<p>Hey all. (I apologize in advance for the wordy, babbly jumbo mess.) I'm a new to CC and I was just randomly browsing through threads, in particular an acceptance/rejection thread in the Ivy League forum which entailed (of course) whether or not one was accepted, waitlisted, rejected and a listing of all the person's credentials like AP scores, volunteer work, distinction awards, income, y'know...stuff like that. By the way, I'm an incoming sophomore in high school and I'm enrolled in the IB program. So...what totally scared me was that I noticed all these people with amazing credentials, like they participated in USAMO and had a ton other leadership titles, perfect AP scores, strong essays, recs, everything of that sort. Yet, I saw that most of everyone with these credentials (though, apparently some of these guys were on the upper end of the income bracket, don't know how heavily that's weighed) failed to get into schools like Brown, UChicago, Harvard, Cornell, etc. I know getting into these institutions are incredibly difficult, but golly, now it all just seems downright impossible. I notice that it's those extracurricular/summer sessions that really make one stand out, but I'm not at all well knowledgeable on great (somewhat inexpensive) ones out there.
This summer, at the University of Chicago, I took the Startalk Arabic program, since the language is offered at my school in Chicago and I got in.
Though I'm overwhelmed by the ton others out there, any recommendations would be greatly appreciated! :)
Just to give you a sense of what I'm interested in:
- Political science
- Arts (Creative Writing, Theatre, Music)
- Language study
- Sports (Volleyball and track)
- Anything fun and out of the ordinary (Zombie apocalypse combat club, belly dancing, etc.)</p>
<p>Yes there are a lot of kids with awesome EC’s that get in and that don’t. You have to seek out your interests. Showing particular interests and going after opportunities in that area is what stands out. Leadership stands out. Sheer talent stands out.</p>
<p>Imagine magazine has a theme each issue and there is always a page or two on how to get more deeply involved. For instance, if you liked Paleontology and you got involved with a local museum and went on digs and/or joined amateur groups on fossil hunting trips and maybe took a class on it or geology at a CC. </p>
<p>There are always arts and writing competitions and classes to get involved with and theater at your school and community. </p>
<p>You could look into the US Senate Page program. There are summer programs you pay for, if you can afford it, in Political Science and Government Workshops, but it will look better if you do other things related in addition, such as get involved in local or national campaigns, and don’t overlook student govt. Just to go to something your parents pay for isn’t really strong on its own.</p>
<p>Congrats on getting into the (free) Arabic program, sounds great and supplementing it in school is solid. Just do the things that interest you, but push yourself.</p>