Common App Activities
In addition to the dreaded 650-word Common App Essay and the numerous college-specific supplemental essays your child will have to write, they’ll also need to complete the Common App Activities section when applying to college.
Whereas the Common App Essay will show college admissions committees who your child is, the Common App Activities section will allow colleges to understand what your child has done and is doing outside of the classroom, offering one of the best opportunities to stand out among other applicants.
Without college essays and extracurricular activities lists, colleges would be limited to grades, class rank, and ACT and SAT scores to make their admissions decisions. Given that so many students with strong numbers apply to college each year, it’s important for your child to use the Activities section to develop an application theme—that is, to highlight their “it factor” and specialties.
Before we get into writing tips and sample extracurricular descriptions, let’s go over a few Activities section basics:
What qualifies as an activity?
According to Common App, “activities may include arts, athletics, clubs, employment, personal commitments, and other pursuits.” In other words, pretty much anything pursued outside the classroom qualifies as an activity.
Since nearly anything counts as an activity, can my child include activities done on an informal basis?
Yes. Your child can include activities that were organized formally as well as those activities that may have only involved your child. Examples of the former might be sports teams and school clubs whereas examples of the latter include activities and hobbies your child may also participate in independently, such as reading or scrapbooking. Additionally, your child may perform community service as part of a team or alone. Either way, it could count as an impactful activity for the Common App.
How many activities can be listed?
Your child may list up to 10 activities.
What are the word or character limits for each activity?
Common App sets the following limits for each activity:
Position/Leadership description: 50 characters
Organization name: 100 characters
Activity description, including what your child accomplished and any recognition they received: 150 characters
As you can see, there is very limited space offered for each activity, so we’ll be discussing how to maximize the impact of each entry below.
What other information does Common App collect for each activity?
Common App requests the following information for each activity:
Activity type (e.g., art, athletics, community service, debate/speech, foreign language, research, social justice, work)
Participation grade levels (9, 10, 11, 12, post-graduate)
Timing of participation (during school year, during school break, all year)
Hours spent per week
Weeks spent per year
Whether or not your child intends to participate in a similar activity in college (yes/no)
(Note: It is acceptable for your child to indicate their intention to participate in certain similar activities in college, but not others.)
