<p>For example, I'm guessing I can't write down something like:
Pick-Up Basketball: 10 Hours/Week
But does every EC I list have to been done through a formal organization?
For example, if my highschool does not accept certain organizations towards earning community service hours, does that mean that I can't also put that down for my app?</p>
<p>It does not have to be tied to your high school to be considered an EC. For example, I was in an orchestra outside of my high school and that definitely qualified as an EC. My friends did volunteering through a program called “Cityheroes” and that also qualified as an EC, despite not being tied to our school.</p>
<p>Also, do I still have a good shot at some top 25 schools if I have minimal ECs but everything else is perfect?</p>
<p>You can list anything true as an EC. You could list 10 hours/week pick up basket ball as an EC. </p>
<p>This is not a particularly impressive EC (unless umm, you are doing this to rehab from breaking your leg rescuing a bus full of senior citizens or, umm, you are playing pick up basketball with underprivileged children while also teaching them valuable life skills)</p>
<p>ECs do not need to be school related or done as part of an organization. Hiking is a not-uncommon EC, for example, as is working on a novel. Some of the best essays are about unconventional ECs.</p>
<p>If there is a reason you have minimal ECs - for example, needed to work to help support family - you can get into a top U.S. school with good test scores and grades and essays and recs. Otherwise, U.S. schools would like to see ECs, at least two, and preferably with continuity and some leadership.</p>
<p>What about something that is both a school class and something you do at home (like orchestra).</p>
<p>For that, we should only put the hours that we do at home right? Or do we put all the hours? I’m hearing different responses from my friends.</p>
<p>MidwestMom - so if my D has two screenplays, she could list that as an EC? She’s never taken a creative writing class or joined a club, it’s just something she does on her own when she feels like it. </p>
<p>She’s thinking of writing her essay on doing her first triathlon - again something she’s doing on her own, totally outside of school.</p>
<p>Would 2 years count as enough for continuity? Also, say that I do have some good reason for having minimal ECs, would my chances of acceptance be less than, greater than, or equal to the admission rate of each college?</p>
<p>Mamooie we are in the same shoe. I play about 15-20 hours of pickup bball as well since i couldn’t afford rep ball. I’m probably just going to list high school bball team as the EC activity and leave it at that</p>
<p>You can call “writing screenplays” or “stamp collecting” an EC. There are no rules of ECs. A student could list “writing screenplays” as an EC and include a few pages of one of them as a supplement. Nice for a kid planning to major in something writing or theater or film related.</p>
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<p>I would put both the hours you spent practicing at home as well as those you spent in orchestra because both are time used for the EC.</p>