<p>Basically, if your EC’s show that you’ve spent your time wisely, efficiently, and passionately (outside of school), then they’re strong.</p>
<p>Just some rough guidelines:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>If you’re only spending 1-2 hours a week on EC’s, that would show that you aren’t really committed or passionate about anything (or at least that’s the impression). Having a good deal of time commitments, on the other hand, would show not only good time management but also dedication. Obviously, you don’t need 50 hours a week of EC’s - that’s overdoing it a bit. Strong EC’s should show that you are committing time to whatever you are doing.</p></li>
<li><p>If you’re spending 40 hours a week on anime (like me - don’t regret it at all though :D), that would probably make you seem much weaker than someone who’s spending 20 hours a week volunteering. Obviously, if you’re addicted to anime, you can easily squeeze in 20+ episodes a day (good time management I guess… also sleep deprivation), but you’re not putting that time to good use. Strong EC’s would show that you make use of your time productively.</p></li>
<li><p>You also don’t want to spend 300 hours on some activity and have nothing to show for it. Colleges want to see that you’ve used your time efficiently, that you’re able to at least accomplish something, be it concrete like a trophy or abstract like simply learning. If you’re in Science Olympiad, then having won a states medal would be much stronger than just participating. Strong EC’s will tell colleges that from dedicating your time, you can succeed. - but s</p></li>
<li><p>Though this isn’t as much of an issue, colleges do want to see that you are passionate about your activities, and strong EC’s should reflect that. This means that you should show depth in at least one area of your EC’s - your EC’s should not just be a list of 100 activities you participated in for 1 hour each. Also, for people whose EC’s show strong depth in all areas, some colleges/interviewers might prefer more of a “passionate in one area” over “jack-of-all-trades” persona, even if you are state or even national level in several areas. Not saying that you shouldn’t excel in everything - being well-rounded is great - but don’t give off the tone of “I just do whatever I want, don’t really have an aim in life, but I can still do everything better than those who care” (slightly exaggerated). Regardless, strong EC’s would show passion in some area or another.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Additionally, EC’s should also reveal some key character traits (or possibly some unique ones) to colleges, such as:
- leadership (officer of a club, etc.)
- initiative (began a club, etc.)
- perseverance/dedication (all 4 years rather than just 1 year, etc.)
- basically whatever character trait that has a positive connotation would be great</p>
<p>But most of all, I would say, just enjoy your EC’s. You’ll be happy, and colleges will see that you’re enjoying what you’re doing. Don’t go too far out of your way to get EC’s for colleges. Personally, I enjoy competitions and such, since you get a lot of free stuff and it’s makes school life not as monotonous, so I can usually just do what I like and it works out for college fine (except maybe the anime), but even if you have really “weird” interests, pursue them (unless it’s really inappropriate) and don’t give them up just to snatch membership in NHS or something - colleges want to see that you have an interest, that you can dedicate yourself to that interest, that you can succeed, and that you enjoy what you’re doing.</p>