<p>Yeah, I have grades and high scores and stuff like that, but my ECs are garbage. I moved to a new school after 9th grade so I was never able to continue the same ECs or become "popular" enough to become the president of a club. I had to quit many ECs after 9th grade because they weren't offered at my new school. I'm going into 11th and I'm still probably gonna do new stuff because I was confused at the beginning of my 10th grade year as I was new to the school.</p>
<p>Other than that, I'm an Eagle Scout, have some volunteering, sports, etc.</p>
<p>Academically, my schedule is the most rigorous I can take with mostly A+'s and a few A's.</p>
<p>I don't feel ultra-passionate about anything like most CCers to be honest.</p>
<p>Am I pretty much screwed for schools like Stanford? (my dream school)</p>
<p>If I write a killer essay, is it possible to get into a place like Stanford? And where does someone like me usually end up? (valedictorian, high SAT, bland ECs)</p>
<p>I feel like moving and going to a new school really messed me up as I was never able to "commit" to anything.</p>
<p>“Eagle Scout”</p>
<p>This is huge. If you have finished your Eagle project, is there anything else scouting-oriented for you to continue to do? Around here, many of our Eagles and Girl Scout Gold Award people sign up (or even help start up) Venture Scout groups: [Venturing[/url</a>]</p>
<p>Moving in 9th grade may have shaken your life up a bit, but plenty of people don’t move and still feel that way. Take another look around your school and your community, and see if there is something interesting going on that you’d like to participate in. For example, if you like theater but don’t like the play director at your HS, chances are that there is a community theater group that would be happy to have you.</p>
<p>But even more important than all of that, you need to sit your parents down and have the Money Talk with them. Find out just exactly how they expect you to pay for your education. Can they pay the full Cost of Attendance (COA) for an expensive private institution (now about $60,000 each year), or is their budget morel limited? How do they feel about you working during the summers and/or during the school year? How do they feel about student loans? There is a lot of fun (?) reading on this topic in the Financial Aid Forum, and at [url=<a href=“http://www.finaid.org%5DFinAid”>http://www.finaid.org]FinAid</a>! Financial Aid, College Scholarships and Student Loans](<a href=“Venturing | Boy Scouts of America”>Venturing | Boy Scouts of America)</p>
<p>Stanford is a reach for everyone, so if you really do have great grades and scores you should give it a shot. And BTW, being an Eagle Scout isn’t a bad EC, lol. </p>
<p>A little more worrying is that you say you don’t have a specific passion. Is that because you’re interested in many things and don’t have one major interest? Schools the caliber of Stanford work hard to put together an interesting, diverse class of students. They look beyond grades, etc. because almost all their applicants are excellent students. At some point admission officers ask themselves “what can this kid do for us?” If nothing jumps out at them your application gets put aside. </p>
<p>That said, there are SO many outstanding universities in this country that would love to have someone like you. We can make some suggestions, but first tell us whether you want a small or big school, which part of the country you want to live, and whether you need FA.</p>
<p>The question about impressive ECs comes up regularly on the forum. There is a thread with comments by Northstarmom, a Ivy alum interviewer, about what constitutes impressive ECs from the point of view of the most selective colleges (of which Stanford is clearly a part). 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></p>
<p>NO ONE on CC has a passion.
well, maybe there are a few, but that word is sort of thrown around like a joke. very few high schooloers have ever felt true passion. and adcoms know that. the only rule of thumb is do what you’re interested in and DO IT WELL.</p>
<p>good luck. I’m in a similar situation, but I didn’t have any extracurriculars before sophomore yr. since I moved from another country. at least you have eagle scout :)</p>
<p>Son is an Eagle Scout, played lacrosse, and was in German club (secretary). That all took a lot of his time (as well as AP classes, getting good grades) and working a little during the summer.</p>
<p>Your ECs are not bland…son didn’t get into Stanford (wasn’t his first choice) but he got into Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Santa Cruz, Layfayette, Babson, and Univ of Penn to name a few. No one really knows what actually gets them into a college, all they can do is do their best and apply where they really want to go.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>stressedouttt, sorry to burst your bubble, but for a school like Stanford, and all other universities in that league, extraordinary interests/accomplishments (i.e. passion) are crucial. All Stanford’s candidates have great stats; to get in you have to have more. </p>
<p>However, OP is an Eagle Scout (a biggie) and apparently runs cross country, which itself shows determination and inner toughness. Whether that is enough for Stanford, hard to say. But a similar background got capenn15’s son into an Ivy.</p>
<p>^ of course you need extraordinary interests and accomplishments. hence what I said: do what you’re interested in and DO IT WELL. But that does not equal passion. Obviously you have to have great interest in what you’re doing, but passion goes so beyond that.</p>
<p>My understanding is one of the reasons that a school looks for passion, is that in life, people who have to ability to persevere and stay with something for many years tend to be the Super Successes (Nobel Prize Winners, Presidents, Etc.)</p>
<p>IMO, becoming an Eagle Scout shows exactly this kind of dedication. It requires significant time commitment over many years.</p>
<p>Does it guarantee admission in Stanford (or a similar tier school, of course not), but with this accomplishment, I think the EC portion of the resume looks fine.</p>