<p>I have been looking at some of the "Rejected" from Ivy Leagues lists for ECs / Awards, and usually I find the following:
-- One or more of: Debate team / DECA / Tutoring / Student Council positions
-- Club leadership / Member of several clubs
-- Many, many hours of community service
-- Internship / Summer program<br>
-- NHS, AP Scholar, etc.
Then I look at "Accepted" people and those I know:
-- Maybe one or two of above, the one or two of following:
-- Excelled in sport: Varsity / Independent league / Sometimes national recognition
-- Theater / Acting at school and independently<br>
-- Instrument / Music interest
-- Time consuming activity that requires a lot of dedication
-- Developed mini-business / Invented or created something that received recognition
-- Something that builds upon a long-held interest, usually "out of the box" that shows strong independent drive (For example: musical composition, writing books / literature, etc.)</p>
<p>Essentially, I've noticed that a lot of people just do a ton of "stuff" because it is supposed to look good for college. So often these ECs lists contain a bunch of discrete activities that hardly tie to one another. Whenever I look at "Accepted" I see everything have a common goal, or two things someone has dedicated a huge amount of time to. Of course, there are people who get into prestigious colleges with the monster EC lists, but more often than not I see rejections. Instead, it seems that unique awards or activities that one is very good at tend to stand out. As a side note, I have notice that a several people exaggerate the importance or time spent on an activity (Student council organizations come to mind).
Why do people think that 300 community service hours plus a bunch of leadership positions equals top college? </p>