<p>Over the summer, I am going to create my own personal portfolio website (coded from scratch). My website will have a blog about the various things that interest me (programming, graphic design, topology, and so on). I'm planning to write 1000-1500 word articles every week, and I'll occasionally explain some of the projects I am working on (both for classes and for pleasure).</p>
<p>Should I list the blog as an EC on my college applications, and will ad-coms take the time to look at it?</p>
<p>Well, right now, no one can predict how much a hypothetical blog will do for you. Sure you can list it. Doubtful they will read it, you might get a look. That length of article is too long.</p>
<p>Can/should you list it? Sure, why not
Will it make an impact on your application? Probably not
Will they read it? No (well very, very, very, very, low chance) unless your applying to a small LAC or another school which doesn’t get too many pplicants.
Looking at it from an Admissions Officer’s point of view (hypothetically, since I’m not an admissions officer), really anyone can start a blog; so the fact that you have one really isn’t that special. Additionally Admissions Officers are on a time budget per application (they have a large volume of applications to read in a very short period of time) and the chance that they will waste their time checking out your blog is very low.
Starting an online counseling service or winning a website design award would positively affect your app; blogging…not so much. </p>
<p>I personally write a finance blog with bi-weekly, sometimes weekly, articles. I’ll probably include it in my application, but I’m sure that adcoms won’t pay very much attention to it since everyone and their mother can start a blog. But it can help project your interest to adcoms, so it won’t hurt.</p>
<p>It doesn’t hurt. It’s like any other EC. However, I would say a blog that gets 250k views every year would definitely be a very strong EC that could help you compared to a blog that gets 2k views every year.</p>
<p>Listing can’t hurt, and if you are going into a tech field, make sure to emphasize that you coded it yourself. If you don’t, then it just looks like you made a blog on some random site that already made the wheel. Remaking the wheel in the tech world is a great experience if you do it all the way. Are you going to manually update it in HTML/CSS or are you planning to use a database/scripting languages?</p>
<p>@PengsPhils: The portfolio section of my website is quasi-experimental, so I’m planning to use Rails (which would be overkill for a simple blog site).</p>
<p>@xFirefirex: I’m not expecting 250k+ views/year. The blog is primarily an addendum to my personal portfolio website, and I’m planning to write about a number of esoteric topics (topology, algorithm analysis, etc.). Plus, my diverse range of interests will inhibit my blog from becoming a stand-out in any particular field. If people like it, great, but I’m mainly writing for myself and people who share my interests.</p>
<p>That’s awesome. If you enjoy it, do it. If you’re dedicated to your ECs, it shows. Just don’t expect it to give you a any nudges. If anything, the most I can imagine it doing would be refreshing the AdCom’s eyes after seeing a thousand applicants with SGA and NHS on them.
It’s different, yes. But it’s not something that will give you a real boost.</p>
<p>When will you be applying to school?</p>
<p>@xFirefirex: I’m currently a junior, so I’ll be applying next year.</p>
<p>Best of luck!</p>