can you judge my horrible EC?

Applying to College
1

<p>So,this is my EC.I know it looks a little (not a little,it should be VERY) embarassing,but i still want to know how it really looks to other people's eyes.</p>

<p>-I started playing piano and violin in elementary school.
-I'm in my school's orchestra.
-I took a piano examination that was held by the Associated Board of Royal school of Music.and I received a Merit on it.
-I also took a violin examination that was held by NYSSMA.and i received an excellent rating on it.
-I played at a recital that was held at Hunter College.and i received a Gold Prize.
-I also took a music theory examination that was held by the Associated Board of royal school of music.
-I participated in the chemistry olympiad.(i don't even know if it counts)</p>

<p>-I am a member of a city astronomy club.
-I'm also a school's newspaper writer who focus on writing articles about Astronomy.
-I might also found an astronomy club at my school in my senior year.</p>

<p>Community service:
-I volunteer at a kindergarten every summer.(except for my sophomore's summer)and i plan on writing about this on my essay to show my passion: i actually love doing this community service.
-I'm also a math tutor.</p>

<p>Job:I might be going to have a job in my senior year.(Tutor)</p>

<p>summer program: I took a summer program @ NYU.</p>

<p>PS:first generation college student,low-income
father lives in other country.mother has to stay in other country usually for a few months a year.--->meaning that I and my siblings have to take care of ourselves.(a hard time which weakens my EC's quality)</p>

2

<p>Really, your ECs look great. Don’t worry about it. Colleges also may acknowledge the fact that you’re first gen and low income and consider your ECs within that context.</p>

3

<p>Hmmm. I don’t think “■■■■■■■■ CC” is a very strong EC for most colleges.</p>

<p>In the remote chance that you’re serious, don’t worry – just present what you have and you should have some outcomes in keeping with your academic record.</p>

4

<p>^but i’m going to apply to schools like JHU.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

5

<p>curiously,</p>

<p>" I started playing piano and violin in elementary school"
" I took a summer program @ NYU."
“I volunteer at a kindergarten every summer” “I might be going to have a job in my senior year.(Tutor)”
“PS:first generation college student,low-income”</p>

<p>If you come from a low income family, how can you afford those costly activities? how can you never work to help your family, but have a lot of time for volunteering? </p>

<p>thanks</p>

6

<p>Way above average; stop ■■■■■■■■.</p>

<p>7.5/10 by CC standards.</p>

7

<p>^that’s a good point that i have to explain .
for violin,it’s true that i took private lessons in elementary school,but i stopped because i just want to continue this activity in my school’s orchestra instead.(and because my family really can’t afford it)</p>

<p>for piano:(i just take lessons but i don’t have a piano,because i just go to a place in where i can pay $1.00/hr for piano)</p>

<p>i received a scholarship for the summer program.</p>

<p>i did work before…but i stopped b/c my parents just want me to focus on school’s work…</p>

<p>for volunteering:why do have a lot of time for volunteering?because it’s summer?and i actually love doing it?(if you love doing something,you will always do it if you have a lot of time)</p>

<p>hope i answered you question,askq. :)</p>

8

<p>It might be a good essay to show you keep yourself up even with so many difficulties.</p>

<p>good luck:)</p>

<p>volunteering at a kindergarten is very interesting, why do you like it? I do babysitting for money ( I and my family need money).</p>

<p>thanks.</p>

9

<p>When it comes to ECs, sometime quality is more important than quantity, you know. You honestly don’t need to be a member of every club and volunteer at a million places… you just have to show that you’re passionate about whatever it is that you are doing outside of school. For instance, you obviously had to practice a lot to get a good rating on NYSSMA, (which I know from personal experience, lol), and being a tutor and possibly working with kids both show a certain amount of leadership. If you really love music and enjoy volunteering at the kindergarden, how about you combine the two and teach kindergardeners how to play the piano or something? LOL, or you can play for them while they sing or dance around you:D, then you can write about it in your essay.</p>

10

<p>Please. Only on CC would someone worry that those are inferior ECs. In particular, your music activities look great. You show passion, commitment, and growth – which is what schools want to see, not surface-y involvement in 29 activities.</p>

11

<p>these are great so please stop worrying about it. Your ECs show your focus and passion for music. Id say you have a good shot</p>

12

<p>^i feel embarassed when i compare mine to other ppl’s on CC…
when i see the acceptees (like cornell and JHU),i feel hopeless and discouraged…</p>

13

<p>How about not looking at those acceptees anymore–just do your own thing. If you are getting hopeless and discouraged, take a break from CC.</p>

14

<p>^ I second LasMa.</p>

15

<p>^I can totally emphasize with yipyip0901… when I compare myself to everyone else on CC, it’s very depressing.</p>

16

<p>Then mom in virginia is correct; both you and yipyip need to stop spending time here. How is it helping you? I know that yipyip’s stuff looks very good; I’d bet that yours does too. Go do something that develops and helps you, not tears you down for no reason.</p>

17

<p>^yeah you’re absolutely right. But the thing is that, sometimes, it is precisely when you start to realize how much someone else has accomplished in his or her high school career that you start to see more possibilities for yourself, what you’re capable of doing. So, LOL, there’re some advantages to CC. For instance, I decided to intern at certain places only after I saw from the experience of others on here that doing so is possible, and I’ve gathered valuable information about scholarships and college admission from this website. Sometimes turning away is not a good advice or option… eventually we learn to accept others’ accomplishments and possibly our own need for self-improvement, and then seeing others’ stats no longer disappoints or embarrasses. It simply humbles and sometimes even empowers. But thanks for the advice anyway:) I’m going to take a break from this website.</p>

18

<p>Oh don’t get me wrong, there is a TON of useful information on CC. The trick is to take what’s useful without being intimidated. If you find yourself feeling that your very good record is lower than whale dung, it’s time to log off.</p>

19

<p>^so i will try to stop looking at the profiles of the acceptees LOL</p>

<p>but seriously,is my EC really enough for cornell(ED)to show my passion? i know there is not anything that really helps me stand out among the applicants…</p>

<p>because a few ppl on CC said that my EC will hurt me a lot…</p>

20

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<p>Ignore them. Also, remember who they are, so that if they give you advice in the future you remember that they gave you such ludicrous advice last time.</p>

<p>There’s plenty of decent advice on CC, but there are also plenty of people who don’t know what they’re talking about, especially high schoolers who haven’t actually been through the admissions process and are going based on this idea of it that they’ve constructed in their heads.</p>

<p>Your ECs are great. Also, “passion”, as important a concept as it is in life, is a horribly overused and mangled term on CC.</p>