<p>Hi. I'm going to be applying to quite a few reach schools (Brown, Cornell, Stanford, Northwestern...). My academics are good, though not amazing; I have a good GPA and have taken a rigorous courseload and my standardized test scores are in the 50-75th percentile.</p>
<p>My ECs are weak, though. I have some clubs under my belt, I'm on the Yearbook & Newspaper staff as a photographer, I've been volunteering recently at an animal shelter, and I'm Key Club President. That's about it. Basically, my parents were always the kind of parents who told you that "grades are all that matter" throughout high school. Every EC I do have was almost a fight to participate in. They've come around and realize the value of EC <em>now</em>, but I'm already entering my senior year. I've dabbled in a lot of activities, but I never got involved with anything too deeply.</p>
<p>Is there any way I can lessen the blow and let colleges know I want to be more involved without sounding whiny? Or should I just apply as is and hope for the best?</p>
<p>Thanks guys.</p>
<p>If you’re spread too thin, first know that dropping everything else and doing one thing only in your last year is not going to do you much good. The “I suddenly realized what I was born to do” story at this point is not going to be that impressive. </p>
<p>From my point of view, the best thing for you to do now is certainly to keep up with the good things you’re doing, but maybe get into them more, especially if you’ve got an EC that’s really in your niche. Figure out what it is that you’re doing that you really just love, and get more involved in that, even if it requires some work outside of a club or organization. (The thing that seems most fit for this here is probably photography, or animal shelter stuff.) </p>
<p>Also, you might just want to explain your situation a little bit to the colleges when you’re applying. I know what you mean when you say you don’t want to sound “whiny”, and that’s definitely a possibility if you give them this story, but you just have to be careful about how you do it. “Mommy and Daddy made me focus on school and said I couldn’t do stuff” probably won’t cut it because that brings up some doubts about your academic ability and/or your drive to follow your passions. However there’s still a little bit of room for you to work the truth of your situation in. They will understand, but they want to see that you faced your inhibitions and you made the absolute best of what you had. </p>
<p>Keep up your grades, keep up doing good things, keep challenging yourself, and maybe try to bump up your test scores, but definitely dig deeper and find out what really makes you tick. Also, while I’m not sure this is an exhaustive list of where you’re applying, you would do well to add some matches, even if they’re high matches, to your list. Tons of great people get turned down from places like these for apparently no reason, so you want to be really safe and sure, while still doing your best to get in to the school of your dreams.</p>
<p>I agree, I have literally only a few months before I’m sending my applications in. There’s not much use or time to “drop everything” and completely focus on one thing.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for your advice!! I will continue to delve as much as I can into my extracurricular while continuing to just challenge myself and give it my all. I hope it’ll be enough. And I don’t need (and obviously don’t expect) to get accepted into all 4 of those schools. I’ll be ecstatic with one acceptance.</p>
<p>And don’t worry! I have safe schools set aside; I live in Texas where you’re guaranteed admission into any public Texas college if you graduate in the top 10% of your class.</p>
<p>What a coincidence! I live in Texas too! I’ve heard of that guarantee but wasn’t there talk of it being changed to the top 8%? Not sure. But yeah that definitely makes it easier if you’re looking at those schools as well! :]</p>
<p>That’s awesome! I haven’t met many Texans on here. I’ve heard that UT @ Austin only accepts top 8% because they get so many applicants. But even if they do change it, I’m in the top 2% of my school. :)</p>
<p>Oh, that’s probably right then. I think that’s the context I heard that in anyway. And yeah, top 2% means you’ve got nothing to worry about as far as public TX schools are concerned.</p>