<p>Hello, everyone! With all the hype surrounding the importance of having at least semi-focused extracurriculars, i have begun worrying about mine. could you please glance over my list, and see if it appears that i have been "padding" my resume?</p>
<ol>
<li>mayor's youth council</li>
<li>class treasurer</li>
<li>Habitat for Humanity President</li>
<li>German Club Board Member</li>
<li>International Relations Club Board Member</li>
<li>German Exchange Program organizer (with sister school in Germany)</li>
<li>Academic Team 2-year Captain</li>
<li>NHS Officer</li>
<li>Tutor at my school and downtown</li>
<li>Captain of Baseball team (not good enough to be recruited :/</li>
<li>Captain of Cross Country team</li>
<li>Work at DQ in summer</li>
</ol>
<p>I joined the clubs that interested me, and in no conscious way tried to pad my resume. I'm just worried I'll come off as just another crazy-busy high schooler to the big schools. My three biggest passions are German, government, and community service....is that clear? Should I delete NHS and Tutoring? Thanks for your time!</p>
<p>I think your passions come across clearly.
Multiple German/international clubs/programs. You hold leadership positions in student government. You also show your service to others through tutoring, habitat for humanity, and NHS. The team sports shows your athleticism. </p>
<p>I think NHS and tutoring helps back up your passion for community service, so don’t delete them. I don’t know why you’d want to.</p>
<p>Just make sure you come through in your application. Be yourself–don’t create a gimmick just because you think that will come across as more impressive/etc.</p>
<p>Thanks for your response! My tutoring and NHS work are indeed important to me, I was just afraid that they might clutter my activities section, and make me seem like I’m spread too thin. But if you don’t think it comes across as that, great!</p>
<p>If it means anything, I’m going to write my activity essay about mayor’s youth council, and my Personal Statement is about German. I’ll try to write my supplemental essay about government…or community service…not really sure yet. Is it wise to make my “short takes” and “Why Yale?” responses fit with these interests/my choice of major? Or would that come across as over-the-top?</p>
<p>I don’t think you should worry all about thinking your resume looks “padded”. That’s more of an insult from peers to deter you from trying hard, but in the eyes of an adcom it shows commitment.</p>
<p>I’m not so sure as the others…I think it appears as if you were trying to do too much, and thus were not very committed to certain of your activities. But maybe I’m wrong. I’d be interested to hear what everyone else has to say in regards to how you can let yourself “shine through” on the app, as I’m having the same problem!</p>
<p>Well, on the commonapp there’s space for hrs/wk and wks/year. So if you’re truly committed to German and international stuff, it should come across in your time commitments and your listing of those activities first (and stuff like NHS at the bottom). I think you’re fine.</p>