Since no one would like to respond to my other post…
-Started a small business at school (profited $200 w/ $350 initial investment)
-Writing a historical fiction/mystery novel (15,000 words so far…still have the summer)
-Worked at McDonald’s for almost a yr (will be 1 1/2 yrs when I apply…should be a manager by then); 12-16 hrs/wk during school; 25 hrs/wk summer
-Started a program to help non-native speakers w/ English at McDonald’s…help w/ reading & writing
-Started a program w/ family friend to send boxes of clothing, toys, etc to orphanages in China (our family adopted). Also serve as asst teacher in teaching Chinese 4 hrs every other week…I also have taken 4 yrs of Chinese (& am caucasian)
-Running almost single-handedly a school Bowl-A-Thon fundraiser…hope to raise $1,000 - $4,000 for the school & $1,000+ for orphanages in China.
-Boy Scouts (almost Eagle)
-Wrote a 40 pg review guide for US History that I sold to about ~50 kids in AP US…raised $150 for orphanages in China
-JV CC (9/10/11); JV Track (9/10)
-Weekly religious school 9/10
-Fantasy Baseball (8 yrs): sounds like a joke but it is heavily statistically based…national competition (won prizes in 4 of last 5 yrs totalling $300)
-Ran statistical projections for Varsity CC (predicted 1/2 of Varsity runners in our league’s final times w/in 15 seconds 3 months in advance)
-NHS
-Freshman Mentoring Program
-Finalist in ROP Business & Management Awards Program
<p>so basically if i was a college admissions officer, i wouldn't be able to label you in terms of EC's. you would be this applicant: oh yea, the one who does a lot of stuff here and there but i really cant figure out what his/her passions are though. </p>
<p>you're not going to be able to fit all those on your app. please eliminate your EC's down to what you think are the top 5 most significant. nothing looks "bad" and a lot of your activities are good, but a college admissions officer would really like to know what you think your passions are and which activities you've been most dedicated at.</p>
<p>stambliark,
I a little bit disagree with kfc here. Yes, you do need organization, but if I were an adcom officer, it would be quite clear to me that your focus is service. It needs grouping: you have mostly 3 categories: sports, business accomplishments, and service. Since service is so prominent (& I think impressive), I would put that category first, listing as many as you have room for on an app, asterisking with a supplement if you can. I would put the business accomplishments second: it shows your initiative, your entrepreneurial spirit, & someone reviewing your app will put those 2 categories together & say, Wow, this person can generate that know-how for the benefit of the community. I'd squeeze the scouting (which also has a service orientation to it) between the business stuff & the sports.</p>
<p>I like these activities. I get a definite picture of what you're about, just needs Dog & Pony, as they say. Go for it.</p>
<p>If you have a chance to do an essay on your personal engagement with your service -- what it has done for you, what you think/hope it has done for others, I would Major Go For It. Same for the implied relationship between business skill & service impulse.</p>
<p>If I were an adcom member, you'd be a Keeper. You're in my Read Again file.
:-)</p>
<p>Service
-Started a program to help non-native speakers w/ English at McDonald's...help w/ reading & writing
-Started a program w/ family friend to send boxes of clothing, toys, etc to orphanages in China (our family adopted). Also serve as asst teacher in teaching Chinese 4 hrs every other week...I also have taken 4 yrs of Chinese (& am caucasian)
-Running almost single-handedly a school Bowl-A-Thon fundraiser...hope to raise $1,000 - $4,000 for the school & $1,000+ for orphanages in China.
-Boy Scouts (almost Eagle)
-Wrote a 40 pg review guide for US History that I sold to about ~50 kids in AP US...raised $150 for orphanages in China
-NHS
-Freshman Mentoring Program</p>
<p>Business
-Started a small business at school (profited $200 w/ $350 initial investment)
-Worked at McDonald's for almost a yr (will be 1 1/2 yrs when I apply...should be a manager by then); 12-16 hrs/wk during school; 25 hrs/wk summer</p>
<p>Sports
-JV CC (9/10/11); JV Track (9/10)</p>
<p>Other Interests
-Writing a historical fiction/mystery novel (15,000 words so far...still have the summer)
-Weekly religious school 9/10
-Fantasy Baseball (8 yrs): sounds like a joke but it is heavily statistically based...national competition (won prizes in 4 of last 5 yrs totalling $300; ranked #3 nationally out of 6200 @ one point in 2004)
-Ran statistical projections for Varsity CC (predicted 1/2 of Varsity runners in our league's final times w/in 15 seconds 3 months in advance)</p>
<p>PS Does an Eagle Scout not mean anything anymore? 5 yrs ago I believe it was a big deal.</p>
<p>As indicated, organization is the key. Adcoms do not want laundry lists of activities. They want to see "passion" and long-term commitment in one or two areas. You make yourself sound unique/special/memorable in the essay and the EC activity list backs up the essay.</p>
<p>I like a book called "Acing the College Application" by Michele Hernandez (who also wrote "A is for Admissions"). Most guides tell you what to do when you fill out the application. "Acing the College Application" takes you thru the application and gives you the tips as they directly related to the form. The reason I mention it here is that the author, based upon being asst director of Admissions at Dartmouth, really dislikes resumes. She has a chapter in the book on how to do an Activity List that is in the exact same format as the chart on the app. You then attach it as an appendum to the application form. I personally thinks that a resume might be better for some and an activity List might be better for others. Either way, you have to have main topics and get the info across in a clear way. For the activities that are not obvious, include prose to describe what was involved.</p>
