as an “impressive” EC can lead some kids to really focusing on very individualistic activities and achievements. Which is OK if that is what they love, but is potentially overlooking many other sorts of ECs which are just as valuable in their own ways.
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Tbh, most individualistic ECs clear othe4 types of ECs.
That’s not what AOs for the most selective holistic review colleges tend to say. And to the extent enrolled students at such colleges get their admissions files, they often report being surprised by what their readers actually valued most, in ways more consistent with what AOs previously said, versus conventional wisdom among their peers or parents.
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