Chances are you already know the massive importance of the college application essay. In fact you might be freaking out about how/where to start. Keep calm and read our guides on Brainstorming Your Essay and Story and Format.
But, did you know that the activities and awards sections can also be extremely impactful to your application? This is especially true if you maximize their value by using your character count wisely. Want to know why that’s the case and how to do it? Sure thing, I’m so glad you asked.
Your activities and awards sections give the AO a window into:
What you choose to pursue – Activities aren’t compulsory. You do them because you WANT to be involved. The activities you pursue on your own time (outside of class) legitimize the core values, skills/talents, motivation, and commitment that you have written about elsewhere in your application.
How you pursue it – Colleges want students who will be leaders and who will be involved in both the college and community. Your activities showcase your leadership among your peers, your drive to pursue your passions, your commitment to bettering your world, or your resourcefulness and originality.
How big of an impact your actions have made on your school/community – Your activities and awards are a key indicator that you are a student that colleges want in their student body. They are looking for students who will become graduates – who then can become world-changers (no pressure). If it seems a leap, jumping from activities/awards to changing the world, it really isn’t. Quantifiable, evidence-based outcomes of your activities – including awards for your talent/impact/effort – demonstrate again your core values, your initiative, your diligence, and your potential. Your impact on your sphere now is the best indicator colleges have of your impact on your larger sphere in the future.
Your activities and awards can be incredibly valuable in demonstrating who you are and how you will benefit a college. Here’s the thing: if you fall into the trap of “just listing” your activities/awards, your application will leave so much potential untapped. There’s a lot of low-hanging fruit here, and you can squeeze all of the juice from it.
The first key is the character count. Know the character count allowed in each section of each application, and make the most of it. List as many specific details as possible outlining your role, responsibilities, impact, and honors. Many students don’t do this and you can have a big advantage over those students here.
In the Common App you are allowed:
10 activities
50 characters for position/leadership position and organization name
150 characters for the activity’s description
5 honors/awards
100 characters for the award title
The Coalition App is slightly different:
8 activities
64 characters for activity name
255 characters for activity description and honors/awards regarding activity
5 honors/awards
If you have listed honors/awards related to activities, you can list different ones here to maximize space
For example, let’s say you are an accomplished violinist. Some of your activities might read:
Member of string quartet (24 characters)
Performed at weddings, school functions, and other events (57 characters)
Volunteer violinist (19 characters)
Played for nursing home residents (33 characters)
These titles and descriptions don’t really say anything about you. The AO has no idea how committed you were, how impactful you were, for how many people you performed, if you had any additional responsibilities, if you were truly passionate or just ho-hum. Plus, you left SO MANY CHARACTERS just hanging there. Ouch.
Let’s use the same activities and make the most of the space. Instead, it might read:
1st violinist – charter member of string quartet (48 characters)
Played at 30 weddings, 21 school events (incl graduation) & 17 community events. Arranged pop music & alma mater. Booked clients & led logistics. (147 characters)
Volunteer musician at nursing home & hospital (45 characters)
Monthly programs at nursing home for ~50 residents. Organized seasonal recitals & learned “old favorites.” Strolling musician @ children’s hospital. (150 characters)
Now, the AO has learned SO much more about you, with the same activities. You are an effective leader, initiating the formation of the quartet and booking clients for a sizable number of gigs. You are also obviously skilled. You are inventive and creative, to arrange popular music to further your business. Additionally you are very caring and consistent with your community service at nursing homes and hospitals. You are a leader here, too, to organize programming. You are thoughtful and compassionate, seeking out and learning the nursing home residents’ favorite songs. By making the most of the character count, you have effectively showcased core values, impact, and passion.
Note that this is within the Common App character limits – much lower than the Coalition Application. If you are doing the Coalition App, you can seriously milk that for all it’s worth!
A few more tips: abbreviations and some symbols are ok here, especially if you are tight on space. Notice that I used “&” and “@.” (The last one I don’t particularly recommend, but if you need one character cut to be within the limit, go for it.) Use abbreviations with caution. You want to make life easy for the AO, not leave them searching the internet if the abbreviations aren’t well-known. If necessary/relevant you can explain in the additional information section.
The character count is also valuable when listing awards, though for only some honors. For example, National Merit Semifinalist needs no explanation. However, AOs will not be familiar with many state awards and most local awards. For example, let’s say you received the (fictional) Peter Jones Award, given to the senior in Ohio with the most impressive community service involvement, leadership, or innovation. Just listing “Peter Jones Award” means basically nothing, unless the AO googles it. (Again, don’t make your AO work hard to reward you!) Instead, use your 100 characters well: “Peter Jones Award – HS senior in OH with most exemplary comm. service, for food truck meal program.” (98 characters)This is within the character limit but explains exactly how noteworthy this honor is. AND it demonstrates that, not only have you received a high honor, but that you truly have the core values/leadership/impact to back it up. Explaining what you did to earn an award can show valuable added dimension and depth.
For international students, it might be even more necessary to explain honors/awards. While AOs are probably familiar with the biggest international awards, they don’t know every national award in every country worldwide. Play it safe by not assuming anything here and explain the award and why you received it.
One final note: if you don’t have tons of activities, honors, or awards, don’t sweat it. Every year there are plenty of applicants who don’t and are admitted to pretty great schools. Just be sure to list what you do have thoroughly, and focus on making other parts of your app exceptional.
