Additional Information -Special circumstances essay/section - What are you writing?

<p>Can people post some of the things they are writing in the additional information/special circumstances essay/section?</p>

<p>You mean the thing at the bottom of the Writing portion? I have no idea. I might just give some honest answers like “blah blah blah im not the most perfect student in the world but blah blah blah”</p>

<p>Additional activities is common.</p>

<p>Yea or jsut write about something that may not be necesarrily an extracurricular but that you do in your free time.</p>

<p>Yes, the thing at the bottom of the writing section. </p>

<p>Would you put things like: “I was incorrectly placed in a few classes at the beginning of the year, and when I switched classes, I had to work really hard to catch up?”</p>

<p>I’m striving to become an AP Scholar by the end of my senior year?</p>

<p>Honors chemistry was a really difficult subject for me, but with a lot of hard work, I was able to master the subject.</p>

<p>Stuff like that?</p>

<p>I just elaborated on some of my EC’s… i.e. I didn’t have enough room for athletic awards and stuff, so I made a little section labeled thus and then listed extra things.</p>

<p>I also put in some information about the years I lived overseas and that I was in the foreign school systems.</p>

<p>But basically, I think it’s just whatever you think is important about YOU. That said, I wouldn’t go overboard with it. Keep it focused.</p>

<p>I’m wondering if it would be wise to talk about how I was largely unmotivated throughout the first couple of years of high school because I felt unchallenged by school and was just going through the motions, but starting in my junior year I became excited about learning again and that’s why ECs are starting to pop up, and also how I want to take advantage of college to become involved in the community and try things I missed out on in high school. I’m just worried they’ll think “Well, if she was lazy before then why would we accept her?” but I don’t want them to see my very sparse list of ECs and think that I’m going to remain uninvolved so…I really don’t know. Suggestions?</p>

<p>So is the “additional information” section typically an attached resume (bullet-pointed, consolidated, laundry list of extra activities not important enough for the Top 7)… or an actual polished essay talking about extra activities & elaborating on the ones already listed?</p>

<p>For example, outdoor track & volleyball were two of my top 7 activities—would it be appropriate to write “In between my seasons of volleyball and track, I participated in my school’s running club to stay in shape, running a couple miles three times a week”? </p>

<p>Are you guys attaching an extra .doc/.pdf file (like the main essay), or just writing it in the “2000 characters maximum” box? Thanks! Sorry for all the questions!</p>

<p>What I did was, in the non-document form, put an explanation of my test scores/academics and provide some personal context. Then I uploaded letters of recomendation that I have from 3 teachers and 2 non-teachers so that I have those in addition to the teacher evaluation forms.</p>

<p>for the addition information section, I am…</p>

<p>elaborating on my top 7 ECs (I couldn’t fit everything into the spaces they provided)</p>

<p>providing a bulleted list of my other (less-important) ECs</p>

<p>I put my resume, but I’m reconsidering because most of the information on my resume is already included in the Common App (i.e. activities, future goals, test scores).</p>

<p>I’m going to list some of my other activities or awards. But should I simply list them or write in complete sentences?</p>

<p>err…what if your activities fit on the 7 lines? do u elaborate on the resume. is that even what it’s for…?</p>

<p>Just talked to the college counselor at my school about this. She used to be an admissions officer and she said it annoyed them when students would fill out the 7 activities and then attach a resume that lists barely anything besides the 7 activities on the common app. It can be a bit extraneous unless you legitimately have like 15 activities (which might be too many regardless).</p>

<p>If your activities fit in the 7 spaces then you probably don’t need to fill anything out in the “additional information” box. I’m putting 3 small activities (2 club memberships w/out leadership and <50 hours of volunteering) in the box, in bullet-point form. I’m sure you could also elaborate on your 7 activities in the box with info that can’t fit in the 90-character “details” box. It seems like it’s pretty open-ended.</p>

<p>I’m adding some extra awards that didn’t fit. Thought about putting freshman activities that I didn’t continue, but reconsidered. Not attaching a resume, which is pretentious. Just writing in the box.</p>

<p>so…the 7 lines are just for listing 7 ECs with no elaboration? & u can elaborate on your main one in the box, or is the box for elaboration on all? how big is the box? lol, i’m so clueless D:</p>

<p>There is a box for you to write 150 words on a single activity. And an optional “extra info” box under writing, where you can write in 2000 characters or attach a document of unlimited length.</p>