<p>My guess is that ECs do not mattar much in the admission process. It is just overhyped. Only exceptional ec or absence of ec make a difference. Most of the students have same ECs. So the deal breaker is the scores and gpa. If student have exceptional ec, she might get thru with lower numbers. If a student have no ec, she might not get with high numbers. These % of students is less. For of the students, it is sat , act and gpa.</p>
<p>My observations are not based on some sold study, I just feel this way after reading the forums posts. </p>
<p>You might be somewhat right, OP, but on some parts I disagree. I agree that ECs do not matter as much as scores or GPA, because if you don’t have the grades or test scores - barring extraordinary circumstances - they will not accept you. But after that, I disagree and say that ECs matter. This is why the acceptance rate is so low, because as you said, most students have the same ECs, and this is exactly why. Most students do not think to pursue their ECs based on what they love and what they want to do, only for what colleges want. ECs make a difference if they can be interpreted to show that you have a passion in something. And since rumors and information flies, everybody knows what “colleges want” and flock to those ECs. For example, debate, mock trial, math team, etc. But are they doing it because they truly pursue it with passion? I think that’s the question the adcoms ask. Going a bit extreme, you could have gone to ISEF, but adcoms could still look at it insignificantly if it shows that you did it purely to put it on your resume, not to pursue a scientific interest. Again, it’s the why. From what I hear though, at HYPSM and likes, the scores and grades act as the benchmark or the watermark at which they start looking at the essays and ecs with significance. But i wouldn’t know for sure.</p>