<p>OK so i've been browsing through this site and i see all these kids with amazing ec's and im just like, "where do you even find out about those?" Like how am i supposed to be well rounded when all the clubs my school offers are crap. I dont even go to church so that i can find out about ec's there. And if i try to start a club at my school no one will take me seriously. How can i find more clubs/ ec's outside of school. I've researched for hours, and i cant find any in my community. Does playing the clarinet for three years count for something? gee, im really stressed and bummed that i cant seem to able to find any. Any tips? Thanks.</p>
<p>It takes a lot of work sometimes, believe me, I started a Model UN club at my school this year, but starting a new club really can be the best option.</p>
<p>Especially since you get to choose what you do:)</p>
<p>Just start a club. Period. Being the founder of any successful club is a big E.C to have, and especially so when the people surrounding you were resilient to the idea.</p>
<p>You don’t have to be the founder of a club ofc, as there could be plenty of other options. But I’d still highly recommend at least trying to do so. Maybe also consider being an officer in one of the clubs and making sure to be heavily involved in it and improve it?</p>
<p>Are there any volunteer organizations at your school like Key Club? They should have a list of places/events that you could volunteer at. Although volunteering is not particularly unique, it can be a strong EC to have if done consistently and with enough time. Your community really should have plenty of places to volunteer at - just continue researching - and you could also talk to friends, teachers, counselors, etc if you need to.</p>
<p>Make sure to always focus on depth rather than breadth. Try to do what you are passionate about. Three years of clarinet looks promising, although I hope that it involved three years of band as well or some sort of competitions/awards. Regardless, keep playing the clarinet unless you are ONLY doing it for the college application. You really should enjoy the ECs you’re involved in.</p>
<p>I know it seems like they expect a lot, but colleges generally want to see viable examples and accomplishments in your ECs to acknowledge your dedication. Just try to participate as much as you can in whatever is available to you, and make sure to stick with it – continuity is very important.</p>
<p>It’s hard to give you specifics on what you should do exactly, but I’m sure you have plenty of options but don’t realize it. If you can’t find something to do that you are passionate about, then at least put yourself out there as best you can. You could always see what other people are doing and possibly go from there as well. You don’t need to have a ton of ECs, but try your best to find something. Good luck</p>
<p>No key club…my school is mediocre. Im passionate about exercising but how could i even make that into a club. Do you think i could get into ut austin with weak ec’s but with good grades, volunteer, jobs ect…and urm: hispanic?</p>
<p>It doesn’t have to be key club, but maybe some sort of volunteering organization. Even if there isn’t a club, I guarantee you that there will be some sort of nursing home, hospital, food pantry, etc that needs volunteers in your community. What might be even better though would be if you could find a paying job. That tends to require more diligence and responsibility, and would reflect on your ability to be independent and interactive. </p>
<p>I bet an exercising club would actually be pretty popular. There’s not a lot of people that actually want to go out of their way to volunteer or be involved in certain selective interests. However, lots of people - both guys and girls - like to exercise because it makes them look and feel better. </p>
<p>Many people have trouble being consistent with workout routines or aren’t as interested in exercising when doing it solo. This could be a clever way to incorporate a social club that anyone can join with a healthy interactive activity.</p>
<p>Maybe have people turn in membership dues to the club to pay for a gym membership. You could all maybe work out in the same room with some sort of personalized routine for stretching and exercising. You could break up into smaller pairs or trios to do different exercises for a given amount of time, with people keeping tallies/lists of what exercises are performed and how many. This could be used to gauge improvements in flexibility, strength, endurance, etc. </p>
<p>You could have plenty of fun with it, and maybe even make it competitive. Imagine you and a bunch of people on a treadmill timing how long you can go. It can be a strong motivator to do your best in the eyes of your peers, yet also comfortable to be in the presence of friends (both old and new).</p>
<p>I mean it could be basically like hanging out with friends + doing your normal exercising. However, the difference would be that you would have more structure to the routines and would keep track of all members and their improvements. You would need to include anyone who wants to join rather than just form a clique of a few people.</p>
<p>Or you could forego the whole gym thing, and find an alternative. Maybe you could have scheduled times for jogging or bicycling in your area. Maybe you could all wear shirts while doing so that have the name of your club, or maybe have it mention a cause that you happen to be exercising for (healthy living?). Many people will no doubt see you running/bicycling in your area.</p>
<p>Remember, this is an organization. Don’t let it devolve into a bunch of randomness and fractured groupings. If you do this together it has to include everyone, and you need to schedule times possibly with certain goals. It could be weight loss for some, or maybe just trying to beat previous record times, etc.</p>
<p>Anyway, this is a damn long post. The exercising club may not even be viable at all, so maybe somebody will interject and say that it isn’t a good idea - I honestly don’t know about these things. </p>
<p>Having “weak ec’s but with good grades, volunteer, jobs ect” is pretty general, so I can’t really speculate. I suspect that UT would focus a lot more on grades and test scores (SAT/ACT) rather than ECs/volunteering. If that’s your goal, then I pretty much recommend that you focus all your time and energy on grades/testing. Unless you can absolutely spare the time for ECs, you should probably devote yourself entirely to your classes. Good luck!</p>
<p>Thank you so much! I’ll see what i can do :)</p>
<p>
You are mistaken in thinking that colleges look for well rounded students. They don’t. They look for accomplishment in literally any field, aiming to put together an interesting and accomplished class. Stanford says it better than me:
Two more points I’d like to make. First, most colleges pay little if any attention to ECs. They care primarily about GPA and SAT scores. Do well on the SAT, and along with your good GPA you’ll have plenty of good colleges to choose from. You can find out what colleges factors various colleges weigh by looking at their Common Data Set info. </p>
<p>Second, for the schools that do care about ECs, they would see your dilemma as an example of the system working just the way they hoped. You seem to have the attitude that it is the responsibility of someone else to deliver opportunities to you. If your school doesn’t offer exciting opportunities (and IMHO you’re mistaken about what colleges think about club officers and the like, but that’s another post) then you throw up your hands in despair and give up. </p>
<p>What was stopping you from getting involved in your community? In pursuing the clarinet and looking to take part in regional orchestras, competitions, marching bands? In channeling your passion for exercise to set up programs that could benefit youth in your community? The colleges that care about ECs are looking for students that face challenges and overcome them with flair, not ones that sign up for 5 clubs, run for office in 2 of them, and call it a day.</p>
<p>you have to be proactive and chase after them. I was a teachers assistant at a local elementary school and a translator. I also was a one on one aid to children who had disabilities among other things. I did not sit on my couch and waited for them to appear and i had to go out and search for them</p>
<p>“Do ECs that you are passionate about, and you will get into a good college”
“But remember, don’t do it to get into college”</p>
<p>logic on CC</p>
<p>Ah!! Is this true?? :DDD I’ve heard that people with lower GPA and SAT scores got into Standford with good ECs, and people with higher GPA and SAT scores were turned down. I’m really confused. =/</p>
<p>^^it is so</p>
<p>“The colleges that care about ECs are looking for students that face challenges and overcome them with flair, not ones that sign up for 5 clubs, run for office in 2 of them, and call it a day.”</p>
<p>I don’t understand this part. Please elaborate, because I am signing up for 2 positions in 2 clubs that I like next year. :)</p>
<p>in simpler words colleges want the most well rounded students. students that achieve in the class room and in the community. Also students that are not afraid to put themselves out there and do unordinary and extravagant things. colleges also like to see students that can handle anything thrown their way and against all odds succeed. </p>
<p>Signing up as a leader in two clubs is good but so has everyone else who applied to college in america do something amazing that you enjoy that colleges will notice.</p>
<p>I’m confused as to what to do. Also, do you have to do it for long because I’m going to be a junior next year…I feel like I’m too late =((
Some things =/ :
-I can translate/read/write Vietnamese
-Volunteer at a hospital maybe!?
-I’m an aspiring med student 
(For now I want to be a nurse!)
-I have a gift with spelling in Vietnamese, I may enter a Vietnamese spelling bee
-Journalism 11th grade, probably 12th too
-tutoring at the library
-Trying out for a position in Vietnamese Student Association 11th grade
-Trying out for a position in American Cancer Society 11th grade
I’M in NO sports! Yeah I am not a go-out-in-the-sun type of person! However, I have this group that I call “Fierce Fitness” LOL that I have with my friends. Around 10 people are in it. We meet at my house every weekend to workout IN my house. 'Cause I hate the sun. We all use myfitnesspal to watch what we eat. Workout 6x a week =P Just wondering is this a legit EC…haha
I want to private message you but I need to make 15 posts to do so =P</p>
<p>
As said earlier, most colleges don’t care about ECs. So if you are not aiming for one of the most selective colleges in the country, doing ECs you enjoy (or no ECs at all) is fine. If you want these positions for your own interest, which it sounds like you are saying, then do it!</p>
<p>But for very selective colleges, merely being an officer in a club or two is not enough to stand out. They get such a deluge of apps from smart kids that they can afford to sit back and look to see who brings something special to the table. “Club Officers” are a dime a dozen.</p>
<p>The question about impressive ECs comes up regularly on the forum. There is a thread with several posts by Northstarmom, a Ivy alum interviewer, about what constitutes impressive ECs from the point of view of the most selective colleges. The post is at <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/210497-those-ecs-weak-so-what-s-good.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/210497-those-ecs-weak-so-what-s-good.html</a> Read thru it and you’ll get a feel for what candidates to top schools are doing.</p>
<p>“one of the most selective colleges in the country”</p>
<p>What does that mean exactly?</p>
<p>I can speak conversational spanish and across the street where i go to school there is a elementary school that has many kids who do not speak English. I can’t speak spanish that well but i can still communicate with other people. so maybe at your local elementary school if someone cant speak english but can speak Vietnamese then you could help them out. Volunteering at a hospital would probably be the best because colleges like to see community service and it is something that you are passionate about. I think all your other activities are fine you don’t have to do everything under the sun. As long as you have commitment to all of them and show passion about your activities and have them interconnect in come way then you should be fine. Also write a personal, unique and interesting ESSAY!!!</p>
<p>The way I see it, colleges want many people with special skills. If everybody is good at everything (well-rounded), then nobody is exceptionally good, right? Everybody needs to be unique in their own ways. It could be culturally, like colorsofjade with her Vietnamese skills, or it could be Sweetpotatoegirl, by her overcoming her difficulties with her surroundings. Is that too confusing?</p>
<p>I’m aiming for Berkeley. I mean I might not get in but I really, really want to. If not UCLA/USC will do…but I really want Berkeley ahh <em>__</em></p>