WHAT TO PUT IN AN ACTIVITIES RESUME

By Gus Iversen

Colleges know that you are much more than your test scores and GPA, and they want dynamic students who will succeed beyond the basic confines of the classroom. Because of that, they want your application to show them different aspects of your character. While your transcripts give them a good sense of your academic record, and your essay gives them a sense of how you view the world and your place in it, the activities resume tells them a bit about your role in the community.

When many people think of resumes, they think of a job application. It’s really not that different with colleges, except that you can include a wider variety of activities than an employer might be interested in hearing about. For instance, the manager of the local coffee shop might not care that you were an assistant coach for the fifthgrade soccer team at the local rec center, but that is exactly the type of experience colleges are looking for in your activities resume.

Hang on, do I even need an activities resume?

These days, many schools depend on the Common App for streamlining and simplifying the application process. If all the schools you’re applying to use that program, then it will prompt you for your activities list and you may not need to create a separate resume.

Whether you’re sharing activities via the Common App or a separate activities resume, the substance of these documents will essentially be the same and compiling one will be good practice for compiling the other.

Getting started

Put together a list of all the activities you’re planning to include in the resume. This should include extracurricular activities like clubs and sports (and be sure to mention if you had a leadership role), as well as job experience, community service, religious engagement and special skills. Make a note of when you started and stopped each activity too, because that’s going to be part of the resume.

Some experts advise against including anything that happened prior to high school. In general, that’s a good rule to follow but it also depends on how impressive your pre-high school accomplishment(s) were. Use your judgment there.

Templates galore

Some people prefer to format their own resumes, and to them I say: more power to you! For the rest of us, the Internet is an endless resource for perfectly good (and free!) templates just waiting for us to plug in our own personal information. Do a little research and you should find a nice one in no time.

Once you have a template, you can start adding some of the really basic information that will go at the top of the page. This should include your name, your high school, your cumulative GPA, and your class rank if available (and only if you’re near the top!). From there you can begin adding the activities you’ve already listed out.

Five pro tips for your resume

The beauty of a resume is in its simplicity. Your resume should be no longer than a single page, and that page should be clean and to the point. It may seem a bit paradoxical, but as much as you want to highlight your extracurricular involvement, you also don’t want to drone on endlessly about each item. Be mindful of word limits and don’t do too much explaining.

Be somewhat selective. If you’re the kind of person who has been involved in tons of applicable activities then you might have trouble fitting everything on a single page. That means you’ll need to prune your list and removing the less impressive items. This is a great problem to have.

Conversely, if you have not been super involved in activities, you might feel compelled to include very minor things that you only did for a single semester. Use caution here, and don’t try to create the illusion of activities if there simply aren’t any. Having a wimpy activities resume is not the worst thing in the world.

Be concise. As a general rule, the items in your activities resume should be comprised of four basic components. First, a title for the activity. Second, a one sentence description of the activity. Third, a one sentence description of your involvement in the activity. Fourth, any awards or special recognition pertaining to the activity.

Spread the love. Share your resume with someone who has a good grasp on grammar so they can suggest any necessary edits to the text.

Bring it with you on campus visits. One of the best places for an activities resume to make an unexpected cameo is on a campus visit to a school you’re applying to. Print up a dozen copies on nice resume paper, stick them in a folder, and keep the folder handy or in an easily accessible bag. As you meet admissions people and professors, the resume will create talking points for your interviews. CB

Letters of Recommendation

Many colleges require 2-3 recommendation letters from teachers and counselors. These letters are sent directly to the colleges, so it’s important to choose a teacher that knows you and your character since you are not be able to view the final product.

It is your responsibility to request letters of recommendation, so be sure to give your teachers plenty of time to start the process. It’s highly recommended to approach your references in the spring of your junior year since many teachers prefer to write them in the summer. They are usually bombarded with letters in the fall of senior year, so set yourself apart and start early.

Provide a copy of your activities resume to your teachers, coaches, school counselors, or anyone you might ask for a letter of recommendation. This way, when they sit down to write about how great you are, they’ll have this handy reference guide to help them along the way!