I noticed that a lot of the people on this site sometimes have 20+ ECs and summer activities, and i dont get how theyre able to list all of them when the common app only has 10 spots. How do they include all of them?
I know a lot of schools that give you the option to attach resumes on the common app, that’s probably how.
You can lump activities together by topic - e.g., several different activities could fall under “visual arts” or “academic clubs” or “sports” etc. Or they can just leave off a bunch when they actually fill out their applications. Many students do not list all of their activities (or honors/awards) on their applications – they prioritize.
Advice for you: don’t list ten ECs. Omit the small stuff.
You’re to list them in order of importance to you. Your 5th or 6th EC won’t make a difference. Your 15th and 16th certainly aren’t going to make a difference.
You can group by category. For example, you can have an activity called “Music”, and say “See additional information” in the description. Then have a Music header in the add’l info section and concisely bullet info underneath. For example:
- Violin in high school orchestra (9-12)
- Violin in community orchestra (11-12)
- First place in Smith Violin contest (12)
- Shenandoah Fiddle Camp, summers after 9 & 10
- Concert choir, tenor (9-12)
You can also just use the additional info section to bullet out extra activities that don’t fit in the 10. Basic rules my kids used with very good results:
- keep any activity done until jr year or later (even if started jr or sr year)
- keep activities in any year when an award was won
- keep any activity related to proposed major or whatever narrative you are trying to build
- keep any activity you plan to continue in college
- keep any activity that adds a spark or interest to your app
thanks for the advice! and i have another question: am i supposed to self report my hours for certain activities/volunteering positions, or do i need to ask my school/volunteer place to send a verification/log of some sort?
You can self report. No proof needed.
Excellent advise, @intparent. Clustering or grouping activities should be a major strategy, as should be emphasizing ECs that relate to an applicants story/narrative, or in which they have achieved at an unusual level.
I personally think applicants should try to have no more than 3-5 major activities (5 would be an extreme case), including clustering. Having a few odds and ends after that is fine, but it should be obvious that those things were done for fun only, and were lesser priorities. Showing the ability to prioritize and manage time effectively can make a positive impression, compared with having an amorphous list of activities with no clear focus or passion.
First, do combine similar activities if possible. It would also look better in the time dedication.
Second, rank your activities and put the most important one for your application on the top. It does not matter if you have to skip the less important one and the adcom would only pay attention to the first few if there is nothing interesting.
Third, if you do have something extra you want to mention, use the additional information box after the essays.
I think the bigger question is how many people are able to give a serious commitment of time and energy to more than 20+ activities.
I don’t agree about really limiting the number if they meet the criteria I listed. My kids ended up with more than 10 even after clustering, and had admissions at schools like U of Chicago, Swarthmore, Mudd, Carleton, and very good merit at some lower ranked schools. I do think making sure the order (most important first) needs to be carefully considered. But some activities are legitimate even without a large time commitment, and some have bursts of intense time in the summers.
Some activities really compliment each other well. I had way more than 10 (greater than 20) activities counting my music-related activities alone (between ensembles, summer festivals, volunteer work, lessons, honor events, and competitions). I was also in several non-music school clubs, as well as dance outside school (which I was also heavily involved in). Also, if you’re truly having fun, you don’t really notice the time commitment as much.
For me, all those music activities were depth in one area. Yes, they were separate and each involved their own time and energy, but they were all music (choir, band, jazz band, chamber, orchestra, etc). To give you an idea, I was in 9 performing ensembles my senior year alone (both out of school and in school), not including summer festivals or honor events, like Senior Regional Orchestra, Districts, and All-State. Most of them were only one rehearsal a week for one to two hours, plus whatever individual practice time I put in on my own.
Many students have similar themes. They many be super involved in science and be in several olympiads, science fair, etc. There are students that are heavily involved in english and journalism.
I think you’re also forgetting that we have four years plus summers to be involved. We aren’t doing every single activity all at the same time.
I used the grouping method of listing my activities and also figured out how to abbreviate things to make everything fit. I had multiple activity slots devoted to music; I believe they were categories like school-related music, extracurricular music, summer music, volunteer music, and music honors. I had one slot for dance (idk how I made all of dance fit in there, including my honors and the styles I trained in, but I did). I remember combining my clubs into several slots, but I don’t remember exactly how I did that.
thanks for the help everyone!!