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i've been involved in many clubs without any leadership positions. ive never been president/vice president/or any kind of position. but i am very involved in all my clubs, unlike those people who just join clubs to write on their college apps. will not having any positions make my clubs look like application filler?

By Sally R. on Tuesday, November 12, 2002 - 09:44 pm: Edit

When you submit your applications, include a separate resume or activities list. Under each club or similar undertaking, write a couple sentences explaining your role. Don't hesitate to use humor, where appropriate. Thus, even though none of the entries will say, "President" or "Treasurer" or "Chair," you can give admission officials a true sense of your commitment (and a taste of your personality as well) by saying something like, "Greeting card salesman extraordinaire. Single-handedly kept this Spanish club afloat by knocking on every door in three counties (or so it seemed) and unloading record numbers of fundraiser boxes. Local Hallmark store soon to close due to lack of customers. My Spanish grades haven't improved, but my math marks are going up from all the accounting I've done."

In other words, let those admission folks get a glimpse at the person behind all those ECs, even if the person isn't the prez.

By Carole on Friday, November 15, 2002 - 05:14 pm: Edit

I would be cautious using that approach and being too tongue-in-cheek. Hyperbole and silliness can be fun, but really are not appropriate here and can be seen as ingenuine. Examples like the one given also don't provide any specific, tangible information, which is what the admissions counselors really want to see.

Use bullet points to list your activities without too much aggrandizement or patting yourself on the back, and show your personality in your essays. For example, "organized club fundraiser and was personally responsible for bringing in 45% of the monies raised" - let the facts speak for themselves. List any special achievements, and if possible, relate them to the overall success of whatever it is that the club achieved as a whole, similar to my example above.

You may also want to have one of your recommendations come from a teacher or other staff member who organized the club, who can attest to your dedication and energy and be the one to do the real bragging for you! The letter should emphasize that, despite not being in a traditional leadership role, you were very involved and displayed great leadership and teamwork qualities and contributed as much as, if not more than, the elected leaders.

Good luck!