Activities section of the common app
I have been trying to complete the activities section of the commonapp, but my peers, the internet, and my guidance counselor have been telling me different approaches. For the sections
"Position/Leadership description" and "Please describe this activity, including what you accomplished and any recognition you received, etc.". My guidance counselor said that it should be done in a more anecdotal way so more like... [activity] taught be leadership through OR something like I helped my community by . But other people have told me it should be more of a list, short and sweet to get all the important things in it so like in [activity] I did , , and .
I am very confused on which is correct/looks better, because they are both so different.
Thank you!
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1 answer
Short and sweet is the right approach. You only have 150 characters (21-38 words) and this is purposeful from the perspective of the Common App—they want you to be concise! You don’t need to prove your merit as a writer or a storyteller here, that’s what the essay is for. Rely on active verbs and quantitative descriptions to succinctly tell the admissions committee what you did.
Collegevine also has a great blog post on how to tackle the Common App EC section, with examples: https://blog.collegevine.com/how-to-fill-out-the-common-app-activities-section/
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@Aja.Altenhof is right. Short and sweet is good, but if you hold a leadership position, it's def. okay to explain a little bit.