<p>My question is, do ECs have to be "regulated" or something, like through an official club or sponsor?</p>
<p>I spend most of my time painting using computer programs, I usually auction them to raise money for a charity that is important to me. Is this a valid extra curricular or is this more of a past-time?</p>
<p>Ari7 - Yes, this would be an EC. Anything that you do with your time that is not work experience, tv watching, or collegeconfidential/internet surfing is EC. (Not all are good, however.</p>
<p>But I think that painting and auctioning them for charity is a GREAT EC. Definitely put it down.</p>
<p>does anyone participate in hosa?
i've just found out about it, and i've been in their website, but i'm still not sure how to take part in it.</p>
<p>mumurthigal- person 1 is definitely better</p>
<p>Good EC is doing something unique that nobody has ever done. Playing football as an Asian immigrant for example is a pretty unique and says a lot about your character.</p>
<p>i have a question. most/all of my ECs [volunteering] are related to education/kids/the like. so would it make sense to 'market' myself in that way? as in, to mark 'education' as my major on the application [idek if that's possible actually ].</p>
<p>& would it make no sense to also have some medical-related interests in my ECs, like volunteering at a hospital & stuff? or does that throw the first part off :/</p>
<p>^
Smarter approach, in my opinion, is put your time into doing something that you enjoy and will find a passion for. I think you should show colleges that you really do have a passion in what you like most-- say you're pursuing a music degree in college, then maybe you can volunteer at a local music school to tutor them? Something in those lines-- I suppose.</p>
<p>oh, i do really love my education/volunteering activities [which i happen to have a lot of]. it's just not something that i would actually go into for a career [i'd probably actually want to major in bio or psych]. but i was wondering more along the lines of showing that i have this particular passion..:/</p>
<p>if someone has answered this question, my bad for repeating it. i dont feel like going through the list to find it right now. </p>
<p>anyways, im involved in ecs that i spend a lot of time in. for example, sports. i play soccer and do track and field. i focus almost all my time on these two sports. i also volunteer at a local hospital, which i enjoy doing as well. it gives me a better view of the medical world. the one thing i lag is leadership. i really dont have the time to do leadership stuff due to sports and academics. if i were to handle any leadership positions, i think my grades will drop significantly will all the things that im doing. the only thing that is close to leadership would probably be tutoring kids or being the captain of my JV team sophomore year, but i doubt thats good. so do u think colleges would prefer students who lack leadership skills but do the things they love the most or would they rather have people with leadership skills will things they dont really enjoy that much?</p>
<p>My neice was recruited from U of W, because she was a popular spoken word performer in the Boston area. She had close to 2.8 GPA and went to an inner city high school. She has full tuition, full fees and living expenses and is flown to and from her house 2x a year. She in return has to perform at Madison Square Garden, volunteer in the public schools in Madison and go to Panama for a year to perform and teach in spanish. Her group of artists that were are recruited from inner city from around the country come from similar backgrounds. She is also offered a free MA at UW if she wants to stick around after graduating. It is a bit like being on the football team in terms of the performances and travel time required for performing in midwest, but she has not spent one dime on her education.</p>
<p>Varsity Basketball Basketball Captain and Lead Scorer, District Competitor
Varsity Cross Country Runner, District Competitor
Yearbook Editor in Chief
World Culture Club President
Habitat for Humanity Volunteer, Nursing Home Volunteer
Waiter - part time job</p>
<p>Didnāt get in to a lot of my reach schools (Princeton, Harvard, Stanford), so thereās that =</p>
<p>First guy. Heās an Eagle Scout.</p>
<p>Are my ECs ****? please lemme know. 
</p>
<p>Gender: Female
Citizen/International: US Citizen
Race: South Asian -> East Indian (does this screw meā¦ )</p>
<p>State: CA
Type of school: Decent Public (API scores: 810)</p>
<p>Currently: A JUNIOR!!!
SAT: 2310, CR: 790 Math: 770 Writing: 750
ACT: not taken yet</p>
<p>SAT IIs: Math: 800 US History: 800 Chemistry: 790</p>
<p>APs:</p>
<p>Freshman Year: AP Biology + honors crap
Sophomore Year: Honors Pre-Calc, AP Chemistry, AP Statistics
Junior Year: AP Physics B, AP Calc BC, AP ENG 11, APUSH, Journalism
Spanish 4
Senior Year: AP Lit, AP Gov, AP Psych, AP Physics C, AP Spanish 5, Journalism</p>
<p>ALL 5s in my AP exams thus far.</p>
<p>Unweighted GPA: 3.917 (by Application time because my Calc teacher is INSANE
and i got a B each semester)</p>
<p>Weighted GPA: 4.4? maybe</p>
<p>Extra-Curriculars:</p>
<p>Tennis:
4 years Varsity Singles
3 years All-League
<p>Debate:
4 years Varsity LD Debate
National Forensic League Special Distinction
<p>District Youth Advisory Commissioner (Leadership):
-2 years as a Commissioner</p>
<p>SPARKS Representative from Youth Advisory Commission
<p>American Cancer Society:
<p>Global Youth Action:
-School Club President and Founder</p>
<p>O-Ambassador:
<p>Red Cross:
-Youth Commission Ambassador
-School officer
-LDC member
-LDC staffer</p>
<p>Volunteering:
Hospital **** (10-12)
-Tutors at the Tri-City Homeless Coalition (9)</p>
<p>Journalism:
-2 years
-Web-Editor
-Section Editor</p>
<p>OTHER School Awards:
-Most Activity (Extra-Curricular) Points
in my grade level
<p>CSF Member:
-3 years</p>
<p>NSHSS (National Society for High School Scholars):
-3 years</p>
<p>National Honor Society
-2 years</p>
<p>Math Club Member
<p>PTSA:
PTSA Historian and Co-Quest Coordinator
PTSA Youth Communications Committee</p>
<p>Site Council:
-Site Council Student Representative
-Secretary</p>
<p>PYLC: Presindential Inauguration Scholar</p>
<p>People to People International Ambassador</p>
<p>Cancer Action Network Legislative Ambassador</p>
<p>Other EXTRA Cs:</p>
<ul>
<li>volunteered in Hospital in INDIA (for 3 weeks)</li>
<li>publishing a novel</li>
<li>started non-profit</li>
<li>Involved in Junior States of America
-nanowrimo</li>
<li>lincoln-douglas tutorials</li>
</ul>
<p>last summer I met a nice family, totally obsessed with where their kid was going to college, and the whole family was going on a safari to Africa so that the applicant would have good material for their college essayāI thoughtāwhat a bunch of nerdsāhow inauthenticāget a life . . . . .I hope admissions committees can see through this sort of stuff. And what does it teach the kid about putting your heart into what you are doing?</p>
<p>Iām a blogger for a news websiteā¦ is that a good EC?</p>
<p>Um. Iām just wondering.</p>
<p>How prestigious is Speech and Debate? Like the National Forensics League?
-Qualling for Nats?
-State Champ?
-Nationals rank? (like quarterfinalist at the grand tourney)
-Finals at National Tourneys?
-Degree/Points?
B/c I have a feeling that colleges will value something like a state championship over sayā¦ finaling at Emory or Wake or Harvard, simply because they donāt know how prestigious those tournaments are / how difficult it is to do so.</p>
<p>Depends - Congress and PF they prolly wont think anything of it.</p>
<p>LD - maybe.</p>
<p>Policy - Maybe.</p>
<p>Umm, iāve gone to India over two summers during my high school career for vacation. Would that be a good EC?</p>
<p>No, i did not volunteer in some run down hospital or radically alter the government.</p>
<p>I just learned and grew as a person. I learned my parents mother tongue, saw Tollywood movies and played Cricket for the first time in my life! </p>
<p>I didnāt live in a gaurded neighborhood in a large city. (Like most American Indians do when they visit)</p>
<p>Instead i lived in the small village my mother grew up on. It was a humbling experience because i saw where my parents came from, a rundown village in the middle of the mountains. </p>
<p>I became friends with the kids in the village. Everyone was dirt poor, and some even had an abusive father. I even visited their school, a brick box with a tin roof(literally!) i didnāt help them by tutoring them or anything. Instead i begged them to teach me cricket, hike with me on the mountains, and take me to the movies. basically, i wanted them to forget about their daily pains.</p>
<p>The visits werenāt just vacations, they taught me to be content with my comparitively sumptuous life. And I really understood what hardship really meant. (carrying 50 pounds of tomatos on your head for two miles is DEFINETELY HARD. especially when you only get a penny for every pound!!! And these guys had to it everyday!)</p>
<p>Esplin - Thatās not really an EC, but I can see it as an essay.</p>
<p>Anyway, question for anyone who can answer it. National History Day as an EC? Placing 1st at Nationals? I would hope that it would be pretty impressive.</p>
<p>What about a Legislative Youth Advisory Council? Itās something I recently applied for. 11 students are appointed by the Lt. Governor to represent the youth of the state, conduct policy research, and address the state legislature. This is a program that I am genuinely excited about. Iām hoping to study International Relations or Political Science in college.</p>