But 350 hours of community service is not a lot.
I hope that was was either some sort of sarcasm or something said based on “CC Standards” because 350 IS A LOT
Well…its actually more than 350 isn’t it…(thats in the last four years) and if you take both the community activities (they’re interconnected) I’ve been doing, one for the last 11 years (this one’s more like a childrens club that organizes cultural stuff) and the other for 5 (the one for 5 is more like a concrete job), it would come to lots more. Would adcoms be able to figure that out(if you write an essay about it, for instance) since the app only has room for four years.
Then, according to these posts, can I forget about my dreams of getting into Princeton or Harvard? (You can look at my other posts in the Harvard Forum (i think) to understand my question; however, I can post them here, let me know if u want that or not.)
-Hopeful Junior to be
Colleges (unfortunately) only care about what we do in HS. 350 hours over your entire HS career is not a lot though - I stand by my 500 hours. Just think about it though - if you’re only doing community service as your main EC, then you should be spending about as much time at it as another kid would his/her soccer/basketball practice - so about 8 hours a week. 8*40 (40 weeks in a school year) is 320 hours - but if the 350 are over your entire career - that w/n get you in or at least it won’t make you stand out simply based on the number of hours other kids are pulling in for their respective activities.
this is great advice. thanks.
Nobody plays one sport for the entire school year (forty weeks).
Many of the top players do. Moreover, if you are indeed one of the top competitors at your activity, you will most likely be spending all your time doing it (b/c what you love to do is always your strength - that’s what the research says at least).
SIVster716 - the kids that get in for their b/c of their involvement do.
I have over 1500 hours of volunteer work at my library including treasurer of a teen organization that holds programs on the weekends and at night that range from skate day to candle making to book discussions. I have also run and managed many of those events. Is that enough volunteer work?
Great thread! I didn’t realize your essay could be that important?
Question: Is it possible for your essay to make up for your not-so-good test scores and grades, if it is a really really excellent essay? Could you get accepted to a top school with grades/test scores that dont suffice for that colleges’ range, but with a outstanding essay?
While every one is talking about extracurriculum, I’m wondering if a student without particularly strong extracurriculum will have the chance at all to get into good colleges? (Cuz I’m this kind of student) Here’s and old question, will a student with mediocre extracurriculum but 1st class rank, 2400 SAT score, four 800 SAT subject test scores, 5 or 6 AP courses all with AP scores of 5, and numerous academic awards be too strong for an IVY LEAGUE to reject?
well i heard on here harvard rejects 25% of people with perfect scores…so your going to need something extra…i dont know about other ivys though
Platero - yes, if there is NO ec involvement. And that’s not just HYP.
Karen61990 - yes, as long as you feel like you’ve been really busy throughout your HS career. If you’ve got other impressive ECs other than your volunteer work, then you’re really fine. Only you can be the judge of if you’re doing enough.
M4gici4n - yes, but it matters what school you’re applying to. If you’re applying to a place like BU (which we all agree is a really decent school), then a great essay can help you out. However, if you’re talking about the ivies and the ultra-competitive small LACs, then the answer would probably be no. These ultra competitive school have so many qualified applicants that an amazing essay may not cut it because many of their applicants have the full package.
Platero- I’m afriad that the answer to your question is no. The problem is that GPA has almost become useless to colleges because of the differences in the ways high schools formulate their GPAs. Consequently, they’re looking at the classes you took and the grades you got. Again, colleges won’t give you a leg up above a person with a 2270 if you have a 2400. Test scores exist simply to demonstrate competency, and not to give a leg up to applicants. The problem is that so many applicants to top schools are exactly who you are, top students with amazing records. But these kids applying to top schools have competed at high levels in basketball or debate and/or have been working hard in volunteer/political environments. If your academic awards come from other places than your school, then you may be fine (like if you kick some but at a robotics tournament, or science olympiad), but if you simply have a good school record and nothing else, then you may be out of luck.
Do things like fantasy football and poker count as ECs? lol
Haha. No, but you could probably write an essay about them.
I have a very deep interest in films. I discuss about films online, I analyze films as a hobby, I post critical comments online, I read books about film history, I study filmmaking during my free time, I read screenplays as if they’re novels, I know how to screenwrite, I share the knowledge I gain about films with others, etc. However, I’ve never accomplished anything like shooting a film, writing a screenplay, or establishing a community film club. It’s just a passion I devote a lot of time to (approx. 3 hours a day, 20 hours a week). In college, I plan to be part of the college newspaper team and write about films and participate actively in college film clubs. At the same time, I manage to maintain all As and emerge as my high school’s valedictorian. But of course, I have other ECs such as a national-level invention project, school academic teams, a deep interest in chess (with a couple of chess tournaments), etc. If I’m not mistaken, ECs are mainly for AOs to know your personality and your interests, what you do for fun and that you’re not just a study freak with no real interests. So does my passion for films count as an EC?
You can include it on your app as an EC, but it won’t count for as much as if you were really using your strong interest in films. The colleges that weigh ECs heavily are looking for students who’ll use their passions to impact their campus and community.
For instance, you could be writing reviews for your student newspaper or for a local newspaper (perhaps focusing on a teen’s viewpoint), doing reviews for a radio station (perhaps one that is teen-focused) or even writing screenplays, something that you could be actually doing in h.s. for fun, which is what my older S did when he was in h.s. He went to on-line sites and read about how to write screenplays, and then he wrote his own. My husband and I had no idea he was doing this until one of the colleges where he applied to for a film program sent a postcard asking for a video, screenplay or other example of his film work. To our surprise, my son was able to send them a 35-page screenplay.
Another option would be for you to start a film club and show films at your house or school and then have discussions about the films. The discussions could be led by you or by a local film critic or college prof who teaches film classes.
ive heard of this thing called the social studies olypiad. could comeone please explain this to me. also, is it possible to join another school academic decathalon team if you don’t think that organizing one is possible at one’s school (mine has about 80 kids so it could be a possibility, but a very small percentage are motivated). this year’s subject - china - fascinates me (not to mention the superquiz subject: ecology).
i liked your post eternity hope. just glad to know that you can focus on one area and be passionate about it and you’ll be fine. cuz im not really into athletics, nor music, nor dance etc. and the only clubs im in at school are like math club etc. but i do enjoy community service, i did volunteer in the hospital, and help out with student council whenever they do drives, etc. also am part of youth club at our church but thats pretty much it. i dont think thats enough to get into a good college but maybe i can emphasize how much i like to help the others. i do like to do artwork on my own (never took classes or anything) so maybe i can say something about that…
anyway, thanks for your help. ive just started writing the essays so i’ll keep your advice in mind.
oh and would academic decathalon be a good team to join? ive been debating with myself seeing the amount of studying they do but i do find learning about china very interesting and our school did go to state for past 3 years and im sure if i try out im gonna make the team…
what if I got a lot of awards in debate and Math, but I want to do engineering? the debate ones are much more than the math ones, and I truely have an interest in debate.
Does that help?
what I’m trying to ask is, does having a math/science EC help much more than a non-engineering related EC when applying for engineering?
or should I just put down political science as my intended major and switch to engineering? (Of course, only in schools that accept you to their whole school, not like Cornell)