<p>This isn't really a personal question. I'm just slightly annoyed at the people who so look down upon resume-padding or starting new clubs for the sake of college acceptance. </p>
<p>What are they SUPPOSED to do? Sit back and watch the rejections pour in? Of course they would do anything to boost their chances... What's so wrong with that? </p>
<p>I haven't really "resume-padded," (although I'm not even completely sure what exactly constitutes resume-padding) but I think it's completely understandable. Why not let people do whatever they can to maximize their chances?</p>
<p>I think the larger problem is viewing high school as one long college application process. Personally, I know many people who only join clubs, participate in sports/activities, or select classes based on what “looks good for college.” For example, a student might choose to take study hall rather than a regular class because the regular class would bring down his weighted GPA (even if the regular class is fascinating and educational).</p>
<p>While there’s nothing objectively wrong with this, it misses the purpose of high school as a time to learn and grow as a person and student, explore different areas, and discover your passions. Not everything is a race to college.</p>
<p>I think the usual issue with resume-padding is level of commitment. </p>
<p>It’s obvious when someone has a million activities listed that they could not have committed much time or energy to each organization because they were over-extended or else superficially involved. The point of extra curricular activities is to learn, grow, or engage in the community in some way – whether for fun or for a serious purpose. If a person is only superficially involved, what have they gained from the extra curricular? What have they contributed to the organization?</p>
<p>I see where you’re coming from: college admissions and competition make us play this resume game. We have to choose our activities carefully and perhaps be more involved than we want to be because we always have to be thinking of admissions. But it’s a balance: it’s definitely important to do what you enjoy, but if it’s possible to “legitimize” it for the purpose of a resume for college, that’s probably what you have to do to compete.</p>
<p>I’m with the last two. The concept of competitive college admissions forces high school students to involve themselves and reach into areas they may otherwise have not. The hope of achieving admissions into a dream school drives students to become harder workers academically and better people extracurricular-ly, and I don’t mind that aspect. I hate, though, seeing kids start a club or join an organization who then skirt their responsibilities because they think their signature on the club’s sign up sheet earns them the right to slap the organization’s name on their resume. That is the lowest form of resume padding, and unfortunately it happens.</p>
<p>It’s wrong because typically they are either just on the list (as above poster noted) or are spending a lot of their time on something they don’t enjoy solely to say they did it. </p>
<p>I don’t get why some people would give up having an enjoyable high school experience just to have a nice looking resume. It’s one thing to be involved in things you enjoy, but completely different to be doing various clubs/activities because it looks good. </p>
<p>I suspect if someone goes the resume padding route from freshman year, they’re more likely end up depressed than at Stanford</p>
<p>OP, you’re not supposed to “[s]it back and watch the rejections pour in”, you’re supposed to follow your passions. If you have a passion for philosophy, then by all means start a philosophy club; if you have a passion for politics, then become affiliated with some program; but if you don’t have a passion, and if you’re doing something just to pad your resume, then you’re delegitimizing your application. As long as you don’t overextend yourself and you can develop leadership roles in the clubs you are in (which typically requires commitment), then you should be good. An adcom would rather see leadership in three clubs you’re passionate about/committed to than membership in ten resume pads.</p>
<p>You’re better off following your passions; ultimately, anything you can make up or pad your resume with isn’t going to matter a whole lot to schools who care about ECs. And those who are less competitive really won’t care about your ECs anyway.</p>
<p>People who pad their resumes often believe that it’s a competition to have enough or the most ECs, when it’s not.</p>
<p>Doing ECs solely for the sake of college admissions subverts whatever purpose those (few) colleges have for looking at ECs in the first place. </p>
<p>I think resume-padding is somewhat defensible on the grounds that the person might not have otherwise done anything at all (because of shyness or lack of interest or whatever), and maybe they’ll help someone or develop a genuine interest in an activity they wouldn’t have done if it weren’t for college admissions. </p>
<p>This is more of a stretch, but I imagine resume-padding kids also help create extracurricular opportunities for the ones who are “following their passions.” The passionate kids would probably find stuff to do anyway, but it’s easier to find opportunities now that HYPSM look at ECs. Summer programs and internships for high school students probably wouldn’t exist if there weren’t a bunch of annoying careerist kids demanding them. :)</p>
<p>Now, I’m not saying that it’s ok to show up at one meeting then quit so you can put down the club on the resume, but if you try a bunch of different clubs, it’s a way to find your passion.</p>
<p>Having said this – each of my daughters had fairly short EC lists. Each had one major activity that they had done for many years and showed a passion, and a few other clubs and activities where they were involved, but clearly less so. Each did fine with admissions (Ivy and Ivy Equivalent schools) and each went to their first choice college.</p>
<p>So, basically my view – any activity you do counts (regardless of why you actually did it). However, I strongly believe that Depth in a few activities is better than Breadth (i.e., many activities)</p>
<p>you’re making it seem like there are only two paths to take: 1) “resume padding” to boost chances or 2) do nothing and “watch the rejections poor in”</p>
<p>how about doing activities simply because you love them? you will accomplish more and simply be recognized more through passion and commitment rather than by doing seemingly impressive activities just for admissions.</p>
<p>I think we’re all saying the same thing here in different words, but I’m glad everyone has their head screwed on right. That’s not always guaranteed on a CC thread (:</p>
<p>This is nothing new and the admission officers are not stupid. If you don’t show a passion on something, a title would not get you anywhere. I know someone claimed to found a charity while his father would not even trust him to book a ticket. There are consultants that would tell you to do all weird things to increase your chance. At the end, it would be far better to simply follow your passion.</p>
<p>It doesn’t help as much as you would think. It negatively affects others who could really benefit from what the resume-padders did first instead. It gains you little respect. You lose your purpose in going to high school (to make an application for college, or to learn beyond the middle school stuff and gain HS experiences). Resume-padding has an effect on everyone around the resume-padder. That’s why people dislike them.</p>
<p>I’ve seen the argument about how the ultra competitive evaluation standards drive legions of HS students to this bulking up of their ECs even to the point of fabrication or extreme exaggeration or becoming the “founders” of some noble cause/charity/business/unicorn nursery.</p>
<p>1) the bulk of colleges don’t give one flip about ECs
2) the ones that do, ARE VERY EXPERIENCED at weeding out the fluff
3) the true stand outs aren’t musing around saying: “geez, how will I stand out?” They are already out there simply being – whether it’s an amazing academic pursuit or a true, community-affecting event. The saying goes: “If you have to ask, then you’re already behind”</p>
<p>At the end of the day, the colleges that evaluate holistically can cherry pick the most interesting class possible. The umteenth “founder of Haitan relief fundraiser club” is simply “meh” and thousands of HS students fail to see that.</p>
<p>It is better do a few things you really love and get into them than to do a whole bunch of things just to look good on paper. </p>
<p>Probably everyone here has resume-padded in one way or another.</p>
<p>@T26E4, I would disagree that most schools don’t care about ECs, they do care, but not as much as most people think.</p>
<p>If you have to lock yourself in a room and study for 4 years in order to good grades, you probably won’t do very well in college. Schools like their retention rates high.</p>
<p>Instead of padding your resume, why don’t you actually do something worth putting on your application? You know, like actually get involved in something worthwhile, actually make an impact?</p>
<p>For the colleges that do care about ECs, the things you are mentioning to “pad” your resume are not going to make a bit of difference. Adcoms aren’t stupid–they know resume padding when they see it in an application.</p>
<p>They don’t care that an applicant “founded” a club, if the club founded didn’t accomplish anything.</p>
<p>For an EC to have any impression on the fate of an application, it has to showcase effort and accomplishment. For example, a friend of my son’s was never the president of any school club. But she did get involved in the local Relay for LIfe…the first year, she got students to walk with her. The next year, she worked to create an intra-high school challenge for the Relay, where students from different sports teams challenged one another as to how many miles they could walk/how much $ they could raise. The next year, the challenge expanded to other high schools in the area, and also more student organizations at our high school took part…</p>
<p>As I said, she was never the president of anything…</p>
<p>Another thing to realize is that an entry on your application, by itself, doesn’t mean a whole lot. What will the letters written by your teachers and GC do to complete the picture of you? Will those letters praise your involvement, your impact on the school or community? If not, then a laundry list of clubs, etc., won’t have much of an impact on your application. Worst of all would be for a letter to say "Student belong to a million clubs and is always starting new ones, but doesn’t stick with any one for long and it’s hard to describe any positive impact any one has had…(no, the letters don’t actually say this…but they can imply it by the absence of details…).</p>