Anonymous wrote:I kept wondering, how easy it is to fake these nonsense ECs. All you need is just writing this bs in your essay. A short order cook? A sailor? A bunny raiser? I can walk on the moon! It’s not like AOs will actually verify that you have done all the bs!

Anonymous wrote:All of these ECs listed are called "texture". Have you heard of it?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started a running list of memorable ECs (from this site's old posts and what I hear from our school community or see on reddit). See below. Please add on!

STEM RELATED
Working as a car mechanic;
Restoring pinball machines or vintage arcade games;
Getting licensed as a HAM radio operator;
Clock repair/watchmaking;
Working with a glassblower or in a scientific glassware repair shop;
Telescope making - esp if interested in astronomy; and
Working on model trains (modernization and automation).

CS RELATED
business founder for computer repair
"Hobby Engineering" (independent projects)

HUMANITIES RELATED
Letterpress printing and bookbinding
Cartography and mapmaking
Puppetry and marionette making

OUTDOOR HOBBIES
fishing, rock climbing, archery

OTHER HOBBIES:
origami, coin collecting, birdwatching, crocheting, blacksmithing, woodworking, master reseller on FB marketplace

PT JOBS:
car mechanic
oil repair/oil change mechanic
seamstress
butchering
makeup artist
obituary writer for local small-town paper

In our school kids with these niche ECs (fabricating a car engine, etc.) did not get into T20 schools. Most of them went to state schools.

Car mechanics, for example, was cool when someone first uses it as EC. Once it's known and replicated, a dime a dozen.

If your kids are truly interested in these and enjoy doing it, go ahead.

I know 2 car mechanics in my non-DMV city this year. I don't know if its that common, or maybe not in our area?
One ED into Northwestern.
One REA into Yale.

Have heard the manual labor kind of ECs are the best ones to do nowadays.

Manual labor has been popular for many years. Clique. Have to be a truly unique manual labor.

Anonymous wrote:I mean you can bet everyone would know your kid as the obituary writer if that was their PT job/EC.....

Anonymous wrote:LOL! Any of the T20 schools are going to see right through this. Former AO's keep warning about these things. For schools outside of T20, these do not matter much.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been harping on my sophomore for 1.5 yrs to join something at school. Keep telling her on paper she looks like not that interesting. Then I was so ashamed that I told him kid she wasn't interesting! She is in almost year-round club sport and piano lessons and other than that, she seems to only care about her hair and makeup - no cap as the kids would say.

But, she works hard at her grades and I've decided to leave her alone. We will just try to ensure her essays convey a sense of her quiet confidence and creative interests. I've actually really come around to deciding that -screw the resume-building - I think it is cool she is happy opting-out. And now we have peace in the home. I've told her some doors may close but if she doesn't have the drive rn to jump through hoops for other ppl, a non top-tier school will be just fine.

She is smart and creative and has nice friends... She will get a part time job this summer and at least get some real life skills and have her own Starbucks money. As for the college stuff, we are just going to roll with it and see how it all pans out. I'm sure it will be fine.

For your wonderful makeup-loving daughter, a gift, courtesy of this college counseling guy I see everywhere!
https://www.tiktok.com/@tineocollegeprep/video/7423531655656230186

Okay, that's actually pretty cool!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been harping on my sophomore for 1.5 yrs to join something at school. Keep telling her on paper she looks like not that interesting. Then I was so ashamed that I told him kid she wasn't interesting! She is in almost year-round club sport and piano lessons and other than that, she seems to only care about her hair and makeup - no cap as the kids would say.

But, she works hard at her grades and I've decided to leave her alone. We will just try to ensure her essays convey a sense of her quiet confidence and creative interests. I've actually really come around to deciding that -screw the resume-building - I think it is cool she is happy opting-out. And now we have peace in the home. I've told her some doors may close but if she doesn't have the drive rn to jump through hoops for other ppl, a non top-tier school will be just fine.

She is smart and creative and has nice friends... She will get a part time job this summer and at least get some real life skills and have her own Starbucks money. As for the college stuff, we are just going to roll with it and see how it all pans out. I'm sure it will be fine.

For your wonderful makeup-loving daughter, a gift, courtesy of this college counseling guy I see everywhere!
https://www.tiktok.com/@tineocollegeprep/video/7423531655656230186

Anonymous wrote:I've been harping on my sophomore for 1.5 yrs to join something at school. Keep telling her on paper she looks like not that interesting. Then I was so ashamed that I told him kid she wasn't interesting! She is in almost year-round club sport and piano lessons and other than that, she seems to only care about her hair and makeup - no cap as the kids would say.

But, she works hard at her grades and I've decided to leave her alone. We will just try to ensure her essays convey a sense of her quiet confidence and creative interests. I've actually really come around to deciding that -screw the resume-building - I think it is cool she is happy opting-out. And now we have peace in the home. I've told her some doors may close but if she doesn't have the drive rn to jump through hoops for other ppl, a non top-tier school will be just fine.

She is smart and creative and has nice friends... She will get a part time job this summer and at least get some real life skills and have her own Starbucks money. As for the college stuff, we are just going to roll with it and see how it all pans out. I'm sure it will be fine.

Anonymous wrote:I've been harping on my sophomore for 1.5 yrs to join something at school. Keep telling her on paper she looks like not that interesting. Then I was so ashamed that I told him kid she wasn't interesting! She is in almost year-round club sport and piano lessons and other than that, she seems to only care about her hair and makeup - no cap as the kids would say.

But, she works hard at her grades and I've decided to leave her alone. We will just try to ensure her essays convey a sense of her quiet confidence and creative interests. I've actually really come around to deciding that -screw the resume-building - I think it is cool she is happy opting-out. And now we have peace in the home. I've told her some doors may close but if she doesn't have the drive rn to jump through hoops for other ppl, a non top-tier school will be just fine.

She is smart and creative and has nice friends... She will get a part time job this summer and at least get some real life skills and have her own Starbucks money. As for the college stuff, we are just going to roll with it and see how it all pans out. I'm sure it will be fine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Kid who started a beekeeping initiative (already was certified master beekeeper from Cornell) with a local jail, and eventually inmates mastered beekeeping and made honey.
Kid packaged and sold the honey for them. Think inmates created a garden too and kid did same with that.

There's more to it, but that's the gist.
At Stanford.

That’s funny because I live on the west coast and kid beekeepers are kind of a dime a dozen out here. That and selling eggs from backyard flocks are both common crunchy educated kid activities in my area.

Once it worked once for someone, it's out there and is getting replicated a million times.

Truly unique ECs: no pain, no gain. The kid really had to go through a lot to accomplish something amazing.

The best thing is just to make sure your kids have enough free time to think, create and master something.

The reality is that most kids don't have that talent. The discussion here really is focusing on how to manufacture one. If the kid truly has talent, they won't be here asking ... But they still want to send the kid to a T20.