<p>Just wondering, would breakdancing be considered a unique or rare EC? I'm one of the only dancers in my school, but I don't know how common it is among students from other schools/regions. While I'm not world-class or anything like that, I've done a decent amount of stuff like perform locally for school/senior centers/Chinese festivals, teach dance and Hip Hop culture to lower-class kids in China, etc. I also wrote my commonapp essay on it, if that matters. </p>
<p>I've heard from some people that colleges want a diverse set of skills (ie. music, dance, academics, athletics, etc) in their student bodies; would a breakdancer have a distinct advantage (assuming that everything else is the same) over, say, a violinist or science geek? Thanks in advance and sorry if this was a stupid question!</p>
<p>Breakdancing, especially if you are Asian, would fit the bill of a stereotypical Asian male. I hope your grades and scores are good seeing that you called out “violinists” and “science geeks”</p>
<p>Huh? How did I “call out” violinists or science geeks? I just used violin and science as examples of other EC focuses and how dance would compare to them. If what I said sounded disrespectful or distasteful, I didn’t mean it that way and apologize if it seemed offensive.</p>
<p>Nothing was offensive, just the term “geek” has a negative connotation. But anyway, breakdancing will not be considered in the same breadth as say ballet or synchronized swimming, especially if only for fun.</p>
<p>In your previous post, you mentioned the phrase “stereotypical Asian.” What exactly do you mean by that? I’ve heard that phrased used so much on CC, but no one has ever defined its characteristics. How come no one ever says “stereotypical white applicant” or “stereotypical black applicant?” Why are only Asians labelled as stereotypical? I’m just asking this as a general question; it’s not directed towards you in particular.</p>
<p>That’s most likely because a large amount of Asians in America have rather deeply-rooted tradition and culture that points to certain characteristics. Many, many Asian parents encourage their children to achieve high academics, focus in math or science, and play violin, piano, or cello because that is what the culture is like. Thus, because of these common characteristics, there are many Asians who apply to college that are high-achieving but have very similar extracurriculars. In contrast, the culture of whites, blacks, etc. tends to be a bit more diverse, so there are more stereotypes surrounding Asians with grains of truth than those surrounding whites or blacks.</p>
<p>The thing is, I doubt tons of Asian parents encourage their kids to learn a “ghetto” street dance to get into college. While the question of whether breakdancing is a common EC or not is still a matter of debate (which is why I made this thread), I was pretty astonished to see it perceived as a part of the “stereotypical Asian” student’s arsenal (math, science, violin, piano, etc.)</p>
<p>Where I live, Asians are not those hard working robots, but are slackers that is fueled by B-boying. So am I a little biased, perhaps. If you are trying to get into MIT or something, I take back my comments.</p>
<p>Haha that’s actually kind of true for my area too, but none of the Asian bboys I know are aiming for anywhere higher than our flagship university (Rutgers). I didn’t say this in my original post, but I was wondering specifically if breaking is an uncommon/common EC among students who are hoping to get into schools within the top 30. </p>
<p>I’m not even close to being smart enough to have a shot at MIT. My top choices are Duke, UCLA, and UCB – pretty big reaches.</p>
<p>Of the 7 kids I know who are very seriously into break dancing, 6 of them are Asian. And my town is only maybe 10-15% Asian. I don’t know, maybe that is only around here, but a lot of the “stereotypical Asians” referenced above (high grades/tests scores, play tennis, violin/cello, etc) also do break dancing. Like I said, maybe that’s only where I live, so possibly overall in the country it’s different.</p>
<p>I don’t think breakdancing in itself will give you any distinct advantage. Being passionate about something and effectively communication that passion to adcoms are more relevant than simply being involved in a unique/rare EC.</p>