<p>"Remember, hooks are not the same as having a strong EC profile. Many students can have lots to offer a college without having a big hook such as the above."</p>
<p>I guess we think about "big" hooks as being some sort of a sure thing and strong EC's as possibily being an advantage. So are there little hooks? Actually I think it is pointless to try to make this distinction. Thumper's comments point out the advantage of trying to leverage one's assets. There is no advantage to being an oboe player if the adcoms do not know the music department could use an oboe player. It might be pointless for the very elite schools or for big State U's, but often it is helpful to meet with admissions officers and department heads and faculty. Sometimes we were a bit aggressive in suggesting that the department faculty let admissions know that there was a good fit. Usually we found that this was not necessary and before the end of the day admissions and faculty had already talked with each other.</p>