This one has been bugging me for a while. I go on acceptance threads and see people with brilliant sounding extracurriculars, and I think to myself “There’s no way in hell they described all that in under 200 characters”. Now, I know that we’re allowed to submit additional information and all, but really, how do I put myself across in that space?
I took part in a volunteer drive to manually clean the dirtiest locations in the city. All the materials needed - buckets, mops, bleach, paint - were paid for by us volunteers who gather up every Sunday morning at a predecided location and get to work. More information at: fb.me/bengalururising
If I wanted to get all that across, I wouldnt be able to do so in the limited space they’ve provided.
Help
Yes I thought of that too but wont shortening it in that manner take away much of the…“glamour” of the description? If I were to include a short and sweet description like you mentioned, I’ll just have to hope that the admissions officer who reads actually takes the time to visit and go through the link Suresh Nelamangala ( SIDE QUESTION: Do admissions officers even go to links I’ve mentioned or do they browse past? )
Is there any other way out other than shortening it?
Shameless plug: Do like our page Suresh Nelamangala. It would mean a lot to us!
The one I gave has some room before it hits the character limit, so you could add some descriptive words to make it sound more interesting; for example, “intense” before “city cleaning effort” and “own” before “money.” But really you don’t have the space to wax lyrical like the original example. Adcoms will be used to this. Feel free to incorporate your experience into an essay at greater length if it fits one of the prompts you’re given.
“Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. This requires not that the writer make all his sentences short, or that he avoid all detail and treat his subjects only in outline, but that he make every word tell.” - The Elements of Style by William Strunk
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Like I said earlier, if I were to provide a link in the description, or any link anywhere in my application, what are the chances that they’ll actually visit the site to see what I’m talking about? Objectively, they should, right? Because it does pertain to my application. Or are they too short on time to be looking through all that?
Yes, you have to economise with words. This is actually a great lesson for the super short essays required by many selective colleges, such as “Why this college?” in 100 words. It is difficult. In your instance, you can say “Town street cleaning project. Sole organizer, collection of supplies, coordinated districts. Recruited 20 volunteers. Liased with officials and residents. Link …” That’s less than 200 characters I think.
Agree with others, if it was a major project involving much effort, coordination of town services and officials, etc…it might be worth adding more info in the additional info section, or writing about it in your essay.
My kids might create an activity like “Quiz Bowl”, then put “See Additional Information” in the comment. Then in additional info, they would put a header called “Quiz Bowl Activity” and list out information in concise bullets. Like:
Quiz Bowl team member (9-12, 8 hours per week)
Captain (11-12)
3rd place individual in XX State Tournament of 360 competitors (12)
Team went to Nationals (10-12), placed 26th nationally.
Attended ACE Quiz Bowl camp (summer after 10 & 11)
Mentor to middle school Quiz Bowl team (11-12)
Yes, they listed their honors and awards there, too. It makes it easier for admissions to see it logically grouped, I think. Worked great for them, excellent admissions results. But be concise and use bullets.
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