r/ECAdvice

wanna get into a good university for a kinesiology program

1. Recreational gymnastics coach
2. Volunteer at a pharmacy
3. Volunteer at a hospital where I will start many projects and plan events
4. Marketing volunteer at a local run
5. Volunteer at a retirement home
6. About to have lots of volunteering hours with my school for injury prevention within sports

also if anyone’s comfortable sharing- what university they attend/attended and extracurriculars that strengthened the application

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Hello guys , I want to publish a research paper and how to make one. So anybody here published this please tell me how you did it and made one?

Feel free to share your research papers

1. Clinical Psychology Research Intern at NC State university

2. Lifeguarding job, CNA License, EMT Certification, Certified Lifeguard

3. Research Assistant Co-First Author on manuscript with Duke Prof (glioblastoma)

4. Wrote 2 children’s book + published under worksheets for neurodivergent kids non-profit (kinda cringey to call it a nonprofit.. more lime a business)

5. Volunteering 600+ hours (300 CFHK Healthcare related 300)

6. Private tutor for Neurodivergent kids

7. HOSA secretary

8. Shadowing a Registered Nurse (220 hours)

9. Taekwondo Black Belt and Tournament Official + 7 years commitment (scorekeeper, timekeeper, corner judge, leadership team. officiated 40 tournaments) 10x regional 1st place

10. John Hopkins CTY: “Be a Doctor” course
    ^^^^^^
    im an asian girl in a hyper competitive school
    $180k household income
    etcetc
    ^^^^^^
    these are strictly my ecs but im top 1-2% of my class and a 1560 SAT, international awards etc; i just want opinions on my ecs (and the order i should put them on common app) thanks guysss

So I’m a rising junior I have two summer internships this summer one in research the other at a non profit, and I was wondering if they’re only for the summer. should I still list them on my college application? And if so, how?

Hihi I'm becoming a sophomore this upcoming academic year in South Korea. So far I don't have a lot of EC's as I need to focus on my academics and exams next year which will ultimately determine my future basically... I think this summer I will really need to focus on my EC's so that I can focus on my academics next year and for junior/senior year.

I want to major in Political Science at Columbia or Yale, which I know is a reach, but crossing my fingers!! Additionally I've recently had some doubts as my grades are just meh... A's in english and maths and drama, but science is terrible. If Polisci doesn't work out, I really want to study film and media with a minor in photography or fashion sciences.

Anyways, I am not sure which types of EC's will help with my major. Currently I am doing an editorial internship at a youth literary magazine for the summer, and working as a server in my family-owned restaurant. Additionally I am a contestant for the JLE competition but not too sure I will recieve anything as I kind of messed up my interview.

Does anyone have any opportunities or ideas? Much appreciated.

Hey everybody
I am a high school student (myquals) with aspirations of studying at IIT or in America so that I can obtain more opportunities and not disappoint my parents. Although I am starting to realize that my CV is incredibly lacking, with barely anything significant on it to make any college want me to attend.

So what STEM or finance competitions should I participate in? Ideally, it has to wrap up before 2027 so that I can have it on my resume. If you did take part in that competition, what was your experience like?

Thank you in advance !

Hi everyone, I’m a rising junior interested in finance, social impact, and product design, and I’m considering developing a passion project focused on rural financial inclusion in India.

The idea is to create a simple tool that helps rural Indian workers understand financial documents like loan agreements, bank passbooks, government scheme letters, pension/subsidy notices, and insurance forms. The target users would mainly be SHG members, microfinance borrowers, and women/workers receiving government benefits.

The basic concept is: a worker or trusted intermediary, like an SHG facilitator, NGO field worker, or ASHA worker, takes a photo of a document. The tool then gives a simple spoken explanation in the user’s local language, highlighting key details like due dates, interest rates, fees, repayment amounts, required documents, next steps, and possible red flags such as hidden charges or unusually bad loan terms.

It would also generate simple scripts for what the woman can say at a bank, SHG meeting, lender office, or government office, so it is not just explaining the document but helping her actually take action. I am considering other features although these will be the main two.

I’m thinking of distributing it through NGOs, SHGs, microfinance partners, or CSR/grant-funded pilots rather than expecting individual rural users to download an app themselves.

Do you think this is a strong passion project to pursue further? I’d especially appreciate feedback

I am an american citizen living in India and my grades are pretty good (I gave my iGCSEs and am currently planning to give my AS and A levels for which I am homeschooling) but currently I have no ECs except playing ultimate frisbeee at a national level. I am starting the cs50 program to try and get some credibility and hopefully have it lead to projects and them internships, but I am completely lost and feel I am just taking no directed steps.

Hello, everyone,

First of all, let me introduce myself, I'm Yash, a 16-year-old who's passionate about tech and entrepreneurship.

I’m looking for teammates for The Diamond Challenge (applications open September 2026). It’s a high school entrepreneurship competition focused on business innovation, building real, scalable solutions to real problems (not just social projects, but actual business ideas with impact and viability). We don't need to make the product, but we pitch the product in stages, first a write up, secondly, a virtual pitch, and thirdly, a live pitch at The University of Delaware, in the US. Its rate of becoming a finalist is about 5%. It's really valuable for college applications.

As an international student myself, I am looking for teammates who are passionate about business innovation and entrepreneurship. It's open for people aged 14-18, currently in high school (living in any country from where you can travel to the US, if required, or the US, of course).

Did I mention a $100k+ prize pool? (Additionally, if we get recognised, we can get ACTUAL funding by the judges, as they are usually investors themselves)

(It's super competitive btw)

If you're interested in this? Reply and shoot me a DM! I'm looking to form the best team!

Hi guysss I could really use some advice.

I am a high school student who's preparing to apply to universities, and I am looking for ways to strengthen my CV .So by that, I really need online competitions to join and get certificates.

Please, any recommendations

the competition name is ISSDC for nasa, im going to be representing team USA

im doing this extremely prestigious international competition and its a good extracurricular for college. but

(1) - its very time consuming, like i have 0 time to study
(2) - in always tired and sleep deprived
(3)- the people in power are assholes
(4)- it makes me EXTREMELY anxious and nauseous and isolated, like im all alone and its very pressurising.
(5)- ill have significantly lesser time to focus on SAT and shit
(6)- ill be doing a sinilar competition next year
(7) - im required to skip all the periods in school because of it
but

(1) - its very prestigious
(2) - its good to put on internship applications
(3)- i only have to do it till september to get a nationals certificate but my SAT is in november so july - september i will not have time to study
(4) - it makes me stand out sort of because of the prestige
(5)- its pretty rewarding but gruesome
(6) - ill have something to do till september and i wont be sitting around

What This Thread Is For

Post your request for extracurricular (EC) opportunities or collaborators here.
Anyone offering an opportunity can reply in-thread. This keeps the main feed clean and focused.

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Student Template (optional)

Copy what you need, delete the rest.

Seeking: (e.g., research mentor / nonprofit internship / hackathon teammate)
Interests & goals: …
Grade & location / time-zone: …
Relevant skills / experience: …
Time you can commit: …
How to reach me: reply / Reddit chat / DM / other …

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Provider Template (optional)

Post as a top-level comment or reply to a student.
If it costs money, list the exact price up-front.

Opportunity: …
Type: volunteer / paid / competition / research / startup ✧ specify
Who it’s for: grades, prerequisites, skill level
Duration & weekly hours: …
Cost (exact amount or “free”): …
Proof / reviews: link to website, testimonials, past student outcomes, press, etc.
How to reach you: reply / chat / DM / form …

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⚠️ Quick Advice for Students

• Aim for impact & depth. Admissions teams care more about genuine commitment than shiny price tags.
• Free can be fantastic. Self-run projects, local volunteering, or leadership roles often impress more than costly programs.
• Vet before you commit. Search for reviews, ask in the sub, or DM past participants when money is involved.
• Guard your info. Share personal details only in DMs or off-platform once you’re comfortable.
• Report red flags. If something looks like a scam or violates r/ECAdvice rules, hit “report” and it’ll land in the mod queue.

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Sort by new to see the latest posts. Happy hunting & collaborating!

i’m a rising junior in high school, and quite literally, i have NOTHING. i need junior year to be my year.

i’m more centered around academics, so im not worried abt that, but im reaching for NYU (and some other colleges in mind), so I know ecs and stuff matter a lot.

Literally the only things i have going for myself is:
- good grades (all A’s, 4.246 gpa, rank 9/263)
- will have taken 4 AP classes by end of jr year (AP Bio, AP Psych, AP CSP, + AP Gov)
- became this Member-at-Large HOSA position for the upcoming school year

Member at large is the lowest ranking leadership/executive position in my school’s HOSA chapter, so i fear it won’t help me get anywhere since it’s not like president or anything ;(

i’m sick of like google and chatgpt and other resources saying like “oh start a passion project, start a coding project, make a blog!” like what does that even mean!!! i need something REAL

LMK anything i can do to improve my overall leadership, ecs, and more!! I also don’t wanna waste my summer, so it’s full of SAT/AP prep and summer work, but i probably also have room for more.

im in mites semester, i cant really answer questions about the contents of mites cus it against the rules demographic:
-asian
-low income + first gen
-bay area
-public school (mainly low income students)
stats:
-3.9 uw, 4.1 w gpa
-only applied w apcsp score of 3
-n/a for SAT (lol terrible score)
-no class rankings
ECs:
-quantum computing @lbnl during freshman yr
-yygs + project management internship during sophomore yr
-2 local environmental justice programs, sophomore yr
-job

hey, D this side from india (high school)

cutting up all the drama , and being straight to the point , My primary goal is to gain meaningful research experience, learn from others, and contribute wherever I can and build up my EC profile (planning for major in neuroscience) for the t20s , I don't have extensive experience yet, but I'm willing to learn, put in consistent effort (around 5–10 hours/week), and take feedback seriously. so if you are looking for some enthusiastic partners, let me know

or should i just build up my own passion project just now

or gain some experience and work in groups and then think about taking up a passion project

thanks a ton

Du admission by ECA quota

I'm applying to Delhi University through the ECA quota in Indian Vocal Music, and I'm a bit confused about how the selection process works. I'd really appreciate it if seniors or anyone who got admission through ECA could answer a few questions.

1. How exactly are the music trials evaluated? What do the judges look for?

2. Is there a fixed syllabus, or can they ask anything related to Indian classical vocal music?

3. How important are music certificates compared to the trial performance?

4. After the trials, how is the final merit list prepared? Is it based only on the trial score, or is it a combination of CUET score + ECA score?

5. What kind of percentile or trial score is usually needed for colleges like Hindu, Hansraj, Miranda House, Venky, Gargi, ARSD, etc.?

6. Has anyone here been selected through the Indian Vocal Music ECA quota? Which college did you get, and what were your CUET score and ECA percentile (if you're comfortable sharing)?

7. Any tips for someone preparing for the Indian Vocal Music trials?

8. *One of the most important thing I want to know is does my low cuet score actually affect my selection?*

I'd love to hear your experiences. There isn't much detailed information online, so any advice would really help I know these are many questions but I will really appreciate it if you can answer some main questions as I am really curious and lost so please consider helping .

Thanks!

hi! i am currently a rising junior. i had a lot planned for this summer, but my opportunities and free time have been limited by transportation issues (my parents are always at work, i don’t have my license yet, and i’m not allowed to go anywhere on my own because my parents are strict), and by summer school work that i’m required to do for a governor’s school i attend (a magnet STEM school that i attend in addition to my regular high school). i have mainly just been doing SAT prep, AAU track and field, and studying for the classes i am taking next year. i doubt that i’ll have time to start something new this late into summer, especially since i was signed up for a pre college program at a local university. can anyone recommend ECs that i can do during junior year or the summer after that are related to neuroscience and/or biology? i want to do a research internship or possibly do research at a local college, but i’m not sure where to begin. i‘ve also been interested in starting an initiative about sports medicine and/or brain health for student athletes.

I was accepted after the interview round and am deciding if I should continue with the financial aid form, my family won’t pay for the program
Also I’ve read a lot of comments that TKS offers financial aid partially but I haven’t seen one that says they got full ride, so I wanted to know if anyone has ever received full financial aid

Surely comment

Hello! So I'm only a rising junior, but I'm really interested in pursuing pre-med or a biology major at Rice. I go to a health oriented high school and we can get certifications like Pharmacy, Sterile Processing or CCMA post graduation. I get very good grades, (about 3.9-4.0 GPA unweighted), top 5% of my class, planning to take SAT/ACT next year, planning to take 15 AP's out of like 22. (Got 5 on AP HUG, and 4 on AP Comp Sci) I also did take classes like Med Term, A&P, HST, PHS, and got high A's in all of them. Taking all Science and Math AP's offered at the school for next years to come. My EC's include doing

classical dance for over a decade and graudating with a recital this august (planning to intern and mentor students afterwards),

volunteering as teacher assistant for a local cultural language nonrprofit i also graduated from (spoke at state conference and got in over 150+ hours volunteering over span of one year, taught 20+ kids),

founded international nonprofit where we teach students to use computer science/ AI in medicine/healthcare, (still building up but good foundation rn) , started few chapters, building executive board,

Attended a Mark Cuban AI Foundation Bootcamp and got certificate, developed an AI-driven diagnostic tool to analyze brain MRI scans and identify physiological impacts of tumors, (also Student Ambassador planning this years bootcamp!)

Did NYAS Junior Academy, team leader of group of 6 students from across the world, mentored by doctor in India, topic was AI in healthcare, organized meetings and projects

3 years of Python and Machine Learning, have good experience in those and AI

CPR and OSHA certified through classes at school

Model UN member, won some local awards

Secretary for Breast Cancer Club at School and Historian for Hindu Yuva

Created 20-page Independent Research Paper on coordinating AI to implement heatmaps to detect tumors in brain MRI’s to help bridge “Radiology Gap” (Also revised by board-certified radiologist)

I also coded and published the model for the research papaer above on Github and Hugging Face

Going to do shadowing and volunteering in a university professors lab, doing photochemical research, may get it published soon, etc

I think i have some more EC's but i may have lowkey forgot-

Overall, can anyone tell me if i have a chance to go to RICE? Or am I cooked?

(also plz give ideas on how to improve them before senior year comes)

Hey everyone! I'm going into Grade 12 this September and was wondering if anyone has advice on last-minute things I could do this summer to strengthen my resume and university applications.

I'm still figuring out exactly what I want to pursue in post-secondary, but I know this is kind of my last opportunity to stand out and make the most of my time before applications start rolling around.

I realize I'm probably too late for most summer programs, and I do plan on getting ahead in my Grade 12 courses, but I was wondering if anyone has suggestions based on their own experiences. Are there any activities, projects, certifications, volunteering opportunities, or other things I could do this summer that would be valuable, especially if I'm interested in STEM?

I'd appreciate any advice or ideas!