<p>Do colleges have a preference between school related EC's and outside EC's?
My daughter have several activites outside of school that she has been involved with for 6 plus years, but is having trouble finding clubs and activities in her school that she is interested in. If she stays active outside of school, will it matter if she is only involved in 1 or 2 things at school?</p>
<p>it shouldnt matter whether they are at the school or not. She is taking an intitiative to get involved with her community and that like that just as much. If I were and admissions officer I would actually look at it better than in school activitities because it means that you searched to find activities that you would enjoy rather than sticking with the sometimes very limited amount of activities offered at your school. It shows a passion for the EC.</p>
<p>Either would be fine. The important thing is not where they occured, but the depth of involvement/leadership/achievement they reflect. Here is an excerpt from Stanford's FAQ; you can safely assume if this is what one of the top schools looks for, others look for this or less (depending on their selectivity)
[quote]
How much weight do you place on extracurricular activities?
In addition to academic excellence and intellectual vitality, we are interested in students who have made significant contributions to the life of their school or community. We do not favor one type of activity over another; nor is it necessary to participate in a large number of activities. An exceptional experience in one or two activities demonstrates your passion more than minimal participation in five or six clubs. We want to see the impact your participation has had on that club, in your school, or in the larger community. With extracurricular activities, a sustained depth of commitment is more important than a long list of clubs you have joined.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Colleges don't care whether you're involved in ECs in school or outside of school. What the colleges that care about ECs (and all colleges do NOT care about them) are interested in are what the student did with the EC. Showing leadership (This doesn't necessarily mean having an office. It could mean spearheading a project), creativity, independence, responsibility, organizational skills -- any of these can impress colleges.</p>
<p>A wide range of things can serve as ECs: from holding a job; being an Eagle Scout; taking music lessons; to running the Sunday school program for the preschoolers at one's church; being a regular volunteer at a local nonprofit.</p>
<p>Colleges are interested in students who'll contribute to campus live and the communities where the collleges are. Consequently, any in depth involvement can impress the colleges that care about ECs. By the way, most public universities don't weigh ECs in admissions decisons, but may weigh them heavily for decisions about merit aid. Public universities tend to make admissions decisions virtually whole on the basis of students' stats and courseloads.</p>