<p>I'm halfway done with my senior year in high school and I don't have a single extra curricular activity in school.... And I fear that college will reject me when they see that my extracurricular list is blank.... Is having an extra curricular activity a make it or break it decision for the college admission if they'll take me or reject me? My grades are pretty good, took Honors and AP classes throughout highschool.</p>
<p>How competitive are the schools you’re applying for? If you stand out among applicants at a middle tier or low tier school with grades and test scores, you’re fine.</p>
<p>If you applied to very competitive schools, ECs can definitely make it or break it. As far as I know colleges use ECs to separate equally competitive applicants. Yeah, you have good grades and rigorous courseloads but where do you stand out among the thousands of other applicants with the same stats? Without participation in activities outside of academics, you show no passion in your interests or concern for the community. Keep in mind that ECs are not limited to school activities. Anything you took part in during your high school career for an extended period of time and had a positive effect on your life counts. Your essays must be spectacular for you to be considered. Best of luck!</p>
<p>It’s a University in Hawaii called Hawaii Pacific University, you think it’s too late for me to join any EC’s in school?</p>
<p>HPU ranks ECs as a critical aspect of apps, next to test scores and interviews and behind GPA. what are your w & uw GPAs and test scores? did your interview go well?</p>
<p>starting ECs now wouldn’t do much because, again, it doesn’t show passion. </p>
<p>refer to HPU’s freshman admits profile to gauge where you fit in among applicants.</p>
<p>To be honest, it’s too late for you to join some long-term EC Therefore, in order to have something written in the EC section. You can do some volunteer work in some youth centres, or try babysitting. </p>
<p>If none of these are your interest, the fastest way is to join sport team (but you have to be a sporty person, or else no coach to promote you for late app)</p>
<p>You haven’t done a single thing? Not even outside of school?</p>
<p>Hopefully you’ve applied to colleges that don’t factor in ECs in their admissions criteria. That’s your only hope. The suggestions by smallboy are nonsensical at this stage.</p>
<p>Most colleges don’t weigh ECs – so as long as you’ve applied to a few of them that fit your academic record, you’ll be fine. Likely not HPU but then those are the ramifications of your inaction. Best of luck to you.</p>
<p>People often think they have no ECs when actually they have quite a few but they aren’t organized or school-based. For example, is there any sport you like to do: surfing, skate-boarding, hiking, biking, dancing, fishing? It doesn’t have to be competitive and you don’t have to be on a team or win prizes for it to be an EC. Other ECs: gardening, photography, cooking, writing, art, caring for siblings or elderly family members while parents work, holding down a job of any kind. If you are active in your church, put it down. </p>
<p>Schools want to know 1) what do you do with your free time and 2) what can you contribute to the school community if they admit you. If you have something you can share, teach, lead or contribute, tell them about it.</p>
<p>If you have truly done nothing every day but homework, computer games, tv and hanging out, then I suggest that now would be a good time to try something new. It’s not too late to discover a hobby or explore an interest. No, it doesn’t show ‘long term commitment’ but life isn’t about proving things to other people - it’s about your own journey of self-discovery. Start the adventure now.</p>
<p>Ohh well me and my family have been holding this event in the Philippines for quite some time now… It’s called share a toy share a joy, basically we send off used toys or brand new ones to the Philippines and hold an event every year during Christmas… Every Saturday or whenever were free we go to garage sales and look for toys to send to the Philippines and our family in the Philippines manages and stores the toys till Christmas and hold an event for the poor kids around our city/neighborhood… I actually had the privilege to go and finally see all our hard work in person when I visited in 2009… WILL COLLEGE ADMISSION CONSIDER THIS AN EC? IF SO WHAT DO I PUT AS ITS TITTLE?</p>
<p>Yes, I’m pretty sure it will count. I’d either call it “Share the Joy, Share a Toy” or Philippines Christmas Present Project Volunteer and explain it more in the box they give you. But really, think hard about what you’ve done for four years- have you really done nothing with your time? Good luck in your applications.</p>
<p>Ohh I have another one actually lol… It’s a beach clean up for one of my projects… Me and a couple of friends went around the shorelines picking trashes… Although its only for one day… Will it count even if its only one day? Would that count as community service?</p>
<p>Anyone knows if this is also eligible?</p>
<p>yes that is eligible</p>
<p>A one day activity isn’t really worth mentioning. If you’d been doing it consistently - say every month for a few hours, I’d say that’s an EC. But a one time activity for a few hours? No. It doesn’t say anything about you at all. But the toy activity is worth talking about.</p>
<p>Do you have any other hobbies? Like, do you play an instrument (even if you just study in on your own), or collect something? Or do you have a part time job? Have you learned any foreign languages or computer programs/languages on your own? Those can all be ECs.</p>
<p>The EC box is super tiny for descriptions. I would say “See additional information” for your toy project, and put in a paragraph or list of bullets describing the activity in more detail in the additional information document.</p>
<p>Well I have another one… It’s for a project, me and my friend tried reviving a drift track for cars that drift… We tried contacting the government and talking them to opening the track again because the people who drift cars don’t have a place to drift anymore since the government took away the track so their last resort is to drift on the road where other people drive and that up the stakes of an accident and possibly a death… WOULD THAT BE CONSIDERED ONE? I FEEL THST IT’S NOT BUT LET ME KNOW…</p>
<p>Oohhh well I practice singing on my own time… I follow this DVD program that I got and I practice in my room… lol idk if that’s one</p>
<p>you’re a senior applying (or already have applied) to colleges. The few that consider ECs will find your list meager – and you’ll be behind your competitors. But perhaps you didn’t apply to those sorts of schools.</p>
<p>The colleges that don’t consider ECs won’t care what you did and are going to do. </p>
<p>Do what interests you – any effect you’re hoping on college admissions is pointless at this stage of the game.</p>
<p>I haven’t applied yet but I’m currently filling out college applications at the moment so yah… Oh and in the application it doesn’t say to explain the EC, so do I still explain it?</p>