<p>Why is being student council president considered to be a great (can't think of the right word...) in college admissions?</p>
<p>It's the same thing every year - the candidates give their speeches, the most popular kids get elected, and they plan the dances.</p>
<p>Honestly, what leadership does student council show? All they do is help to plan the dance with 3 teachers babysitting them.</p>
<p>Last year the person (football team QB) who was elected student council president came on stage for his speech. He was obviously high and he has below a 2.0 GPA. </p>
<p>We then listened to his 30 second speech (slurring words) about how great the football team was and thanking everyone.</p>
<p>And of course he's elected.</p>
<hr>
<p>Why is being popular a factor in the admissions process?</p>
<p>I think it gets a little bit of weight, just like being captain of a sports team or something like that gets some weight. But it is still a “school level” EC in the admissions process, and certainly can’t overcome a poor GPA and/or test scores in admissions to top schools. And if the teachers are unimpressed (if he really WAS clearly high for his speech, for example), his recommendations might be lukewarm as well.</p>
<p>My suggestion is to pay attention to your own ECs and don’t worry about that one. If you didn’t even run, you really shouldn’t care. If you did run and didn’t make it, it might be good fodder for a college essay, depending on how you use it. And now you have free time to pursue other ECs that might be more meaningful anyway.</p>
<p>Some student councils are more active, independent, and effective than others. If you were president of one of those, and it proved to be a massively time consuming activity that tested your management abilities and forced you to grow as a leader, then it definitely would be an EC worth earning a few extra admissions points. And that work and leadership would definitely be reflected in your letters of recommendation.</p>
<p>Agree with both. It’s not the title that matters, it’s the particular responsibilities this president took on. Lots of kids brag about managing what we jokingly call the “prom decorations.” Obviously, that’s not what adcoms care about. On the other hand, some kids in some schools deal with semi-adult-level issues that come up, truly lead. You can achieve the same impact in your own ECs by taking on challenges that matter, commiting time and effort and making a difference.</p>
<p>Our student council plans our spirit week which regularly raises over 100K for charity, they plan prom, among other events that take a lot of planning. Even though the people elected are usually popular, they do a lot of work.</p>
<p>Well… T26E4, if the stoned QB attends, it won’t be because of anything related to his student council EC, it will be due to his athletic prowess.</p>
<p>Crimsonstained47, if the student makes the level of work clear in their application, a college might weight it more. That should be done either through essays, or using the “additional information” section to list responsibilities if the itty, bitty EC section does not allow enough room.</p>
And now you have free time to pursue other ECs that might be more meaningful anyway.</p>