In order for an applicant’s extracurricular activities to impress admissions committees, he/she should show spike(s), activities where the achievement level is undoubtedly excellent. Such level shows not only passion but also discipline. A spike that carries national/international recognition or in some cases regional/state recognition (e.g. ranked in national competitions or state champion) would boost the applicant. In the absence of very distinctive spikes, the next best thing would be to combine spikes of lesser significance. For admissions purposes, activities are not created equal. The following are our observations: