Developing meaningful ECs

[sunflowerpower]

Hi everyone,

I’m hoping to get some advice about developing ECs. My plan is to apply in 2022 for the first time, for entry in 2023. Based off of what I’ve read on here, I think that I will have to do quite a bit of work to strengthen this part of my application… For reference, my GPA is ~88/89%. Pretty average - so I feel like I will need to lean on ECs to stand out.

A quick summary of my current situation: honours thesis with presentation (no pubs), 4 years working in customer service throughout undergrad, 2 years working in project management, multiple hobbies (art, sports, music), minimal volunteering (involved in a few projects here and there, but nothing long-term).

I plan to look for some longer-term volunteer positions asap. There are a few areas of service I’m particularly interested in, so I’m not too worried about finding something I’m passionate about. I am, however, quite concerned about time (I feel like I’m super behind and I’m not sure if a year of experience will get my application to where it needs to be).

Does anyone else have any experience coming out of undergrad with minimal ECs and developing them relatively quickly (a year or so), enough to get an interview/get in at UBC? Or do most people work on this for many years?

Any other advice for developing ECs, especially when out of school?

Thank you.

[M3P0]

UBC EC's are broken into categories. I forget what the maximum entires per category is or if there is a minimum for any: leadership, service ethic, capacity to work with others, diversity of experience, and high performance in an area of human endeavor. The last one, you can certainly leave empty and still get interview, you should have at least a couple things for the rest.

Most people work on ECs for years. Length of commitment matters quite a bit IMO, so earlier is better but don't worry about thinking it's too late. Better late than never.