<p>My D did "Summer at Brown" last year (2010), she says that is not an EC nor does it belong in the section about taking enrichment or college classes because she didn't get credit or an official grade. </p>
<p>She says she'll include that in her additional information section. But she has also decided it is ok to talk about her brother's mental illness issues and how that affected our home life over the past 10 years....ALSO in the additional info section.</p>
<p>AND there's nowhere really for her to discuss her trip to France in June. She's thinking she'll include that in the common app section about her work experiences (how she worked all year to pay for the trip).</p>
<p>Any thoughts on the appropriateness of these plans?</p>
<p>If she took classes or did educational activities, I would agree with oldfort. Just because she didn’t get an official grade doesn’t make it non educational.</p>
<p>i think the summer at Brown should go under the enrichment section - the way I understand that section any college class that was not for credit is considered an ‘enrichment’ class</p>
<p>And, a heads up to pass along to your D in case the instructions are not clear. I believe there will be a word/character limit for the additional information section if you are submitting the common application online as most colleges seem to prefer. The limit may not be readily apparent unless you preview your application before hitting the submit button. Sorry, ins and outs of the common application are a bit of a blur to me now that my kids are past that stage. I just remember S2 being surprised and having to rework a section to fit the space limit.</p>
<p>Oftentimes, I think the best way to answer these sorts of questions is to figure out what you want the college admissions offices to know about you and then put the information where it fits best. The admissions officers don’t really care that much about the categories. They are trying to get a picture of who you are. My son’s EC essay had originally been written as his main Common App essay, but it just didn’t seem to work there - but he knew it was something he wanted them to know about him. With a little tweaking he realized it was a much better essay when he changed the emphasis. It may be that your daughter will be able to do something similar. Some things just go on the list. Others are worthy of an essay. The goal is to have an application that sings, it’s not that important if you’ve fudged the categories a little.</p>
<p>I think it would be helpful if Common App could come up with examples for each of those sections. D2 struggled with what should go in Honors vs Activities.</p>
<p>Hijacking (excuse me and thanks Sujormik!)… where would S put his summer Explo program? It’s enrichment on college campus but not sponsored by the college, nor are the classes college level…EC?</p>
<p>I believe there will be a word/character limit for the additional information section if you are submitting the common application online as most colleges seem to prefer. The limit may not be readily apparent unless you preview your application before hitting the submit button.</p>
<p>I believe currently, you can instead upload a document in the additional information to avoid the issue of word limit altogether. As long as it is one file under a reasonable size (size should be specified somewhere on common app), you can include as much as information as you like if it’s relevant and appropriate. Hope that helps!</p>
<p>I’d put Explo under activities? But I’m sure its fine to put it under enrichment–I figure the adcoms know what Explo is, so they’ll know what to do with it regardless. D uploaded her resume to Add’l Info, which I thought made sense-- it gives a kind of structure to the app. and shows the relation between ECs/honors/volunteer stuff/work, which otherwise might not fit together so clearly.</p>
<p>On the other hand, it might be counterproductive because the Common App would have to come up with examples for a large number of things.</p>
<p>Some people use the extra information place to write an extra essay. Others use it to describe an activity or experience that does not seem to fit elsewhere on the application. Still others use it to explain apparent weaknesses on their applications that were caused by circumstances that are not their fault (e.g., “I did not take French 5 because the class met at the same time as BC Calculus”; or “I did not participate in any extracurricular activities during 10th grade because I had to supervise my younger sister after school because my mother was working at two jobs.”) And lots of people leave it blank.</p>
<p>If they gave examples, and your situation doesn’t “fit,” you might feel even more reluctant to put the information there.</p>
<p>I think you’re right, Marian-- every application tells a unique story. It’s not about following rules but about showing who you are and what you might contribute to a campus.</p>
<p>Thanks Gwen for your response. S is uploading a resume in the “additional info” section. It doesn’t add all that much to the EC section of the common app, but imo that section is such a hodge podge and allows so little info that the resume feels like a good addition. S also liked being able to expand on his favorite EC in the short answer area provided for that. Maybe a little risky in that he chose to write about one of his sports, but it really is important to him. I’m getting more comfortable day by day with the idea of him presenting “himself” and not some kind of “packaged” self.</p>