Embellishing your college resume and "stretching the truth"

Applying to College
1

<p>So....</p>

<p>if I only have 200 hours of community service, could I stretch it to about 250 by rounding off every half an hour to a full hour?</p>

<p>If I only won honorable mention in a speech states meet, could i embellish it by saying that I "placed in a state meet"</p>

<p>could i use ambiguous wording like "supporting roles" for plays when i have only gotten a supporting role once, and the rest of them are just one-liners?</p>

<p>can i say that i did the 4th best on the national Spanish exam in the state, when i only got this in 8th grade?</p>

<p>can i say that i "launched my own advertising design business" if it's not really a business, but just something that i spend an hour or two on a week and get paid about $5 a commission... and sometimes i do free commissions? </p>

<p>can i do that? how many of you guys "stretched the truth" or embellished a little bit... or left out little bits of information that hint at a very small contribution to a club?</p>

2

<p>I didn't. I don't want anything to come back and haunt me, and I want colleges to know that what they see is exactly what they get. No regrets. Wouldn't you feel bummed if you got accepted on false premises? Like your real you might not've cut it? I don't even want to risk feeling that way -- I may not have cured cancer, but my accomplishments are my own.</p>

3

<p>The only one of your examples that has a chance is the "placed" in a state meet, if not everyone gets Honorable Mention and if that's one of the "winning" categories (1st, 2nd, 3rd and HM). Supporting role, singular, sounds good, and one liners are not supporting. Whatever you do that's a service to someone should be listed, but don't make it sound bigger than it is. Rounding by a few minutes, okay. Rounding by a half hour each time, no! And awards in 8th grade don't count at all. Thanks for actually thinking about the ethical issues and not just blithely writing down whatever you thought you could get away with. You'll feel better in the long run!</p>

4

<p>Stretching the truth is often just a more subtle form of lying. Don't do it. But thanks for seeking consultation.</p>

5

<p>yeah, I personally wouldn't want to go to a school with the feeling that I might not have gotten in on my own merits. Maybe I shouldn't have gotten in for a reason.</p>

6

<p>I think all of them are acceptable except for the adding community service hours one.</p>

7

<p>It's a tough question. On the one hand, you could say that admissions is just a game, and by stretching the truth, you're only competing with other people who also like to embellish the truth. That it's a dog-eat-dog world out there, and if you need to add a little bit of extra ink to secure a spot to your school of choice, then what the hell.</p>

<p>But call me an optimist, I'd like to assume that people have scruples.</p>

8

<p>I think that you can stretch a bit, but stretch does not mean fabricate. As others have said, rounding up a few minutes is different than embellshing by 25% (200 hrs to 250 hrs). </p>

<p>For the state meet thing, say Honorable Mention and leave it at that--saying that you "placed" is probably not going to get you much further anyway, since they are going to assume that if you were top 10 or something, you would come right out and say it. Plus, this is something that a recommendor miught accidently rat you on...don't risk it for very minimal game. </p>

<p>Supporting roles...eh. I wouldn't get worked up about it, but this is one that could bite you in the rear if you are dishonest--could easily be mentioned by a recommendor or in an interview slip up. Don't risk it, I'd say. </p>

<p>A spanish exam can be researched...again, just don't risk it. </p>

<p>That said, a little bit of stretching is fine, although I seriously doubt that it matters. Was I a bit generous with the amount of time I spent on, say, playing my instrument? Yeah, but never to the extent that I included time that I really spent laying around watching tv. It was always at least related to playing the instrument. I certainly didn't lie awake at night feeling dishonest, and I do have scruples--lying and strecthing the truth aren't the same thing, for my money. But I don't think it matters--you can go right ahead and apply the gloss on your ecs, but unless you DO outright lie, they really are going to just look like a polished version of what they are--the gloss isn't going to make the big difference between acceptance and rejection.</p>

9

<p>I have to reiterate that the "embellishing" (which in some examples, like the 200 hours --> 250 hours, are unethical) probably won't determine the difference between acceptance and rejection. It's not worth it. Important achievements that make a difference, like leadership positions or national awards, can usually be easily verified through google or recs.</p>

10

<p>Theres no point in embellishing your EXC at all. You have decent EXC but altering the title or number a little wont tip the scale for you either way. In the end EXC are important but not as significant as SAT/GPA/Essay will be.</p>

11

<p>well the way i think about it, what if its only one word that gets u away from the college of the choice, whereas its 250 hours instead of 200 communiety hours u never know. i mean we all know that if u truly think u are a competitive applier, i think its up to the student to do what he has to do to win. thats what u gotta do unforunately cuz theres so many kids applyin with the same credientals and u and it all goes down to a matter of luck with the college adcons</p>

12

<p>I'll only comment on the one example where I have lots of experience: that "supporting roles" item. I have 3 kids in the performing arts. It pained them but they are always scrupulously honest on a resume. </p>

<p>In theater, "there is no such thing as a small role." The most important thing is not how many lines you had but that you were part of the ensemble, went to all the rehearsals, had the discipline, were part of the community. </p>

<p>My kid was not beloved by his h.s. director, who gave him crappy one-line bones in the h.s. plays, even while performing professionally in indie movies and community theater. It was disgracefuland he felt embarassed to list those parts from the h.s. plays, but since that's what he performed, that's what he listed. And he wanted to major in Theater. Maybe they could actually see his dedication, who knows.</p>

<p>Some Adcoms know the names of characters in all the shows high schools
do. What on earth would you do if you were in a college interview, and someone said, "So, which supporting role did you have in Oklahoma?" As soon as you can't answer with a named role, and you start to stammer, you're done. You will NOT get in or out of a college because of "one liners" versus "supporting roles." It's NOT a dealbreaker, but lying is.</p>

<p>I'm only having a canary over this because I want to tell you something else: you need to respect your own experience more. Being in the plays is meaningful, but you are so insecure you think it only means something if you had a bigger role. Don't you know that it counts to be in many productions, to show repeat loyalty to the theater club in your h.s., to NOT give up when you don't get the lead? It says something about your character, and it's GOOD. Be proud of what you've done. Unless you're auditioning for an acting BFA major, it really doesn't matter how many lines.</p>

<p>Now that you get my basic drift, I'll comment on your other "stretches" to say don't do that:
-- it is NOT credible that a h.s. student started his own business, but I'm interested and believe you when you said what you did specifically there; it's MORE impressive to say you got occasional commissions while selling your service to experiment with business.<br>
-- it sounds BETTER to me to read "honorable mention" than "placed"</p>

<p>College admissions officers are like customs agents; they deal with this stuff day in and day out and they can spot phoniness. </p>

<p>Better to be who you are (it's fine); if you're not satisfied then work on an EC this summer to bring ONE of them up to a higher level and just list what you've got also.</p>

<p>But don't stretch the truth. It'll hurt you and nothing you've suggested will get you into college. </p>

<p>The EC's aren't that crucial, either. They're looking to see what to expect from you when you get on to campus. Someone who'll participate in school shows and not have to be the lead will be TREASURED; they have a harder time finding people who just want to be there for the team than the prima donnas who must be the star or support.</p>

13

<p>I didn't leave out anything or lie about anything. It's up to you. No one's going to verify the information you give regarding your extracurriculars, so what you say depends on the kind of person you are. If you can twist the truth to suit your purposes, or lie by omission, and not feel guilty, go ahead. :)</p>

14

<p>I think you should not stretch the truth. Mentioning your achievments as it won't harm you.
- 200 hours of community service are good enough, I don't think 250 will give you any additional hook.</p>

<ul>
<li><p>honorable mention in a speech states meet is better than "placed in a state meet" so you will actually loose</p></li>
<li><p>"supporting roles" over one supporting role and the rest one-liners doesn'y make any difference so why sweat.</p></li>
<li><p>Why not say you got 4th best on the national Spanish exam in the state in 8th grade? It still have values.</p></li>
<li><p>"launched my own advertising design business" over $5 a commission... and sometimes i do free commissions? Working for someelse or for yourself make difference only if your own buisness brought you wny recognition otherwise I don't think it will provide you any additional hook.</p></li>
</ul>

<p>See the things that can provide a straight edge or hook over others are high profiler, where the risk of getting exposed is also much greater. </p>

<p>So better stick to the truth as this type of stretching is actually not going to buy you any thing but on the other hand if you became inconsistent in your application and essay, you will be rejected.</p>

15

<p>The hours will hardly make any difference in their decisions on you, but could cost you admission if the admissions office decides to check you. The potential benefits is minuscule compared to the loss from this risk.</p>

16

<p>i think supporting roles is an acceptable description What else would you call them? They were speaking parts after all, even if you only had one line.</p>

17

<p>They also may want to hear more about your "business". If you launched your own business, but didn't talk about it and all of the fabulous work you have done for it in your essays, colleges won't care that much. Colleges may assume that if it wasn't important enough for you to talk about, it wasn't that great of a business to begin with. Simply listing as an "extracurricular" won't help you much in the application process, so just be honest about it. But I'm sure there's a way to word it that sounds good without stretching it into "starting your own business". Any suggestions from people?</p>

18

<p>i couldnt lie. im not trying to sound self-righteous but ive i had lied on my application i never would have felt like i deserved to go where i was accepted. i needed to feel like i earned it.</p>

19

<p>Most of these facts you just want to "embellish" are things that you could easily forget during an interview, or facts that a recommendation letter could give away as lies. I don't think it's ethical, and while using ambigious language could possibly help you, it will in no way make up for bad grades/SAT (just an example, not saying that you are in this boat). If you take this risk, I think it will hurt you long run more than help you. Case in point: a few years ago a girl at my school "embellished" things on her Harvard application. She was accepted, but during the summer, Harvard found out the truth and recinded her acceptance. Schools, especially bigger harder to get into schools, are less sympathetic. Another friend, this year, was unable to enroll in a class second semester he had written on his application he would be taking. When the school found out (just a week ago) they recinded their acceptance deciding that he had been lying or "embellishing" (the school was UC Berkeley). I don't think it's worth it to embellish, especially when you think about the possible reprocussions.</p>

20

<p>What if there are two co-captains on a team and you put down 'Captain.' Technically, you are A captain, but not THE captain. Is this wrong? I don't think it's embellishment, but it might be confusing if both captains apply to the same school.</p>