I was recently crowned Homecoming King of my high school and was thinking that I should put it on my application because it shows that I’m not just a nerd. What part of the Common App should I put this under?
I don’t think Homecoming King is that notable of an achievement for colleges as it is mostly a popularity contest.
But, I can understand how that it is important for you, so you can write it in an essay, your transition from being unsocial to Homecoming King, if that applies to you.
But, the main way to show that you are social are through teacher recs who say how you are an active participant in class, your EC’s which show your involvement in the school and community (how you’re not a “nerd” who just plays videogames at home), and possibly the interview in which the interviewer can see how outgoing you are and write in in their report.
I was told by an admissions officer that titles like Homecoming King, “Most Popular”, etc. are impressive to colleges. These things require a vote of the entire student body, and being elected shows that you are admired and respected by a large number of your peers. That says something positive about you as a person, and it’s definitely something that colleges appreciate.
@Jea828 if you don’t have any other leadership positions, I think you should reevaluate your priorities.
Also, you just contradicted yourself. Most Popular? Wow. That’s literally a popularity contest. I don’t even like the most popular people at my school. If you want a position that shows you have rallied the support of your peers, try Student Council, club presidents or VPs, or a community leader.
Many leadership positions are influenced by popularity instead of ability, which is why colleges don’t care too much about how many clubs you’re president of, but rather they care about the actual impact you made on the school or community.
Just having a leadership does not matter to schools, it’s the impact that you made (which is sometimes a prerequisite to attaining a leadership position) that matters.
The ideal situation would be that this honor (and yes, it is an honor and you have a right to be proud of it) gets one line at the end of the list of honors on your application to both make them aware of it, and to show that you aren’t taking yourself too seriously. And then your guidance counselor in his/her recommendation talks it up as evidence of your outstanding social skills, ability to persuade and influence peers, and to have an impact on the school culture (which is what that honor demonstrates). If you have a good relationship with your GC, you can talk about the fact that you don’t want to look arrogant by making a bit deal of it yourself, but were wondering if the GC could bring it up.
Those who put you down for being ‘most popular’ (and implying that you are superficial and have nothing else in terms of leadership or impact to offer) are just being snarky. It’s immature to talk down someone else’s accomplishment.
I agree that you should put this on your list of honors, and that it suggests that you have social skills that make you popular with other people. I think this is especially true if there’s no other thing on your resume that suggests this. (That is, if you are the quarterback of the football team, it wouldn’t really suggest very much if you were also Homecoming King. If you really are kind of a nerd, though, it suggests that people like you.)
@basedchem I don’t know where you’re seeing a contradiction. Being popular means that people like you. How is that a bad thing? And how does it conflict with other achievements? You can be well-liked AND have strong academic and extracurricular honors. And in my experience, most of the kids who are voted Homecoming King and such DO have other achievements: they’re involved in school, they’re good role models, and they’re friendly and likable people. Their classmates admire them, and that’s why they get elected. Obviously, if that’s your only honor, it’s not going to make a big difference in admissions. But combined with other achievements, it’s a plus. If I was choosing between two applicants who were academically identical, but one showed evidence of being esteemed by his peers, I would probably lean toward that one. Good social skills and the ability to gain the support of others is not unimportant. In many fields, it’s essential. Besides, who wouldn’t want to have a likable person around?
I’d put it on your list of honors.
@Jea828 While I agree that some HC kings and queens (as well as members of the HC court) are respected by their peers, it’s really all just a popularity competition. Come to my school and tell me why the Google Science Fair winner, the international olympiad participant, Intel/Siemens/RSI kid, more of the UW 4.0 kids didn’t even get homecoming court. We all worship them, but in reality, 95% of the HC court doesn’t even show that. I have my reasons, and while OP has every reason to be proud of being HC king (I didn’t even put him down for it), I (notice my opinion) wouldn’t consider it something college worthy.