<p>Okay, I finally figured out how to make a new thread. Yay!
I"m not totally sure this thread belongs in this category, so if you have a better idea please let me know.</p>
<p>So my story is...
I went to a really small elementary/middle school with pretty much no activities and only a few sports. When I switched to a public high school last year I was really excited about all the activities I could take part in, but I think I went a little overboard. </p>
<p>I'm now a sophomore and I'm currently involved in:
-Interact (community service - help out mostly at elementary schools/public library/local armory, etc.)
-Empty Bowls (community service - we make ceramic bowls with donated clay, fill them with donated soup, sell them at an event every spring, and donate all the money we make to local food pantries)
-Fight For Green (environmental club)
-Class Council (I was in it freshman year, this year I'm vice president and i'm running for vice president again next year)
-Science & Math teams
-This year, I was also inducted into the Spanish honor society and Mu Alpha Theta (national math honor society)</p>
<p>Outside school, I sing in an international Jewish choir on sundays and work at my synagogue's hebrew school. I'm also thinking about applying to a different job that's closer by for next year. </p>
<p>I may also be missing a few things....</p>
<p>Lately I've been feeling a little overwhelmed with extracurriculars. I have some days when I have four or five things to do in one afternoon in the hour between school ends and the late bus. Next year is junior year and I feel like if I keep this up I may go insane. :) The real problem is that I really love everything I do!! Any help deciding what (if anything) to drop?</p>
<p>I think it’s really a personal decision that no one here can help you with as far as telling you which ECs to drop. You have to consider what is most important to you. However, I think the decision to perhaps cut back on ECs is a smart choice since colleges would much rather see you do well and make an impact on your school and community in a few clubs than trying to do everything half-heartedly.</p>
<p>Thanks…that is what I’m trying to do, but it’s hard. And you’re right that people will have trouble helping me decide without knowing me personally…it was worth a shot anyway!</p>
<p>To answer the question, yes, that’s definitely too many. </p>
<p>Of course you know that we can’t tell you which to keep and which to drop. But you can ask yourself: Which ones really grab you? Which ones wouldn’t you miss? </p>
<p>I notice 3 themes in your activities: Community service, academics, and your Jewish heritage. How about if you choose just one activity from each of those categories? Three ECs is a good number, and colleges would rather see you involved in fewer activities but at a deeper level, than just going through the paces in a dozen activities.</p>
<p>You can if they said you have to put them all on the space for community service or EC. I suggest you to put that in your essay if you think that is the most memorable to you and explain why.</p>
<p>Yes, it’s too many–not because there is some ideal number of ECs but because you feel overwhelmed. What CCers tend to ignore is that, while ECs are important, they are not the focus of any application. Top schools all agree that the transcript (grades, course rigor, classes taken) is the most important part. So do not sacrifice your sanity or your grades just to take up a few more lines on the CommonApp (which only has seven, anyway).</p>
<p>A few questions you can ask yourself when whittling your list: Are any of the club advisors teachers you’d like to have write you a rec? Can you get a leadership position? Are you passionate enough about the club to take it to a level beyond the school walls–organizing a local fundraiser, getting the entire school district involved in a project, competiting at a state or national level on the competitive teams? etc.</p>
<p>Just keep in mind that simply being a member of a school club is not particularly impressive, at least not inherently. What matters is what you achieve in that club–awards, projects–and how well it serves to represent your interests so you come across to adcoms as a cohesive whole. </p>
<p>thanks guys!
i’m going to have to do some serious thinking about this, but it may have to wait until the summer when everything slows down and i have time :)</p>