School for a Smart Person with Weak EC's?

College Search & Lists
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<p>What kinds of schools do you think this person has a shot at?</p>

<p>Rising high school senior
Female, midwest, Caucasian
Good but not outstanding suburban high school - most students attend state flagship
No URM or legacy status</p>

<p>GPA: 4.3 (school uses 4.0 grading system regardless of whether class is honors or regular, but the honors classes have a H=5.0 option if above a 97%)
Rank: 3 / 500
Taken the hardest / honors / AP courses offered in all subjects except science, but school doesn’t offer many.</p>

<p>SAT: 710 V / 710 M
SAT II: 730 French / 730 English / 750 Math
AP’s: 4 / 4 / 5 (English, History, Calc BC)
Teacher recs would be very strong.</p>

<p>Now here’s the weaker part - EC’s. Extremely bright and easy to get along with, but a bit “in her own world” and pursues her own interests versus getting involved in clubs, etc.</p>

<p>Named Junior Citizen of the Year by local organization (similar to Kiwanis)</p>

<p>Volunteer at old-age home, volunteer at local hospital (significant hours).</p>

<p>Part-time job, 20-25 hours a week, in retail store related to personal interest (running). </p>

<p>Nationally ranked in French competitions; independent study in French literature (tested out of all school could offer), was an exchange student, officer in French club at school.</p>

<p>Debate team participation, but no major awards.
Officer in school’s National Honor Society.</p>

<p>She’d fit in socially and academically at any top school – she’s just not a major joiner of clubs / structured activities (e.g., the running is a personal interest, not one facilitated by being part of a track team; she likes photography, but does it for fun, not to enter competitions). She can easily handle academic competition; it’s the extracurricular competition that doesn’t appeal to her. She’s well traveled and is the kind who, if she goes somewhere, actively soaks up the language / culture. </p>

<p>Interested in French, math / econ. Slight preference for bigger urban areas and for unis over LAC’s, but could easily bloom where planted. Finances are not an issue. </p>

<p>Thoughts / suggestions?</p>

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<p>Well, i’m no expert but it seems to me that when a kid isn’t a “joiner” the biggest questions a school would have would be about how they’ll fit in and connect with the community and, hence, how much they’ll end up contributing. </p>

<p>Her credentials are impressive and we all know enough stories of seemingly over qualified kids not getting in to top schools and underqualified getting into schools that seem out of their league. So I dont think there’s any guarantee that her credentials equal a particular school. I would think she’s a shoo-in at virtually any top tier private school, a possibility at an ivy - but it really will hinge on what they think they can expect her, as I say, to contribute to the school. It’s not enough to be an elite student - schools want gifted students who share the wealth.</p>

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<p>She sounds like a great kid. Personally, I’m very troubled by the attitude or outlook that many here seem to have about making high school kids miniature adults, or frankly, super-adults, with all their peripatetic world saving, culture acquiring and extra-scholastic educational activities. Your daughter, on her academic record alone, would clearly be a strong candidate for most or all of the great midwestern LACs, and all the great midwestern public Universities, and should have a pretty good chance at a lot of well known private Us in major urban areas. And wherever planted, as you say, it sounds like she’ll blossom, because she already seems to know how to move at her own pace and in the direction she truly wants to move. Good for her.</p>

<p>And if I may continue my slightly off-topic rant for a moment, surely there must be legions of College admissions officers who read the bulging resumes of the “super-kids,” put their glasses down, sigh, and grieve for lost childhood? Let the kids play, for pity’s sake.</p>

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<p>(This isn’t my daughter, FWIW - it’s the daughter of a friend)
Thank you for your comments – you have put your finger on something I’ve been struggling with. </p>

<p>Academically, there’s no issue – she can compete with the best of them, and her teachers will laud her insights and intellect. </p>

<p>I think it’s partly because she does like to think original thoughts that she doesn’t go the path of joining clubs beyond what she’s done. It’s not a function of lack of social skills or ability to work with others. It’s just … she likes volunteering, so she does so, and she’s not interested in trying to package it into I-created-a-program-to-save-the-world. She likes running, so she does it, reads about it, tries to improve, but she’s not interested in being-the-best-track-star-at-school. She likes photography, so she does it (has a darkroom), but she’s not interested in can-I-beat-out-other-students-for-the-photography award. She likes foreign travel, so when she’s privileged enough to do it, she soaks in the culture as opposed to figuring out some angle she can take about feeding-the-orphans-in-Bangladesh. </p>

<p>I think these are good qualities, but they often seem like “bad” ones in the culture of today’s college admissions.</p>

<p>And yes, MilwDad, I have a feeling that some of super-kids are just … too much. I wonder at what point it backfires?</p>

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<p>i personally think she has a shot at almost any school</p>

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<p>I think ECs are overemphasized on CC. I think that most schools are looking, first and foremost, for kids that will perform well academically. Someone who has demonstrated real academic and intellectual interest is very attractive. These are <em>academic</em> institutions after all.</p>