I see a lot of impressive extracurricular activities on the website, and no doubt the universities sees them too. But how do universities make sure they are authentic?
I’m not saying people on this board are lying… just wondering
<p>....with so many applications, they generally take the student's word on it. the only real reason they might check on it is if the claim conflicts with another applicant's claim (ie two students from the same school claiming to be class president).</p>
<p>Some schools probably do spot checks. The UC system randomly audits some applications to make sure they're not just putting ECs down to make their app look more impressive. I've heard of some colleges that have called in to the student's high school to check their ECs.</p>
<p>majority of schools i will never check, unless it seems like some unordinary or else there is a conflict with another student who also claimed to be captain of the football team. Some schools will do random checks for a very small percentage of students, while others will check to make sure that the research you did (when you have no authentic publications) was actually authentic.</p>
<p>they don't</p>
<p>but if something is especially remarkable and its false, than its pretty easy to get caught.</p>
<p>like saying you found the cure to cancer or an Olympic swimmer :P</p>
<p>If your guidance counselor sends a report saying you were pretty much dead wood for three years, the colleges might double check your claim to have been the captain of the school football team and a member of Hillel.</p>
<p>Colleges don't check. If something doesn't look right or something just comes up, and you would be surprised how often it does--it is a very small world in elite college admissions, they may make inquiries or just flush a questionable applicant. The ECs are not going to make or break you unless you are at a certain threshhold, and those are easily verifiable. For instance claiming to be a Siemans Westinghouse finalist, or National Merit Semifinalist is suspicious when you are not on the list, and those are the type of things that will make a big impression on adcoms. Otherwise it is not any individual EC that counts; it 's how it contributes to the whole picture. KIds who decide to say they are Hispanic and are not a special Hispanic Scholar through NM, when they have the threshhold scores may raise flags. It is amazing how kids get caught when they exaggerate or lie.</p>
<p>One adcom said she once had two apps from the same school where both kids claimed that they were the same BMOC, and the adcom just happened to remember it bcos it was such a unique position. A quick call to the GC found how who wasn't. Rejection pile! :)</p>
<p>what is a BMOC, and GC's dont usually know many specifics about students...atleast at public schools around here</p>
<p>BMOC= Big Man on Campus</p>
<p>GCs don't know anything at my school in terms of who's who on campus. Positions in clubs are sometimes informal and there's no place to put it on the official list, so I don't know how they would check by calling the GCs at the public schools around here. The only way would be to get in touch with the adviser of the club or get a letter from them. It's too much hassle for the most part, though, and academics are what'll end up getting a student in.</p>
<p>if it's too good to be true than it probably is-is something the adcoms keep in mind while going through the app process,id bet that about atleast 25% of the applications reciveved by universities have at least one fibber in their ec list and its pry even more in our society</p>
<p>probably more than 25%, but not neccessarily lies, but just stretching the truth.</p>
<p>If your EC's are valid some one is going to know about it and youare going to want someone to know about it especially when they are writing your recommendations. Some people even get recommendation letters concerning their EC's especially where community involvement is concerned at that community involvement is ties into one of their interest at college.It also has a way of coming out on your applications as part of your essays or out in your interviews. EC's may not be the big tip that gets you in , but lying about them will surely keep you out.</p>
<p>My daughter wrote her essay about participating in a sport. She knew it was a big "no-no" for college essays but since it really is so important to her, she didn't care. In passing, she mentioned some of her awards at the state and national level. </p>
<p>About 6 weeks ago, she received a call from a coach at one of the schools to which she applied. The coach was from a different sport and ostensibly the call was to see if my daughter had an interest in playing that sport. That question was resolved very quickly but the conversation went on for several more minutes. The coach asked my daughter about her favorite events and strongest skills -- even had my daughter explain elite-level skills in layman's terms. We don't know whether the call was meant to check whether my daughter was exagerrating her EC's but it certainly served that purpose.</p>
<p>in most cases, teachers are just teachers, not club advisors as well, so how could your activities be reflected in your recs?</p>
<p>some teachers at school often teach a class, then later that day manage a club?</p>
<p>Most colleges usually do not check ECs, unless something very suspicious comes up. However, simply a list of ECs won't help you much. You need to mention them in your essays. In my opinion, the best thing to do is to get a recommendation letter from the sponsor of your most important EC activity. That way the adcoms will have a definite proof of your participation and it will also show dedication to that EC, something that is much more important than having a laundary list of activities.</p>
<p>well, my teachers weren't my club advisors, but I think your guidance counselor usually gets a brag sheet or something, so maybe he will touch on your activities</p>