How to Fill Out the Common App Activities Section
Creating an account on Common App(https://apply.commonapp.org/) means you’ve officially started your college applications. Common App requires you to fill out 7 sections — your Profile, Family, Education, Testing, Activities, Writing, and finally, Course & Grades. Today, we’re going to focus on the activities section, which requires you to go through all your extracurriculars and write about a select few to convey impact to admissions officers. This can feel difficult, but don’t worry — we’re here to give you tips and tricks to help you stand out from other applicants, so read on below!
What is the Common App Activities Section and Why Is It Important?
The Common Application is a platform that streamlines undergraduate college applications for over 900 universities. This means that students can fill in an application and use it to apply to multiple colleges. However, you need to check to see if the schools you are applying to use the Common App, as there are other similar platforms that conduct the same function. Click this link (https://www.commonapp.org/explore/) to see whether the schools you’re interested in accept applications through Common App.
Now, moving on to the Activities section of the Common App — this is where you can list up to 10 extracurriculars you participated in. It also requires you to provide detailed explanations such as the hours you put into the club, the position you occupied, and more. (The exact slots that are part of the Activities section are under the subtitle “How to Write the Common App Activities section” of this article.) But while grades and test scores may seem more important, the truth is that the Activities section will serve as blueprints for universities to evaluate soft factors. Soft factors are just as important as hard factors — they provide admissions officers an explanation of what qualities you encompass, therefore more personal details that can tip the scale in your favor.
How to Write the Common App Activities Section
First, what you need to do is choose the activities you want to write about in the Common App Activities section. You can choose up to 10 extracurricular activities. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to fill them all out. You probably already submitted a resume, so admissions officers have a good idea of all the activities you’ve participated in. Quality is more important than quantity here! Therefore, choose activities you want to elaborate more on, the activities that make you stand out from other applicants, and the ones you’ve made the most impact on.
These are some criteria to consider when choosing the activities to write more about.
- Have you shown dedication and commitment?
- Have you made an impact or created a difference?
- Did you take a specific role that entailed important responsibilities?
- Did the activities influence you in a positive way?
- Do they convey values you are passionate about?
Many students think that they should only choose activities that they participated in for a long period of time. However, activities like summer schools are meant to last for 2 months only. But if you showed a lot of commitment in those two months, and it left you with a huge impact, the summer school should be considered. The bottom line is that regardless of the period of time, the level of participation and dedication you put in is more important.
Now that you’ve chosen all the activities you want to write about and now, all you have to do is actually write about them. The Common App Activities Section is made up of the following components.
Sections
Tips
- Activity Type
- When an activity fits into more than one category, choose the one that is more specific
- If the majority of the activities you listed fit into the same category. you should consider diversifying the types of activities you choose
- Position/Leadership description
Refer to Part 3 of this article
- Organization Name
- If the organization name has any acronyms, make sure to clarify them!
- Admissions officers are not going to understand names that are specific to your school/district/state, so use brackets to explain what they are.
ex) The Quill (School press)
- Describing the activity: what you’ve accomplished, the recognition you achieved, etc
Refer to Part 3 of this article
- Participation grade levels
- List activities completed during summer/winter break according to your rising grade
- Timing of participation: hours spent per week, weeks spent per year
- Divide the total number of hours you spent on the activity by the total number of weeks
- Don’t exaggerate — the numbers have to be realistic!
- I intend to participate in a similar activity in college: yes or no
- Colleges are attempting to gauge what you will bring to the student body, and if you have genuine passion and interest in the activities you chose.
Tips for Writing a Successful Activities Description
Be Concise
You only have 50 characters for writing the Position/Leadership description and 150 characters for the Activities description. This means you have to be efficient — conveying as much impact as possible while being compact. Therefore, avoid using complete sentences and descriptive words such as adjectives and adverbs. Being concise also means not repeating the same words in the position and activities description.
- Utilize numbers
Utilizing numbers is a great way to create impact and provide information. If you participated in a fund-raising event, how much money did you raise? How many tutoring sessions or concerts were there? How many families were impacted by your volunteering club? You can also use numbers to highlight your achievements. Write which rank you were placed in a competition and the amount of award money you received.
- Be as detailed as possible
What a lot of students miss is being as detailed as possible in both the position and activities description. Don’t just simply write “member” of a club. If you occupied a certain position that entailed responsibilities, clarify them! You don’t have to be the editor-in-chief or president to write a specific position. Were you the Session Manager, treasurer, or designer?
In the activities description, we recommend using impactful verbs to be detailed. “Help” or “teach” are abstract verbs that can be clarified even further. How exactly did you provide help? What methods did you use to teach students? Take away abstract verbs and provide more information by actively using detailed verbs.
- Convey values and a theme
Keep in mind, the Common App is another opportunity to convey values and what you can bring to the school. If you want to convey that you are a compassionate person that values giving back to others, emphasize the positive changes you brought to an organization or how you helped someone. On the other hand, if you want to highlight your passion in bringing social change, write about activities with motivations that align with your beliefs and the changes you want to see in the world.
You should also keep in mind that the activities you listed should convey a consistent theme. Listing activities that seem completely unrelated to each other will not be memorable to admissions officers.
- Order activities by importance
List the most important activities first, therefore the ones that had the most impact on you.
These are some examples to read for a better understanding!
Position/Leadership Description
Activities Description
President, Model UN Club — Organized two conferences with more than 100 participants, chaired 20 conferences, met club members one-by-one for MUN training, 2019 Best Delegate
Session Manager, SEED (Building volunteering club) — Built and repaired over 40 houses, led weekly meetings, prepare meeting presentation slides, raise $200 in fund-raising, 2020 Helper of the Year
Editor-in-Chief, The Quill (School press) — Publish and distribute 300 copies every semester, led weekly meetings and monthly writing workshops, edited 20 articles per month
Honors and Awards
The honors and awards section is where you can list up to 5 achievements. The achievements can be either academic or non-academic. However, admissions officers will take into consideration your context and background from the rest of your college application, so don’t be stressed if you don’t have anything to write about!
If there are achievements you want to provide more detail on, the tips mentioned above apply here as well. Use numbers to convey impact — which rank were you placed in? What amount of money did you receive? List the awards according to the awards you want the admissions officers to read first- therefore, the ones that are the most important and selective. Remember to clarify any acronyms or names that are specific to your school or state.
However, you also need to keep in mind that for the honors and awards section, you need to convey how selective the achievements were. So, don’t be humble and illustrate how competitive it was! You can do this through concrete numbers — out of how many teams did your team rank first? Or, you can mention that you were invited to go overseas to participate.
Key Takeaways
Step 1: Choose Activities
Consider the following questions when choosing activities to write about. Remember, you don’t always have to choose 10 to write about, especially if you already submitted a resume!
- Have you shown dedication and commitment?
- Have you made an impact or created a difference?
- Did you take a specific role that entailed important responsibilities?
- Did the activities influence you in a positive way?
- Do they convey values you are passionate about?
Step 2: Write the Descriptions
- Be Concise:
Avoid using complete sentences and descriptive words such as adjectives and adverbs. Don’t repeat the same words in the position and activities description, either!
- Utilize numbers
Use numbers to give more detailed information or to highlight your achievements. If you participated in a fund-raising event, how much money did you raise? Which rank were you placed in a competition?
- Be as detailed as possible
Clarify positions that entailed responsibilities, such as treasurer or session manager. Avoid abstract verbs such as “help” or “teach” and use detailed verbs that explain how exactly you provided help to deliver more impact.
- Convey values and a theme
Make sure the activities listed convey a consistent theme, as activities that seem completely unrelated to each other will not be memorable to admissions officers. Convey values through activities, as well. For example, emphasize the positive changes you brought to an organization or a person to highlight values such as compassion.
Step 3: Fill out the rest
Activity Type
- When an activity fits into more than one category, choose the one that is more specific
- If the majority of the activities you listed fit into the same category. you should consider diversifying the types of activities you choose
Organization Name
- If the organization name has any acronyms, make sure to clarify them!
- Admissions officers are not going to understand names that are specific to your school/district/state, so use brackets to explain what they are.
ex) The Quill (School press)
Participation grade levels
- List activities completed during summer/winter break according to your rising grade
1. Timing of participation: hours spent per week, weeks spent per year
- Divide the total number of hours you spent on the activity by the total number of weeks and don’t exaggerate!
2. I intend to participate in a similar activity in college: yes or no
- Colleges are attempting to gauge what you will bring to the student body, and if you have genuine passion and interest in the activities you chose.
Step 4: Order the Activities by Importance
Order the activities that were the most important to you first.
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