If every kid is doing the same damn EC

[Anonymous]

Wouldn't it be great if kids could focus on one test and then live the rest of their teen years doing things that genuinely interests them instead of living a life curated to have the higher college application impact?

It's what almost every other country in the world does but american exceptionalism and all that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wouldn't it be great if kids could focus on one test and then live the rest of their teen years doing things that genuinely interests them instead of living a life curated to have the higher college application impact?

It's what almost every other country in the world does but american exceptionalism and all that.

We may encourage our high schooler to do just that. America may not be in good shape by the time they go to college, no point curating this insane EC-packed life when they end up preferring to attend college in Germany, UK or Canada.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which EC is everyone doing?

NP: varsity sports (non-recruit), club leader, Debate/Model UN, student gov, music/band, robotics/science fair, volunteering (animal shelters, church, or hospital)

None of those are impressive.
Kid at Ivy.

Please share your wisdom, O Anointed One.

I’m not that poster but the kid from a high school that was shot up in Florida and who spoke out against guns had a 1320 and Harvard accepted him.

Do something on the national stage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which EC is everyone doing?

NP: varsity sports (non-recruit), club leader, Debate/Model UN, student gov, music/band, robotics/science fair, volunteering (animal shelters, church, or hospital)

None of those are impressive.
Kid at Ivy.

That's not impressive either

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How did yours stand out?
Grade inflation, mid range test scores, no test scores. Don't most seniors seem the "same?"

One stands out by having one of the top 3 GPA’s in the grade, and taking the hardest classes in all 5 core areas, and having 1550+. The counselor letters of these kids will say the top this year or top few, based on gpa and rigor. If the kids are nice helpful fellow students who participate in class and enjoy learning, the teacher recs will be stand-out. If they are really a good writer the essays will be unique and have a voice and only need a proofread. The ECs can be average but this type of kid is not average: they usually have many years spent on writing or volunteering or music, plus they love that or some different activity so much they have leadership in it, and likely some awards because they have spent time getting good at it.
Read MIT applying sideways. True standouts find a way to stand out; parents don’t need to help navigate the process. If your kid is not naturally a top kid, they are not getting into an ivy/elite unless they are hooked.

i think it depends on what you mean as elite?
i know lots of kids who weren't top 3 (AT ALL), some TO, all with amazing ECs though and stellar essays (and great recs) from our private who got into schools like:
Duke, Brown, Cornell, Columbia, Vanderbilt, Michigan, USC, Emory, WashU

I think coming from a "feeder" private school helps for some colleges tbh. But it does also depend on luck (how many hooked kids from HS are applying that year etc). Be flexible with your REA/ED choices.

How do you know the contents of the essays and recs of “lots of kids”?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which EC is everyone doing?

NP: varsity sports (non-recruit), club leader, Debate/Model UN, student gov, music/band, robotics/science fair, volunteering (animal shelters, church, or hospital)

None of those are impressive.
Kid at Ivy.

Please share your wisdom, O Anointed One.

I’m not that poster but the kid from a high school that was shot up in Florida and who spoke out against guns had a 1320 and Harvard accepted him.

Do something on the national stage.

This! That kid is impressive! If your kid can show that kind of potential, scores mean nothing to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I feel like the kids all do the same ECs because parents push them there and because of their own anxiety do not let their kids pursue their own interests. My DD had a friend who wrote songs in mandolin. His parent forbade it and told him he was wasting his time and needed to be practicing violin. A score on the violin exams that was good but similar to everyone else, stands out way less than a kid who writes his own songs. The parents were fools. My kid had several unusual interests and had won an award for a documentary film she had made. She did not do traditional school ECs but pulled out samples on her phone of a graphic novel she was writing when the subject came up at an interview. It worked for her.

Model UN is fine if that is what your kid loves and they can excel, but otherwise, find something they think is fun where they can excel.

I disagree. Mandolin is not a good instrument. those songs were likely not good. Sure, it could look "interesting" and impress a clueless AO, but to understand and appreciate music violin is vastly superior. It's really sad that kids need to be weird instead of pursue things that are beautiful and enriching.

Not really. Mandolin and fiddle would be very interesting to an AO.
Unless you are nationally ranked, no one cares about violin....dime a dozen.

This post made me laugh that AO would like fiddle, but not violin…. Someone please try this on application and let us know how goes or try saying you play old eighty-eight to stand out.

Maybe there will be an explosion of theremin players. Now that's unique.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wouldn't it be great if kids could focus on one test and then live the rest of their teen years doing things that genuinely interests them instead of living a life curated to have the higher college application impact?

It's what almost every other country in the world does but american exceptionalism and all that.

We may encourage our high schooler to do just that. America may not be in good shape by the time they go to college, no point curating this insane EC-packed life when they end up preferring to attend college in Germany, UK or Canada.

I attended school in Europe and studied for a whole year at an Ivy for free (aside from housing). My degree is from the European university, but every employer has been impressed by the Ivy on my resume. So there's another idea. I was a top student at my college though, which is how I got the exchange. European schools do not care about ECs at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wouldn't it be great if kids could focus on one test and then live the rest of their teen years doing things that genuinely interests them instead of living a life curated to have the higher college application impact?

It's what almost every other country in the world does but american exceptionalism and all that.

But ECs matter more than a standardized test, which is the way it should be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What HYPMS looks for is someone with a unique ability. A candidate with 4.0 GPAs with 12 AP courses plus tons of ECs, while impressive, is a dime and dozen. A musician with potential like Justin Bieber or a Tiktok influencer with huge followers is unique. It is simple economics about supply and demand. There is an oversupply of 4.0 GPAs candidates with 12 AP courses plus 1600 on the SAT but not enough candidates with the potential of Justin Bieber. Of course, the school will take the candidate with the potential of Justin Bieber. It is not that hard to understand.

\

There is no more than a few hundreds of kids in the USA with those numbers. SAT alone trims it to 700 hundred or so. so, no, there is no "oversupply" - in fact, there is no enough such candidates for HYPMS.

Also, randos doing origami and circus acts are not Justin Bieber.

If traveling around the country for circus and trapeze, hmmm.
And combine that with someone choreographing the performance to music, um hell yeah, I want that kid.

Ok, not quite a circus act but our DC found a way to stand out in a typical EC (marching band) by helping to fine tune their field show, transposing difficult movements for “challenged” players, and literally running daily practices and performances as the sole drum major. Not because they aspire to a musical career but simply because they liked it. Every collegiate person they spoke with asked about it.

DC was also the company commander of a large JROTC cadre that participates at the national level academically and in drill. Would’ve likely pursued a military career except for a hard-no medical issue.

So there are ways to blend the standard with the special, at least in my opinion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wouldn't it be great if kids could focus on one test and then live the rest of their teen years doing things that genuinely interests them instead of living a life curated to have the higher college application impact?

It's what almost every other country in the world does but american exceptionalism and all that.

But ECs matter more than a standardized test, which is the way it should be.

Why? ECs are correlated to wealth FAR more than standardized test scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Talked to drama activity parents. 4 of their kids have same/ similar stats and activities. How do they distinguish themselves??

Stop lying to yourself. A kid who could score high on a watered down standardized test regardless whether they study cannot be a genius.

I have a kid who can be a "genius" but has a hard time with standardized tests. He tends to overthink and isn't a grinder. He's a slow and steady learner with straight As and international, national, and regional awards in the humanities. He will seriously be a better college student than a high school student - it's hard to constantly grind different subjects when you think in stories and ideas. An earnest kid well liked by all teachers. I have two younger kids who are more standard smart and excellent at school academics. I have a feeling the first kid will do the best with college admissions even with lower scores.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of my coworkers' wife, who is an AO at an Ivy, said this to me at the company last year Christmas party:

How to get rejected by Ivies:
- I have 4.0 GPA with 12 AP classes
​AO response: There are 1500 Asian kids with the same achievement

- I am the violin first chair in the orchestra,
AO response: There are 1200 Asian kids with the same achievement

- I score 1570+ on the SAT
AO response: There are 1500 Asian kids with the same score as you

- I am an accomplished pianist
AO response: There are 800 Asian kids that can play piano just as good as you, if not better

- I found a nonprofit to help the homeless:
​AO response: There are 500 Asian kids that also do the same thing like you

How to get accepted by Ivies:

- I can play guitar like Slash of Guns 'n Roses. I can show you how I play "November Rain" or "sweet child o mine"
AO response: Now that's unique. We would love to have you at the university

- I have a TikTok influencer with over 2M followers
AO response: Amazing. You know how to monetize your influence. It means more exposure for the university. Welcome to the university.

You get the idea...

And this is why schools like Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Duke, and Northwestern prioritize “individual achievement, notoriety, success, or ranking” in non-academic areas.

These kids with some sort of fame, including an individual random “hobby” that will garner continued national recognition or achievement matter a lot more than a perfect scores and perfect grades.

A university wants successful accomplished and famous alumni.
A larger predictor of that is this exact type of individual drive/creativity and success in HS.
Test scores and grades do not get you there.
This is the entire point or reason behind holistic admissions.

Test scores a better predictor of success after college than almost anything else.
Everything from peer reviewed publications to financial success to scientific accomplishments.
If a 1600 SAT ukelele player is somehow more prone to success than a 1600 violin player, I would bet it has more to do with their risk tolerance and willingness to do new things.

Test scores are a predictor of someone doing well in a middle management job and maxing out at $350k a year.
That is not "success" in a T20 college eyes. Sure, they need some of those poeple....but they are willing to take a bet/leap on the more interesting creative kids who won't play by the rules.

Let me guess which one is your kid.

What a snub!
My kid is the former with near perfect SAT, GPA, amazing academic achievements and a degree from a top of top tier college. They're currently making $2M+ a year three years out of college. They're so much more intelligent and creative than you mouth runners.

Don't get mad, this is just how some people cope. High test scores correlate to creativity as well. This is just something people who can't accept that their kids are not that smart tell themselves to feel better about having kids that aren't that smart.

If you need creativity, you are almost certainly better off asking smarter people than dumber people.

absolutely true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe there will be an explosion of theremin players. Now that's unique.

Theremin! I like it. I was thinking dulcimer but you topped it.

One I've never heard is "volunteer ASL interpreter" -- gotta start young there!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No everyone is not crocheting, birdwatching, apple pressing and coin collecting.

thankfully
enough with the weirdness

Those are not weird. How mean!

Highlight of my life was being the backup assistant treasurer of my high school’s apple pressing club. Life has been a bit of a bore since then. Sort of like Neil Armstrong post-1969, or Sinatra post-Ava Gardner.