Activities List Format

<p>Anyone willing to PM me an activities list format? I need to write one TONIGHT for my teachers so the sooner the better =)</p>

<p>Someone recommended the USC activity list format in another thread - that form is online at <a href="http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/docs/admission/forms/Form3.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.usc.edu/admission/undergraduate/private/docs/admission/forms/Form3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p>

<p>Thanks! The USC app only lists what we should include in the list, but I'm more interested in how the page looks, i.e. anything bolded, underlined, etc.</p>

<p>Or does it really not matter?</p>

<p>i would like to know the answer to monkeyjoint's question as well - i read in a book that "writing resumes is presumptuous and pretentious"</p>

<p>-students writing resumes i mean</p>

<p>Well...sometimes a student does need a resume. And if you do a search for free resume examples, you'll find a few places to start. There are so many options and no one go-to format, so I don't think you can really go wrong. Just be clear and make it easy to follow.</p>

<p>I assume you're giving this to your teacher for a rec, or is it something else? Either way, I doubt formatting would matter too much - the content is really the important part.</p>

<p>I don't see why it's inherently "presumptuous and pretentious". Depending on what you've been doing, and how much of it, it may be the clearest way to demonstrate what you've been doing for four years . . .</p>

<p>this is not my opinion at all! its Michele A. Hernandez' opinion from A is for Admission</p>

<p>I disagree with the "presumptuous and pretentious" comment. A resume is a really good place to elaborate on more unusual activities. For example, while activities like Key Club or marching band are pretty self explanatory, you might not know what something like CHEF Club is. You can also use the resume to be specific about things you've accomplished, like organizing fundraisers for a good cause or whatever.</p>

<p>Overall, do NOT bother sending a resume if it's an exact replica of what's on your application. It should present information that you couldn't fit or something.</p>

<p>Students, the only reason that formatting is important -- or, to the degree that it is -- is for the readability of the page. With committees having little time to hunt for info, to reread important facts, or mentally rearrange what's important, it helps if you do it for them. It helps to in getting more time spent on your own app. (And it also helps them to see what's important to <em>you</em>.)</p>

<p>That's why the aspect of careful selection comes into play. If you've done "too much" to fit on one page, it would be better to summarize, condense, & even eliminate , so that there is good visual space between sections & the eye can move quickly.</p>

<p>We did some color and some bolding, but again, conservatively, to further the reading of it, not create visual competition. Be consistent: pattern to the bolding; pattern to the color (limit to one color against black). The idea is to emphasize the organization of it, including with font size.</p>

<p>No need to call it "a resume," even though it functions that way. It's a formal list/summary, for their convenience. Think of it as a courtesy, not as showing off. That's the way we handled it. The committee can add up all the awards & compile your activity list from your app., but i.m.o. it's best summarized separately as well, because it's a different kind of presentation than what's in the app. And doing that is good practice for what you might need to do for applications which discourage or disallow addenda (the U.C.'s, Columbia, etc.). It's a writing exercise: helps to formulate what's essential & how to say it.</p>

<p>So I slightly disagree with c square, although I do agree that mere repetition is not helpful. But reorganization, esp. if the activites are impressive & extensive, & can be regrouped, can be illuminating.</p>