I was recently elected to represent my high school at the Greater Boston Regional Student Advisory Council. It is like a region-wide student government where two students from each school meet to solve various problems. ( I must add that it is held at the MA D of Education so it is the ‘real deal’ so to speak) I am also an elected member of my schools student legislature.
I know that showing leadership is important in college app. How much can I rely on these credentials if I want to get into a top school. My guess is there are hundreds like me, so I cannot necessarily outshine in this area.
Thanks in advance
P.S.
For your information, my high school sends about 5-10 to Harvard and a 3-5 to each of the Ivies every year.
Elected student government things help, but really do nothing on their own to boost your odds anywhere. They are ok as supportive ECs but otherwise don’t really do much unless it’s part of something big. You can’t really rely on it for much of anything. When picking ECs you should do what you enjoy, not what you think a college would like to see in you. If you want top schools, the only really important factors are GPA, # of honors/AP/IB classes, ACT/SAT, Essays, core ECs (like teams and activities and stuff), and effort you put in your application. Don’t mistake me-- leadership is important (so try to find 1-2 major club/activity/team leadership positions by senior year) but Advisory Councils and minor student government things don’t mean much unless its a big major activity for you.
Disagree with Heisenbergyk. This type of position (usually student rep to the local school committee, but this is even better, regional student rep) is quite helpful in admissions.
Leadership is not a title. It is a behavior. If you actually DO something on this council, you (less ideal) or your guidance counselor (more ideal) should be able to write about it.