<p>So... I could really benefit by sending colleges a portfolio of supplementary materials considering I have a 3.6 GPA and an 1800 on the SAT... but I don't really know what would be appropriate. I don't want to go overboard, but I don't want to send them something stupid. When sending materials, should they pertain to your expected major or anything you like? For example:
-I am a violinist and pianist but don't have any recordings/compositions that I could send
-I have a good amount of decent artwork
-I am a cross country and tennis player... but don't have any footage I could send (that seems like a recruiting thing anyways.)
-I have a resume
-AND most importantly, I plan on majoring in finance or accounting... so I'm highly considering creating a business plan that could be sent in. Do you think this would be a good thing to spend time making? My business teacher is pro at business plans and could definitely give me help... It will just be a lot of work if I end up not using it.</p>
<p>So, does it really matter what's in your supplementary materials, or just to show that you are a well-rounded student? Any advice/experience would be amazing :)</p>
<p>Usually, you send in supplementary material to complement your application. For example, if you plan to minor or major in music in the college of arts and sciences, sending in an art supplement to highlight the level of your training in piano or violin would be helpful. If you don’t have any recordings or webpages, this may not be useful, and one would also question how good or how serious you really are if you don’t have any recordings at all. Same with sports, if you don’t plan to run cross country or play tennis in college, then don’t bother sending more information on this in a supplement. The regular college application forms on the common app have plenty of places to fill in your participation and accomplishments in sports. Your resume be included in the regular application (under the common app, there is a section to upload more information). If you are applying to colleges that interview, you can definitely hand the interviewer a resume, and that would also be appropriate to discuss your business plan, but I’ve not heard of someone creating a business plan just to send in as a supplement. That seems kind of forced if you ask me. </p>
<p>In general, many students don’t send in supplementary materials at all. The ones that do use the art supplement to highlight their art portfolio or music portfolio that they have been developing over the course of high school. Usually these students have taken private lessons outside of the normal school program so this is a good way to highlight talents that aren’t obvious in the rest of the application.</p>
<p>Others can add their comments if they have more experience with business plans or other supplementary materials.</p>
<p>I mean, the idea of making a business plan just for apps seems forced, but I omitted the fact that if I did create one, I would compete in various business competitions in my state using what I came up with.</p>
<p>If you are a junior, then I would go ahead and make this business plan for these competitions. If you win something big, then include that in your college appliation under awards. The business plan itself is better discussed in an interview, especially if that’s the major you intend to have.</p>