Activity List

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nothing before high school counts.

You have 10 slots to use however you want. If being a video editor is important and you want to highlight it, give it its own entry.

My son played classical piano from 7-18. I listed everything

Yikes! YOU listed everything? 🤦‍♀️

[Anonymous]

Question about creativity in the 10 ECS/common app activity list....

My kid is seeing advice online from former AOs to inject personality into the 10 activity descriptions: not to be so straightforward if it's a sport or activity that the AO obviously knows what it is (Captain of Track or Yearbook Editor). They said the descriptions should show a bit of who you are. The argument is that this is the first thing AO reads about following the applicant's biographical info, and before they go to essays, so you need to grab them and they aren't impressed by a boring description of Model UN or Speech and Debate and your "impact".

What is the collective view of this? My kid said a former Stanford AO said a successful HYPSM applicant used the below description for Yearbook editor instead of something quantifying leadership and impact:

Yearbook Editor
Fairy godmother extraordinaire: Honoring an obscene amount of Photoshop facial edit requests since 2023.

I think it could work for 1-2 activities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Question about creativity in the 10 ECS/common app activity list....

My kid is seeing advice online from former AOs to inject personality into the 10 activity descriptions: not to be so straightforward if it's a sport or activity that the AO obviously knows what it is (Captain of Track or Yearbook Editor). They said the descriptions should show a bit of who you are. The argument is that this is the first thing AO reads about following the applicant's biographical info, and before they go to essays, so you need to grab them and they aren't impressed by a boring description of Model UN or Speech and Debate and your "impact".

What is the collective view of this? My kid said a former Stanford AO said a successful HYPSM applicant used the below description for Yearbook editor instead of something quantifying leadership and impact:

Yearbook Editor
Fairy godmother extraordinaire: Honoring an obscene amount of Photoshop facial edit requests since 2023.

I think it could work for 1-2 activities.

Oh god that is so cringe

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Question about creativity in the 10 ECS/common app activity list....

My kid is seeing advice online from former AOs to inject personality into the 10 activity descriptions: not to be so straightforward if it's a sport or activity that the AO obviously knows what it is (Captain of Track or Yearbook Editor). They said the descriptions should show a bit of who you are. The argument is that this is the first thing AO reads about following the applicant's biographical info, and before they go to essays, so you need to grab them and they aren't impressed by a boring description of Model UN or Speech and Debate and your "impact".

What is the collective view of this? My kid said a former Stanford AO said a successful HYPSM applicant used the below description for Yearbook editor instead of something quantifying leadership and impact:

Yearbook Editor
Fairy godmother extraordinaire: Honoring an obscene amount of Photoshop facial edit requests since 2023.

I think it could work for 1-2 activities.

Oh god that is so cringe

Yes, but they took the opportunity to point out that they are adept at using Photoshop. They are adept at running the "complaint department" that is being an editor. That they have a sense of humor.

So cringe or not, You have a much better sense of this person than someone that just wrote "editor of the yearbook".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, of course only HS activities...OP is asking for a HS activity that was started at an earlier age, do you indicate that? Like they played a sport for 12 years and still play in HS. Do you say played for 12 years?

PPs recommended podcasts or websites - any specific recommendations?

The common app includes check boxes for grades 9, 10, 11, 12. Using up the very limited character count in the description to add information about pre-college participation would not be a good choice. Use the space to say something more meaningful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Question about creativity in the 10 ECS/common app activity list....

My kid is seeing advice online from former AOs to inject personality into the 10 activity descriptions: not to be so straightforward if it's a sport or activity that the AO obviously knows what it is (Captain of Track or Yearbook Editor). They said the descriptions should show a bit of who you are. The argument is that this is the first thing AO reads about following the applicant's biographical info, and before they go to essays, so you need to grab them and they aren't impressed by a boring description of Model UN or Speech and Debate and your "impact".

What is the collective view of this? My kid said a former Stanford AO said a successful HYPSM applicant used the below description for Yearbook editor instead of something quantifying leadership and impact:

Yearbook Editor
Fairy godmother extraordinaire: Honoring an obscene amount of Photoshop facial edit requests since 2023.

I think it could work for 1-2 activities.

Oh god that is so cringe

Yes, but they took the opportunity to point out that they are adept at using Photoshop. They are adept at running the "complaint department" that is being an editor. That they have a sense of humor.

So cringe or not, You have a much better sense of this person than someone that just wrote "editor of the yearbook".

100% agree. its actually quite vivid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Common App activity list:

Where to say you've been in the activity for many years? Let's say it's 10 years - can you put in Position section? like.... "Soccer Player, 10 years"
Or do you put it in the description?

How about if you participated in an activity for many years and now you have a paid job at that activity as well as continuing the activity? do you select "work" or not?
like....Soccer Player, 10 years. Paid video editor 2 years.
Would you separate these into 2 separate acitivities?
If kept as one, how would you do it?

See here maybe someone has something to say
https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1233143.page