When people say a kid did an EC "at a national level", what does that mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone give examples?

colleges use Tiers to score the ECs. There's a post on this site about how that scoring works. Search.
Tier 1 ECs include national level ECs

also:

https://blog.collegevine.com/breaking-down-the-4-tiers-of-extracurricular-activities

https://www.collegevine.com/faq/14876/what-are-some-examples-of-tier-1-2-extracurriculars

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1213376.page


Tier 1 Extracurricular Examples:

National and International Competitions:
Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF)
International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO)
Google Science Fair
Model United Nations (MUN) – Best Delegate
International Baccalaureate (IB) – 45 Points
Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology
National Geography Bee
National History Day Competition – 1st Place
DECA International Career Development Conference – Top 10
HOSA International Leadership Conference – 1st Place

Leadership Roles:
Founder of a successful non-profit organization
CEO of a student-run startup with significant revenue
President of a nationally recognized student organization
Student body president with impactful initiatives
Organizer of a large-scale charity event with national coverage
Youth ambassador for a well-known international NGO
Editor-in-chief of a nationally distributed student magazine
Lead organizer of a national or international conference for youth
Music director of a nationally acclaimed youth orchestra
Captain of a national championship-winning sports team

Unique Personal Projects:
Development of a patented invention or innovation
Author of a published book on a significant topic
Solo art exhibition at a recognized gallery
Creation of a widely used open-source software project
Independent research project published in a reputable journal
Production of a documentary featured in film festivals
Design and execution of a community development project with measurable impact
Successful campaign for a cause with significant media coverage
Completion of a challenging personal goal, like climbing the Seven Summits
Creation of a viral social media campaign for social change

https://ivyd.com/tiers-of-extracurriculars-for-high-school/

These tiers are helpful for figuring out what colleges value the most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here,

I am not asking what colleges value, or what colleges mean when they talk about national awards.

I am asking what DCUM posters who say

"My kid has national awards"

or

"My kid does an EC at a national level".

mean.

I would say that it applies for a competition open to all applicable people in the us (sport, academic, art, service, etc. based on qualifications like age or school years/HS) which is not based on public votes to win.

examples:
- all hs kids in the us can submit an art creation for x award…and after review by independent judges, kid wins.

- all kids aged 13-19 can submit a video outlining their solution for x, and kid wins first place

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
This is an incomplete list stolen from a prior anonymous post, please feel free to add more awards in bold and argue about the relative placement of awards in different categories:

National Award Levels

10: Congrats, this is your ticket

D1 athlete
IMO/IPHO/ICHO/IBO/IOI/IOAA/IOL medals
Intel STS Top 10; Siemens Finalist; ISEF Top 3 Grand Prize; Google Science Fair age group winner
History Day National Winner
Single/First Author in High Impact Factor Journal

9: Almost a ticket to a prestigious school

Siemens Westinghouse finalists; Google Science Fair Finalist; MOP; Intel STS Finalist; ISEF Best of Category
FL Nationals winner
RSI (Research Science Institute)
Published in a relatively prestigious journal

8: Amazing accomplishment; Large boost

TASP, USAPhO/USNCO/USABO/USACO National Finalist
Google Science Fair Semifinalist; Siemens Semi-finalists; Intel ISEF 1st-4th place category; Intel STS semifinalist,
Running your own successful business
USAMO qualification
AMC 12 Perfect Score, Presidential Scholar, Davidson Fellow
Writing Portfolio Gold Award, Presidential Scholar of the Arts, Scholastic Art
FIRST Dean's List winner, top 5 at FIRST World Championships,
Google Code Jam Round 2, 3 Qualifier (Vast majority of Competitors are College students and professionals)
Facebook Hacker Cup Round 2, 3 Qualifier (Vast majority of Competitors are College students and professionals)
MIT PRIMES Participant

7:

SSP, Simons, Clark Summer Program, NIH Research, and MITES and other selective programs
Science Olympiad national medals, EUCYS prizes
State governors schools with acceptance rate <15% (PGSS, NJGSS, most other science governor's schools)
USACO Platinum Division
ARML Tiebreaker Round / Top Team, YES Competition (Young Epidemiology Scholarship), USAMTS Gold Medal
Intel ISEF Finalist, History Day National Level
Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold Medal. NFL Nationals (speech and debate) "breakers" (elimination rounds), Tournament of Champions (debate) "breakers," Congressional Award Gold Medalist,

6:

USAPhO/USABO semifinals, Science Olympiad Nationals qualification
USACO Gold Division
AMC 10 Perfect Score
Less competitive governor's schools (Acceptance rate between 15% and 25%), any other scholarship summer programs not aforementioned
Congressional Award Silver Medalist, NFL Nationals/Tournament of Champions Qualifier, FBLA Nationals
Science Bowl/Ocean Science Bowl/NAQT winners, Technology Student Association Nationals
FIRST Dean's List finalist
Top 5 FIRST Super Regionals (FTC)
Scholastic Art & Writing National Silver Medal
Academic Decathlon State (CA) Honors Top 3
(6.5) Google Code Jam Qualifier (Vast majority of Competitors are College students and professionals)
(6.5) Facebook Hacker Cup Qualifier (Vast majority of Competitors are College students and professionals)

5: Pretty good; will complement an already strong record

USAAAO
USNCO semifinals
AIME
National Latin Convention 1st Places Academic Contests,
All-Eastern/all-regional music, State History Day top 3 place
Top 5 FIRST State Championship (or Regionals for FRC), JETS TEAMS National Finalist, Skills USA Nationals
State Science Fair Winner/Top Award
Academic Decathlon State (AZ/TX/MA/WI), Nationals Top 3 Honors & California Event Golds

4:

USACO Silver Division
Science Fair Regional winner
Science Olympiad state medals (depending on what state you're from)
Science Bowl national qualification
Perfect Score (Multiple Years) on National Latin Exam
State awards (all-state music, etc)
Academic Decathlon State (AZ/TX/MA/WI) Event Golds
MUN Gavel
AMC 10/12 school winner (depends on your school)
Art and Writing Regional Gold award
Top 5 FIRST Regional (FTC)

3: Some effort involved, but not uncommon

Winning at local/regional science fairs
All-County music,
Eagle Scout, National Merit Finalist
Head of a competitive club that you did not found (ex: Mock Trial, Model UN, Science Olympiad)

2: Your average go-getter

Bank of America Awards
Local awards/trophies
Essay Contests
Regional History Day

1 : Common activities

National Honor Society
Beta Club
School Departmental Awards
School Honor Roll
Key Club, CSF, Interact Club
National Merit Commended
Member of a club with no distinctions earned

0: A dime in a dozen; meaningless

Who's Who, National Honor Roll, National Society of High School Scholars

Oh man. I was top 10% of my ivy then HLS cum laude and I had no idea until today most of this stuff even existed. I feel bad now for kids today.

[Anonymous]

Those award "tiers" are fanfiction not how AOs evaluate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Those award "tiers" are fanfiction not how AOs evaluate.

So how do AO's evaluate?

[Anonymous]

Don’t stress about this.

My kid was accepted RD to an Ivy, T10 and multiple T20s with zero national awards. ECs showed dedication across years, but were fairly typical.

Rigorous course load, uw 4.0, 5s all AP exams, 35 ACT (one sitting).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those award "tiers" are fanfiction not how AOs evaluate.

So how do AO's evaluate?

There’s a good older post about that. They do give extra points (at some schools) for the highest tiers.


https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1224166.page

[Anonymous]

These awards /EC tiers matter more for applicants who fall into one of these categories:

- something off about transcript or stats (test optional, a low grade in non-major field; slightly less rigor than others, etc);
- oversubscribed majors (CS; engineering; business)
- crowded top-tier field from your HS (competing with a lot of kids who look like you without much distinguishing)
- kids with generally vanilla or otherwise non-remarkable EC/application narrative or story.