<p>I understand that sometimes during an admissions process the EC's set an applicant apart from the rest. However, how important are they. Also how important are sports as EC's?</p>
<p>sports are uber important, cause if you're recruited, you're have more or less guaranteed admission. ECs are especially at hypsm, cause as you know, they distinguish elite applicant from an elite of the elite applicant. Even If you have a great gpa, and a perfect sat, you're chances won't be great if you have no ec's. In conclusion, get involved with ec's that you are passionate about only.</p>
<p>What seth said was pretty much on the ball. EC's that show a passion are extremely important, but I don't think sports are as much. I was never on a school sports team and was admitted to an Ivy. There are many other things that would look equal to or better than a sport. </p>
<p>EC's are a large factor. So find a few you are interested in and go for it.</p>
<p>which ivy?</p>
<p>depends. 10% - 20% of admissions IMO</p>
<p>What if you are in a sport but aren't that good? Like on a JV team instead of varsity.</p>
<p>well then.......yer screwed.(just half kidding) if yer not that good, you jst can't rely on getting recruited is all. If you've got other ecs yer passionate(can say this word enuff) or excel at, well then sports won't really matter.</p>
<p>being on JV is like being in a club. Being on Varsity is like being in a sport.</p>
<p>yeh..since most ivy applicants have near-perfect numerical stats (sat, gpa), its the ecs that really count. (besides, they show you as a person, not as statistics)</p>
<p>on that subject, does anyone know what a good amount of ecs is for an ivy? i know having a "passion" is more important than having a long list of clubs, but i doubt it'll benefit you just to have 1 ec, no matter how passionate you are about it. any suggestions?</p>
<p>actually, this is the problem, people think one ec isn't enuff, but it can be, as long as you've done uber impressive stuff in that category.</p>
<p>how can you show "passion" in an EC? (besides leadership)</p>
<p>show passion by...winning a lot of awards, dedicating a lot of time to, starting something like a club focused on that passion...etc. i guess have a lot of things to write down to show that it's a big part of your life. </p>
<p>seth blue, you said 1 ec with a lot of passion is enough. what about (in my case, im a sophomore), science olympiad...in 10th grade i'm secretary and we win 2nd at states, in 11th and 12th grade i'm president and we go to nationals and i win a couple of individual medals. would this be considered a passion if i don't have many other ec's that are impressive, maybe some other random clubs, piano, soccer, some community service.......with great sats and grades, would this be enough for any ivy?</p>
<p>lol if that was a dumb question, sorry...i'm kind of intimidated by all the people on this site who said they invented stuff and built houses for poor people....so yeh, any ideas?</p>
<p>^no, IMO I don't consider your science club thing as enough. This is because, first of all, its a very common club that many of the applicants who apply to harvard are involved in. For example, at my school, a team just got into nationals, (going to D.C. sometime soon) The leader of that team, who is also the president, is also the president of a math club at our school, and they win several national awards as well. However, he ended up getting deffered from Harvard. Near perfect SAT, straight 4.0.</p>
<p>But the thing that I'm seeing, is that he was president of both those clubs, but they were both academic EC's. It's good to have a mix of non-academic and academic EC's, because most everyone who applies, the adcoms KNOW that they excel at science, math, english, etc, since their AP's and other scores reflect that as well. What sets you apart is the non-academic side of who you are, sports being that great example. </p>
<p>To show you what I mean, the girl who got into Brown this year at the school I tutored freshmen, was E in C of her newspaper (I met her through this, E in C myself), Editor of the Lit magazine, and played varsity field hockey. I think the editor side showed what she wanted to major in: journalism.</p>
<p>also just to add...</p>
<p>would this be considered a passion if i don't have many other ec's that are impressive, maybe some other random clubs, piano, soccer, some community service.......with great sats and grades, would this be enough for any ivy?</p>
<p>"maybe some other random clubs"- I recommend you don't follow through with this idea.</p>
<p>"soccer, piano" - if you're great at it and can stand out, it'll be a HUGE PLUS for admission, but def. not guarantee.</p>
<p>I've decided I'm screwed over, because I've never stuck with anything long enough to win anything, and for the things I've kept with, I have no talent, skill or luck in it at all. My one true passion, I was no good at. I knew I would never make varsity lacrosse. not ever.</p>
<p>That's...ok...my "passions" aren't that great...</p>
<p>Track, two letters
Piano (10 years), 5 exams passed, 3 theory tests passed, went to state in competition...</p>
<p>nothing great either. not many of us actually have that crazy...elite quality</p>
<p>what's the phrase...something like even the blind squirrel finds an occaisonal accorn? that's pretty much my hope</p>
<p>nilvedxd, did you actually do all that stuff? its def pretty impressive. Tami said science club is common, but being exceptional at it isn't. What i meant by one ec is for example, if you play an instrument, you have demonstrate you're passion and proficiency for that instrument by joining prestigious orchestras, playing competively and all.</p>
<p>eh...i didn't think sci olympiad was enough either. seth blue, i'm a sophomore this yr so i'm actually secretary and we did win 2nd at states, but the nationals part was hypothetical (so is the president part, though that has a good chance of happening)
celebrian25..yeh thats just like me! i had soccer but i broke my kneecap this yr and got two surgeries, so there goes my soccer "career" lol</p>
<p>oh how about this as ec's (if they happen)</p>
<p>Science Olympiad (things i mentioned up there)
Young Democrat's Assocation, Founder (hypothetical as well)
French Honor Society, vice president
MHS, vice president or some other office
NHS
(these honor societies are all bogus haha)
Hope Chinese School
-- Treasurer (10), VP (11-12) of Student Union
-- Monthly fundraisers for school
-- Teacher's Assistant (2 hrs/week) for pre-k students
Piano for 9 yrs (few local competition victories)
Soccer for 5 years on travel team in competitive league</p>
<p>Summer:
9th: National Student Leadership Conference, Traveled to China (though I only visited people)
10th: Research intership at university in China (cool but not a "formal" internship") and taught English to graduate students at the university (haha)
11th: Internship at NIH (?) or one of those expensive summer colleges at Cornell or Harvard</p>
<p>other than that, not much. is that good enough for ivies w/ good stats?
obviously nothing spectacular, but i showed some level of dedication, right?
<em>crosses fingers</em></p>
<p>Research Internship</p>
<p>other than that, not much...
is that perhaps good enough for ivies? nothing</p>
<p>oops, didn't read the part about you being a sophomore. I'd say with the ecs you listed up there, you'd have a good-great chance at hypsm as long as your numerical stats aren't low. But since some of them are as you said, hypothetical..........well....you're being impractical.</p>