<p>I listed Chorus, Piano, a NASA space settlement design contest, mountaneering/traveling and cooking on my EC list... some people that I asked to read my app told me I was a wee off the right track. I personally dont think there is a wrong track, but am I wrong?</p>
<p>I think the wrong track would be leaving the EC section blank. :D</p>
<p>Hm, don't know if the last two count as "Extracurricular activities" but don't worry too much about it. Just put down what you feel is important to you and leave the rest to the admissions officers.</p>
<p>Mountaineering certainly means more to me than all the math/physics preparation I did for the olympiads. And that prep was so scattered (there was no club that one could join) that i couldn't even fit it in one EC. As for cooking, I will definetly pursue it wherever I go, unlike all the academic performance prep which i certainly don't intend to continue in college. MIT said "list 5 activities in order of importance to YOU", so i did. I just hope I won't suffer from not laundry listing every little club or math/science prep hours in the ECs</p>
<p>Seems like you have a passion for traveling and cooking. In that case, you did the right thing. I bet a bunch of kids put '_____ olympiads' for their ECs.</p>
<p>I'm with Rediohead. There is a lot more in heaven and earth than is dreamt of within the context of parent- or school-initiated ECs. My son did a little resume that talks about the gadgets he's invented (anyone want to buy the world's most complicated digital squirrel detector?), the boats he's helped build (3), and the robots he's put together. None of which were "normal" ECs with hoops to jump and certificates to earn, but -- unless admissions officers are a lot dumber than they sound -- will certainly say something about what matters to him. Tell the college what matters to you, if it matters to them, too, it should help a lot.</p>
<p>I imagine that AOs at places like MIT get MEGO really quickly by the hundreds of identical cookie-cutter EC lists they see.</p>
<p>(MEGO = My Eyes Glaze Over)</p>
<p>"MIT said 'list 5 activities in order of importance to YOU', so i did."</p>
<p>That's totally the right thing to have done. :-) No worries.</p>
<p>wow, benjones! An actual MIT admission officer actually looks through CC. Well, I figure it would be interesting for them to see what applicants concerns and true feelings are regarding admissions.</p>
<p>benjones has been posting here for a year and a half. He's a little busy just now, since it's "reading season", but he does drop by from time to time.</p>
<p>Hi, benjones! :D</p>
<p>Hi mootmom! :-)</p>