EC’s can matter for talent scholarships, even if your student doesn’t plan to major in that area.
My S17 has now been offered both a music scholarship and a theater tech scholarship at 2 different schools. They did require separate applications (and for music, audition). They may not be a ton of $$ but 2K a year adds up at pricey schools.
Jumping in to say that schools generally use the algorithm they use for admissions in their CDS–the playing field isn’t level. This probably makes me that mom at info sessions, but I always ask how the school calculates GPA, just so I know what we’re up against. I think this was driven mostly by my inability to embrace my D17’s unweighted core GPA and I was grasping at whatever positive spin I could, but that was probably the single most useful piece of information I got from info sessions.
I have to say that the experience my D17 had with regard to ECs and admissions was a little surprising. If I had to describe her, I would have said that her ECs were very limited, at least in comparison to much of what I see here on CC. She has several small LACs (CTCL schools) on her list, and so far has been admitted to all of them with merit (we’re awaiting her final school’s decision this afternoon). Granted, she wasn’t gunning for super-selective schools, and it’s not full-tuition or full-ride merit, but it’s generally in the half-tuition range. She did manage to fill in all 10 slots on the Common App, but some of them were pretty lightweight. However, she did work anywhere from 7 to 20 hours a week in her junior and senior years–from her interviews, we found that the AOs/interviewers really seemed to like it when kids had jobs.
@klinska did you find that colleges you visited had vastly different ways to calculate GPA? How specific did they get when answering? I always thought it might be too complicated to really answer that question well at an info session.
They just were all over the map. None of them used only core unweighted GPA (but that may be a reflection of the selectivity of the schools we were targeting). I usually got a pretty straightforward answer. They ranged from all classes unweighted, to whatever the high school provided (that was most common), to core weighted plus 1 elective per year (this one I got from materials posted on their website, not at the info session). We didn’t go to info sessions for all schools my D applied to, but for the ones where we did, I asked.
I’m not sure why I can’t edit posts when I’m on my computer but I can on my iPad, but I want to add to the above: if you fee self-conscious about asking at in large group forum, you can always send an email to the AO (or better yet, have your DC send the question–added bonus is that this can be perceived as “demonstrating interest”).
@klinska wow, great information! I have a son that is 2017 and a daughter that is 2019. He is in the midst of college acceptances and I did not even consider how different schools interpret GPA differently. So glad I found out about it so that I am more aware when it is my daughters turn. My poor son, making my mistakes on him :-S
We’re in a school district that only reports weighted GPA on the transcript. In some cases, the “counselor notes” on Naviance will de-mystify the weighted/unweighted/recalculated GPA for a given school, by saying something like “They use our weighted GPA for admission” or “they re-calculate GPA based on x, y and z.” It’s definitely good to know if you have a kid who is on the cusp of being an admit or qualifying for merit aid. Both of my D16’s merit offers were based, in part, on her weighted GPA provided by the school - she wouldn’t have qualified otherwise.
All of this EC talk is making me feel a little better about S19. He does orchestra, qualified for an honors orchestra, is mentoring a younger kid who plays his instrument, just signed up for pit orchestra, and might do jazz band next year. He hasn’t decided if he wants to audition for one of the local youth symphonies because he’s concerned about the amount of time it will take if he makes it. He likes science and math, but has no interest in academic teams. No sports (he likes the weight room and the treadmill). No job yet (he’ll be 15 for the entire summer, too. This is not a kid who is going to babysit, mow lawns or be a lifeguard, so hopefully someone will let him bag groceries or something).
I just spot-checked a couple of GPA sections in the CDS (for Colorado College and West Chester University, opposite ends of the spectrum) and don’t see anything different about them. They all just report the percentages of incoming freshmen’s GPA on a 4.0 scale. Is there someplace else I should look? I didn’t find any place asking how the college interpreted GPA.
My experience was that even though CDS says that GPA is on a 4.0 scale (boilerplate language), the schools are reporting GPA based on how they calculate it for admissions.
Ah, OK, I guess I misread the posts and figured there was some way to tell within the CDS. But now I’m re-reading and you specifically said you asked in person. Nevermind me, I’ll show myself out 
@eh1234 It sounds like your son is really “spiky,” and that’s a great thing. As lots of us have learned (I did with my D17) schools really appreciate when an application shows a spike of interest because the adcoms are trying to create a student body in whatever way they have in mind, and they don’t have to guess as much what a spiky applicant brings to the table, all other things (grades, test scores) being equal. So, hooray for you! 
Do any of you know if the UCs, USC, and Pomona college track interest the student shows in the school?
Pomona College tracks interactions, but it does not use interest for the admissions process.
@nostalgicwisdom thanks. I’d heard how some colleges keep track during the application process for my s17. Since i have a d19. I wanted to double check.
Just want to say how much I loved Pomona. Our tour was filled with charming students, pleasant weather, and leafy sun-filtered sidewalks. Academics–excellent. Close restaurants were fantastic. All in all: perfection. Too bad I couldn’t convince D16 to apply: “Too small.” D21 felt the same way I did, so there is still hope.
@letsshare some schools do consider interest in the admission process. You can find this in the CDS. Visiting campus and opening emails were what we suggested to S17. He also tried to stop by if an AO was visiting his HS.
It really varies by school, in general your state schools will care far less about demonstrated interest than privates but not all privates care. Some care, a LOT. Definitely check the CDS.
There are a lot of ways to demonstrate interest even if you can’t visit but it’s far too early for it to count much right now.
We are going to visit Drew this weekend and possibly Sewanee and UF over spring break. None of these are affordable for us. But what the heck, I’m actually hoping she sees the reality of college and it lights a fire under her. Kind of grasping at straws here - I have a firmly dedicated B student (at best).
@eandesmom When do you think demonstrated interest starts to count? If we visit some schools this summer for official visits, is that too early? I know it’s best to visit when students are in session. If we visit this summer, it would be just to give S19 a little idea of what tours are like and to show him a large school and a few LACs. I agree with @Gatormama that it would be good for S19 to start seeing campuses before junior year.
@homerdog the schools start tracking as soon as they become aware of you and input your kids name into their database.
I’d suggest setting up a separate email account that the 2 of you can access, so you can start contacting colleges of interest. Make an introductory list, add some schools by filling out online questionnaire. The schools will usually send some info emails and maybe start sending brochures out to you. My son has a list of schools of interest already, but it’s early. He has attended some soccer camps at a few schools and filled out their info forms. He likes to read the stuff they send. His list will probably get some tweaking done junior year, and then maybe a bit more senior year.
My older son added a school to his list at the last minute and it has become a realistic choice. So lots of time to prepare!
I would also suggest setting up a generic twitter/facebook account and start following the schools too. Its a good way to learn more and keep updated.