<p>I'm not necessarily asking for my chances of getting into Stanford. I'm just asking what you think about "my stand out" on my application. Assuming like most my SAT/ACT, teacher recs and everything else is up to par to their standards. Usually what gets you into a school like Stanford is something that stands you out over the rest of the applicants, right? Well, I ran a marathon a few months ago, so would this be a thing that helps me get in? I doubt very many applicants can say tht they have ran a marathon... I plan on using is as one of my essays. So will this help me get in to Stanford?</p>
<p>Unless you competed in the olympics, that’s not necessarily a “hook.” I think it’d be a decent essay, but I’m not sure if you could exactly say that your odds got doubled just from the fact that you ran 26.2 miles.</p>
<p>Probably not</p>
<p>No, running a marathon will not get you into Stanford. It depends how you write about it and how well you do it. If you look over the Stanford essay questions, I am not totally sure how running a marathon will really link to any of the essays, other than perhaps a brief mention in the roommate essay. But if you can somehow connect it to Intellectual Vitality or another essay, then go for it. However, this topic has the potential to wander very closely to the taboo “jock essay” or overtly general life-lesson essay. Eg. Run a marathon -> new life experience -> big struggle -> overcome the challenge -> learn something new about leadership or dedication or teamwork, etc etc etc. Don’t go there. </p>
<p>No. While running a marathon is a personal achievement, many applicants have participated in athletic events at various levels. It is a great thing 
, but you will not stand out, unless you have received recognition for your time at the international, national, or maybe state level. And I wouldn’t go into the essays planning to write about the marathon. If you can tie it in smoothly, that’s great, but using it as a major obstacle to overcome will likely be seen as weak, if not offensive (some people have overcome much more), to colleges. </p>
<p>This will do nothing for you. They will take athletes that would contribute to the school (ie football players, rowers, competitive runners) over you any day.</p>
<p>I agree with the others that running a marathon itself won’t help you any, but it can potentially express to adcoms that you’re invested in your EC’s. For example, a cross-country runner who, in his spare time, runs a marathon demonstrates passion. </p>
<p>no, a marathon does absolutely nothing</p>
<p>You are looking in the right direction–I just don’t know if a marathon is an answer. Admissions officers are definitely looking for something that is unique and makes you stand out above the myriad of applications they receive. More than that, however, they are looking for a good story. A marathon, while unique, is not necessarily a story.</p>
<p>The problem is that most people do not have incredibly unique stories. I’m talking about stuff like building a school in Africa, curing cancer, yada yada yada. For average applicant, I’d recommend writing about something that may have been difficult or a challenge for you, but you succeeded anyway. For example, if you DID decide to write about a marathon, I’d emphasize how you decided to run for a marathon way back when, and slowly worked towards that goal. Show how you can commit yourself to a goal and let nothing stop you from achieving it. If you make it seem like a struggle, it will look a lot better than if you just write, “By the way I ran a marathon.”</p>
<p>Don’t be discouraged; you are thinking about your application the right way. The number one rule is to make your application stand out and shine. It’s just a question of how you want to do that. Help me out? 
<a href=“Should I transfer? - College Search & Selection - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1656409-should-i-transfer.html</a></p>