<p>Hi. </p>
<p>Well, I've babysat my brother from 8-12 (current) grade on the weekends and during the summer. But... it's hardly work experience, because he's my brother, and my "employers" are my parents.</p>
<p>However, I know that leaving the work experience part on the Common App blank can be disastrous. I was just wondering whether or not I should include this. It seems to me that either way, I'm screwed in the work experience field. Any suggestions?</p>
<p>leaving the work experience part blank on the common app isn’t disastrous. where’d you get that idea?</p>
<p>when I “babysat” my brother basically what happened was we both sat at home while he played video games and I went and did my own thing. so it didn’t require much supervision whatsoever.</p>
<p>From a college application guidebook written by an ex Dartmouth admissions officer. O.O Since it conveys a message that 1. you’re lazy. 2. you’re privileged. 3. you’re lazy and privileged. </p>
<p>Yeah that’s pretty much what I did last year and this year. But in 8th grade, I had to feed him and rock him to sleep (he was 3). So… should I include this “work experience” at all?</p>
<p>^^little children and toddlers definitely would count as work experience as opposed to an 8-12 year old. i would put it down</p>
<p>It’s not considered work experience since its your siblings and in most families, you wouldn’t get paid for taking care of your siblings. That would be considered something you do because you’re family just like most kids don’t get paid for doing chores around their homes. </p>
<p>Your putting it down as work experience just makes you seem spoiled, selfish, and privileged.</p>
<p>If you were responsible for, for example, taking care of your sibs 8 hours a day weekdays during summers, you could include this under summer activities or the additional information section.</p>
<p>Better to leave the work experience space blank than to include something that would make the admissions officers think less of you. You don’t have to fill in every space. Most high school students don’t have paid work experience.</p>
<p>^^^ I agree with Northstarmon in every point.</p>
<p>Ah ok thanks! I’ll leave it blank then.</p>
<p>I put it down on my application because it was the reason I didnt have a summer job. I do have a job on weekends during the winter so it was just something extra. I see no way it can hurt you to put it down. Taking care of little sibblings is work and it shows responsibility.</p>
<p>I don’t see anything wrong with putting down that your “summer job” was babysitting a much younger sibling while your parents worked. It would certainly explain why you didn’t have a typical summer job. </p>
<p>I don’t think it sounds lazy or privileged. In a privileged household, the parents would have hired care for the little one while the older one would have been sent to camp.</p>
<p>"I don’t see anything wrong with putting down that your “summer job” was babysitting a much younger sibling while your parents worked. It would certainly explain why you didn’t have a typical summer job. "</p>
<p>It would be far better if the student put this down under their activities section than to let college officials know that s/he was paid for something that many students would be expected to do for free since the child is their sibling. What looks privileged about it is that the parents are able and willing to pay their offspring for this. People who aren’t reasonably affluent would expect their kids to do this kind of thing for free.</p>
<p>it’s a legitimate EC, but not a legitimate job. that’s like putting “cleaning my room and taking out the trash” as work experience.</p>
<p>If my parents didn’t pay me, then it’s not work experience?
I agree with you, Northstarmom and ChoklitRain- my putting this down in the work experience section does seem bogus and desperate. </p>
<p>mom2collegekids and eagles10- Thanks! But since I didn’t get paid and it was family responsibility/duty, I’ll probably put it in the EC section. :)</p>
<p>Thank you for the advice, everyone.</p>