I read that NYT article too. I think it highlights how incredibly competitive it is to get into college. There are LOTS of kids with "perfect" grades and test scores. With AP classes, the student can get above a perfect 4.00 GPA, and there are lots of prep courses for the tests.
It's important for your child long-term to have hobbies/outside interests to get into a good college. Actually, that's a good idea for LIFE. I don't support this kind of pursuit for the ideal personal essay but it is good to have SOMETHING you can write your essay about.
