<p>My recommending teacher asked me to write down my academic accomplishments to make her job easier.
Well last year I won 3rd place at the school's science fair. Should I mention this, or does 3rd place sound bad? Maybe I can just put "participated and won an award"? (I'm not applying to Ivies).</p>
<p>Yes. You should put it on your list and be specific.</p>
<p>mention 3rd, it's still good. "participated and won an award" will sound a lot worse than a 3rd place.</p>