<p>Seeing as the "Extra Curricular" section on college applications is quite small, having only 12 short spaces, I'm wondering if its necessary to attach a resume? Will I be at a disadvantage if I fill in my ECs in the given spaces and nothing more, when the next guy sends in a five page resume describing each EC in detail? How else would you tell colleges about your involvement?</p>
<p>And if resumes are recommended, what should go on it?</p>
<p>See what the school recommends. At one school, they said they wanted a thorough resume that explained all the acronyms you have to use on the Common App. Ds’s was four pages long. The categories were: education, work experience, activities, honors and awards, volunteer work, summer activities. But you should pick categories that best highlight yourself (if you’ve never had a job, obviously leave off work experience, for instance). You can Google student resume and get all kinds of examples. Here’s one from the University of Texas: [Rsum</a> | Freshmen | Be a Longhorn](<a href=“http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/freshmen/admission/resume/]Rsum”>http://bealonghorn.utexas.edu/freshmen/admission/resume/)</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Most colleges advise against attaching extra materials. For that reason, it’s best to try and fit everything into the spaces given on the Common App. It’s certainly doable if you’re concise and your activities are fairly standard. If, however, you have activities that adcoms aren’t likely to be familiar with or have unique responsibilities within those activities, it might be worth your time to attach a (concise! short!) resume in the Additional Information session. </p>
<p>Michele Hernandez has some great examples in her book Acing the College Application, but make sure you follow her advice to keep it three pages or under. I’d hate to be the adcom who has to read a detailed five-page activity sheet. (Frankly, I’d probably skim through it, which defeats the whole purpose of providing more detail.)</p>