The Twitter Method of Resume Writing

So the CommonApp is changing in a big way for this upcoming app season.
And this next class of applicants? You are the guinea pigs.

You’ve lost essay of choice, but, worse, you’ve lost the “Upload a Resume” option.

While you may be able to sneak it in somehow (send it by snail-mail to the school, upload it in the “additional info” session), more likely you will have to conform to CommonApps standards.

So basically, here’s how it’s going to work.

You get 10 spaces for activities. You get 1 line to describe each activity and list your accomplishments.

Which… quite frankly… sucks.

So let’s delve into this.

10 slots for activities is… honestly not that bad.

Some of us have more than 10. But lets be honest, how many of you have more than 10 activities that you are incredibly passionate about and have a ton of involvement in? I think you can narrow down that list to 10 if you needed to.

And if you cant? You should probably devote a little more time to the activities that are important to you.

But for those who really need to make deep cuts:
Take off anything that is “one time” that isn’t incredibly impressive. Take off any club in HS that you only did for a short amount of time. Cut out anything that’s redundant (multiple lessons, anything that’s implied, etc). Cut anything that is more a “hobby” than a legitimate extracurricular (creative writing, exercising, blogging, etc.)

Also, you do not need to have 10 slots filled. You’re better off with 3 or 4 quality activities than 10 sub-par ones.

So the easy part is done. Now how are you supposed to put 4 years of commitment into one line of text?

What I call the “Twitter Method.”

We are the social media generation, and if anyone can write a mind-blowing description in 140 characters or less… it’s us.

So here’s how to tackle those descriptions.

All officer positions first (with years if they’re multiple, w/o if they’re once).

Then hrs/week (if there isn’t already a slot for it on the app). If it’s a summer program just write “Summer.”

Then, if you can, describe what you do in the club. Short and sweet. Hit the big points.

Awards are last.

 If the club needs to be explained, try to explain it in the title. It will save you space in your description, and make everything easier.
Ex: ACTIVITY: “Association of Creative Thespians” (Drama Club)
Ex: ACTIVITY: “Table Top Troupe” (Board Game Club)

I can’t remember if there is a slot for how many years you participated (I think there is). If there is not, just put it first (ex: 9-12, or 10-12), before your officer positions.

I don’t know how many characters you get, but there will be a limit. So try to be as concise as you can.

Make sure you write out everything before you try to enter it into the CommonApp. First of all, you’ll be able to make sure everything you’re writing looks good and makes sense.
Secondly, you want to make sure your phrasing sounds nice and is grammatically correct.

Third, in case you find out there is less space than you thought, you can play around with everything to make the best descriptions you can.

The resume is going to be a rough bet this year, so make sure you’re polished and ready to go.

Respecting our Google-y Overlords

So the internet is a scary place, is it not?

It’s full of information and articles.
It has art and advice and entertainment.
But it’s also full of some pretty personal stuff.

One of the best pieces of advice I got when I was applying to college came from my totally awesome AP Stats teacher. He was really dry-humored, sarcastic and a little bit mean, which is basically a formula for being my favorite teacher.
This was a class with an interesting mix of, 1. People who had never taken an AP class before and were in way over their heads. 2. People who didn’t want to take AP Calc but still cared. And 3. People who were taking it as an elective, who were really good at the class but didn’t care at all.

He took a day off from teaching us AP Stat to tell us to go home and Google ourselves.

So my high school had this absolutely disgusting tradition called “Road Rally” which has (allegedly) been discontinued. It was only done by a tiny subset of the senior class, but basically it was a XXX rated scavenger hunt.
The school tried (and failed) every year to stop it from happening.

Because what happened?
Every year, without fail, a video or picture would get leaked. Meaning everyone would see it. And let’s just say that, considering nobody is 18 yet in October of senior year with NY cutoffs being in December, the nature of these videos could have people placed in jail.

Now this in an incredibly extreme case. An incredibly extreme case.

But that’s not to say that you may not have things up on the internet that you would rather the world not see. Make sure to change your Facebook settings so you can’t be Googled. Same for things like Pinterest, Etsy, and YouTube.

Set your twitter on private, and delete any photos you’d rather an adcom not see from your Instagram.

Make sure your Tumblr can’t be traced to you if it has personal things. Especially if it has admissions things (if an adcom Googles you, finds your admissions blog, and see’s that you classify their school as a “safety” what do you think will happen?)

I talk about applying to grad school from time to time on here, but I never mention schools by name. There’s a reason for that.

So when I was in high school, if you Googled my name, a few things came up.

My facebook (which was open because it was very clean and polished… it still sort of is). An article written about a play I was in. An article about national merit written by my school (where they listed everyone who was commended, semifinalist, and finalist). The website for my drama club. My forensics ranking. And that’s about it.

Now if you Google me?
Basically the same thing. My profile on the prospect. This website. My contributions to relay for life this year. Some clubs I’m in at College. But mostly the woman in Florida who shares my name.

I still come off as likable, fairly intelligent, and most importantly, normal.

Be careful what can be traced back to you. Be careful of your online presence.

Because you want an adcom to Google you and go “Oh cool here’s an article about that thing they wrote and essay on “ or “Oh wow here’s a picture of them from prom on their school’s website, they’re really really ridiculously good-looking”

They do not want to see a picture of you smoking a bong and flipping off the camera.

Be mindful that things like Google exist in our world. Be careful everyone. See what comes up.

FOUR-eign languages

(Excuse the terrible pun. I’m proud of it. It’s late at night)

So when it comes to schedules, there are a few “gold standard” classes you want to hit.

Among them is four years of a single foreign language.

I’ve talked about this before, but I’ll rehash some of the benefits.

Fourth year is indicative of a rigorous and complete schedule

Four years shows commitment to “world citizenship”

Many colleges will waive a language requirement for those who have taken the fourth year of a language.

So, in general, I will always tell you to take the fourth year of a language.

But, obviously, there is never a one-size-fits-all answer in college admissions.

So here are some of the reasons you might not take the fourth year of your language, and why they’re okay. This is by no means a comprehensive list, but these are the most common reasons.

Your School Doesn’t Offer It

Plain and simple. Some schools only have 2 or 3 years of a language. Maybe your school cut the program for funding. Maybe you moved and your new school doesn’t teach your language. No worries. Colleges do not expect you to take classes that don’t exist. So take up to the highest level you can, and that will look great.

Your School Only Offers a Level You Can’t Handle

This is another pretty common one. Some schools only offer AP, or an incredibly rigorous class for seniors.  And for many of us who aren’t as talented in languages, this could be a practice in self-inflicted torture. If you can’t handle the class, don’t take it. You’re better off kicking butt in your other classes than having a “D” senior year.

You are dropping it to take an extra, very rigorous, elective

This one is a little less clear cut. But in this case, you have to know yourself and know your passions. In this case I would strongly advise against it (I know I recently spoke to someone who wanted to drop Spanish 3 in favor of Latin, and convinced him otherwise), but if you can’t pass up the opportunity, don’t. Do what makes you happy.

You are dropping it to take an elective you are passionate about

Another one that’s less clear-cut. But if you cannot, for the life of you, imagine getting through the day without taking studio art, you have to do what’s best for you. Which might be not taking a language.

There is a scheduling error and you can’t fit it in

This one actually happened to me my senior year. I was signed up to take Dual-Enrollment Spanish, but there was no possible way to fit it in with my other electives. So I was given a choice, AP (which there was no way I could handle, I have no talent at languages) or regular. I signed up for regular (which was actually an awesome and really fun class). But I made sure that my guidance counselor noted it on my application that I wasn’t taking the more difficult class because of a scheduling error. If you tried and failed to get into the class, make sure it’s on your app.

I would say that the only wrong reason to drop your language is “I hate languages.”

Sorry, you’re in high school; you’re going to have to take things you don’t like.


So while I strongly advise that you take four years of a single foreign language, I know that it’s not going to work for everyone. So take some initiative, and pick the path that’s best for you.

How to deal with Affirmative Action

So Fisher v. Texas got a ruling… Sort of.

Wait, What’s Fisher v. University of Texas?

Fisher v. Texas is a court case about everyone’s favorite hot-button issue, Affirmative Action.

Basically, an applicant was rejected from the University of Texas at Austin. She was on the low-end of the middle 50% SAT wise, and was in the top 15% of her class (the top 10% of students are automatically admitted, so she was applying for one of the 20% of spots in the incoming class that remained).

She sued the school, saying that she was being discriminated against for being white.

If I were advising her, with her package, I would have told her that The University of Texas was a high match and that she was being ridiculous.

But nobody had the heart to tell her this, so the case went all the way to the Supreme Court.

The ruling of the court was basically a non-ruling. It did basically nothing about using race as an admissions criteria, neither condoning nor condemning the practice.

But, as it is, race is still a totally valid criteria for holistic college admissions.

And you know what? It should be.

I say this as a White Jewish girl from the North East. Which isn’t quite being Asian on the “Holy crap, way too many of us apply to college and it’s way harder for us to get in,” scale, but is pretty high up there.

So where I’m from there is a pretty common argument against using race… Basically, “Ugh they’re taking spots away from more qualified students”

Or you’ll hear someone whine “Ugh that kid took my spot!”

Well guess what? You don’t have a spot.

Nobody has a spot.
The admissions committees are allowed to accept students on whatever criteria they prefer.  They can dole out “spots” as they choose. And having a diverse group of people makes the campus more interesting.

You might think oh but my SAT scores are so much higher! I’m so much more qualified!

Well what makes you qualified?

The whole point of holistic admissions is that a variety of factors are taken into account. Your personality. Your life story. Your background. Your Passions. And yes, this can include your race.

We could have numerical admissions. Where it is entirely about your SAT/ACT score. But that could make colleges so homogenous. And that takes away from what makes college so interesting.

You want a variety of people from a variety of backgrounds.

I will be the first to say that if I did not have the opportunities I was given (like an amazing public school with an incredible curriculum, supportive parents, a crap load of tutors and extra help from teachers who cared) I wouldn’t have been as academically successful as I was in High School.

Affirmative Action has the good intentions to give those who succeeded without advantages the opportunities to thrive. To go to a great school. To get that education. Even if on paper they’re not as numerically qualified, things like a unique background or an incredible work ethic trump that.


And you are now thinking, “But I know someone who had all of the same opportunities as me who got into a school they shouldn’t have because they were (insert URM here).”

Well that stinks. But they still weren’t taking “your spot.”

Because you don’t have a spot.

I know that it sucks that some people have what you perceive to be an “unfair” edge. Or some people “abuse” the system.

Maybe affirmative action should be adjusted to be more economically based, instead of racially based. Or geographically based.

But universities should be able to accept students on whatever standards they deem important. Yes, even public universities.

Because I don’t know about you, but I really don’t want politicians deciding who gets into my school.

So yes, sometimes affirmative action sucks. But sometimes it does great things for people who worked hard. And yes, affirmative action and the use of race in admissions needs to be adjusted for the realities of today.

But stop complaining about it because you think it’s hurting your chances somewhere. And please don’t sue a school over it.

What “Monsters University” teaches us about college.

A College-Admissions fanatic and a TA/RA walk into Monsters University… and enjoy it a lot more than any of the little kids in the theatre.

Sounds like a joke, but was actually my experience in seeing the movie.

While my boyfriend and I had some initial reactions to the movie (Him: RAs did not play a big enough role in their lives, and Me: I really feel the take-home message was that if your grades suck your Greek organization will kick you out) it does have a lot of really great life-lessons about college.

(Minor spoilers ahead)

First of all, Pre-Meds, go watch that movie knowing that “Scaring” major is an excellent metaphor for pre-meds. Watch Mike’s experience in particular.
Because even though Mike wants it the most, he’s not the best. He can work harder than everyone else; it’s just not the right fit for him. Just like pre-med.
When you start college, about ½ to 1/3 of people you meet will be premeds. A few weed-out classes later, it’s just a tiny fraction of the student population. It’s hard, and they want to separate the boys from the men. So don’t be discouraged if that’s not where you end up. You might have a different calling, one you haven’t found yet. So explore.

On that note, one of the teachers in the movie reminds the monster’s on their first day that even though they were the “Biggest, Scariest” monsters in their hometowns, that’s not the case in college.
A lot of people at your school were the smartest student in their high school. You also were probably one of the smartest students in your high school. But your whole class is made up of that, so don’t get a complex about no longer being the best. It’s not about competition, it’s about learning.

One excellent warning that hits close to home for so many is the experience of roommates in the movie. When Mike goes in to meet his freshman roommate for the first time, he says something along the lines of “Your best friend for life is behind that door.”

Yeah, do not have those expectations when you start school. If you are even tolerating your roommate by the end of the year you’re doing well. It’s great if your friends, but don’t be too upset if you’re not. Low expectations are really the way to go with roommates.

Though, the room in the frat house that Mike and Sully share is probably the best movie representation of a dorm room I’ve ever seen. Your dorm room is probably going to be a tiny, incontinently set up closet. Prepare for that.

The movie focuses a lot on the rivalry of Mike and Sully when they get to school. They’re the perfect examples of the try hard vs. the natural. Their bickering gets them both into big trouble in the movie. While they eventually find some common ground, their needless rivalry causes more harm than good.
So when you get to school actual rivals aren’t really a thing. But competition? Oh yeah.
Don’t get needlessly competitive with your classmates.  Even if a class is on a bell-curve (an absolutely draconian method that’s pretty common in college), you’re always better collaborating with your classmates, pooling your knowledge, and helping each other out. Otherwise you’re going to end up in big trouble.

Finally, and this is a big one in the movie, don’t base your opinions on people from your initial reactions of them. At the beginning of school, everyone is nervous. Everyone is trying really hard, so people are going to be caricatures of themselves. Just because you don’t like someone first semester freshman year doesn’t mean you’re not going to be good friends later on. One of my friends at school and I hated each other freshman year. Legitimately hated each other’s guts. And then one night, before classes of sophomore year started, we were at the same party and had a really long conversation and decided (in fact, we pinky promised) that we were going to be friends that year. And so we are. People change, so let them surprise you.

All in all, college students are probably going to find a lot to love about Monsters University, so make sure to check it out. It’s really an adorable, funny, heart-felt movie.

How to slack senior year, WITHOUT getting rescinded

One of my sister’s students got rescinded from their school.

Rescinded is a big fancy word for having your acceptance taken away. And yes, that is possible.

Generally speaking, getting rescinded will happen for one of three reasons:

1. School discovers you were dishonest (lied on your application, put two deposits down, applied ED to two schools, etc)
2. You got in trouble (arrested, suspended, expelled, etc.)

3. You slacked off and your grades dropped.

I’m not going to talk about numbers 1 and 2 today (because, really, you shouldn’t let those happen under any circumstances). Today is all about 3.

Because senioritis is inevitable, so knowing how to control it is key to keeping your cozy spot at a school.

So here’s how to slack safely.

Know the threshold:

Though “grades dropping” is a very relative term, there is a basic line that most schools use.

2 or more Cs, any D, and any F. These are hard-lines that apply to quarter, semester, and final grades.
If you are normally a C student, the 2 or more C rule doesn’t really apply, because that’s your typical performance. But if you’re an A student, you shouldn’t be getting Cs at all.

Often if you’re in the iffy zone (2 Cs, or a semester D with an overall higher grade) they’ll ask you to write an appeal about why your grades dropped. Senioritis is not the answer to that question. So don’t let that happen. Keep an eye on your grades and don’t let them slip that much.

Have your guarantee

Do not get senioritis until you have an acceptance in hand. Do NOT slack first semester AT ALL. If you’re normally an A+ student, getting 3 As first semester will look like slacking (unless there was a significant increase in rigor), and can impact how an admissions committee looks at you.
So when can you get senioritis?

Time it well
Senioritis is inevitable, but let it wait. You should be working just as hard up until January when your apps are all in and wrapped up. Then you can let yourself slip a little bit. This means getting a B+ or skipping a few homeworks, not failing a test or two.

Know the values

So I had very calculated senioritis. I knew that if I could get As on all of my AP stat tests I could only turn in half of my homework and still get a B+. So yes, after I got my early decision admission back, I slacked on the homework when I had a busy week.

On the other hand, skipping my AP Lit homework would result in me failing the class, because the value placed on it was much higher.

If your school won’t take your AP credit, just nap through the tests because it won’t matter. If your school does take them, try a little harder and get those credits.

Know where you can slack and where you can’t. Don’t make the mistake of skipping a project when it turns out it’s 10% of your final grade.

Slacking is relative

So even though I did have what I would call a raging case of senioritis, I still had As in a lot of my classes. The one’s I cared a lot about (AP Micro, Spanish, Forensic Science, Theater) I still worked really hard in. The one’s I cared less about (AP Stat, AP Lit) I did less work for. I still got high Bs in those classes (B and B+), which were not great, but were not going to get me rescinded.

The point of slacking senior year is that you’re supposed to relax. But don’t relax too much. There’s a big difference between skipping a homework and skipping a week of school. Be careful, be calculating, and use that little bit of extra time to enjoy yourself.

Senioritis is a privilege, so don’t abuse it.

It’s the Little Things: Party Scene

When you’re looking at colleges you’re going to look at academics a whole lot. But you also want to take a nice hard look at the nightlife as well.

Because as great as class is, a big part of college is what happens on the weekends.

So when you’re looking at a school, make sure to find out what the party scene is like.

Some schools are famous for it. There are lists and reviews and websites all about the biggest “Party schools”

At a school like that, weekends are Wednesday-Sunday. Nobody takes Friday classes. If you’re not going out 3+ nights a week you have no social life.
The big crazy parties with kegs and DJs you see in movies? Yeah. The parties at these schools are like that.

Drinking is part of the campus culture, and so are drugs. Weed is easy to come by, coke is common, and “party drugs” like molly are available to those who know.

A school like this is going to be a fun four years. But academics might fall by the wayside, and social life is what dominates.

Then there are the “Work Hard-Play Hard” schools in the middle.

These schools have a big party scene, but it’s mostly contained to a college weekend (Thursday-Sunday). The academics are hard and you’re expected to do a lot of work. At the same time, nobody is going to be in the library on Saturday night, no matter how stressed they are.

The parties at these schools aren’t quite movie quality, but you can see some of the inspiration.

These schools have a lot of alcohol and drugs, but they’re not as overbearing as the scene at a party school. 

The nightlife is a big part of the culture, but it’s not the only part.

On the other end of the spectrum are schools like mine, those that have “no party scene.”  AKA: Where fun goes to die

This is a school where nightlife takes a backseat to academics. Weekends are Thursday-Saturday, with Sunday night being a “work night,” because you have class Monday morning. If you want to stay in to study, nobody will judge you. You’ll be hard pressed to find a party during the week, and you might have to ask around to find something during high-pressure times like finals.

There are groups of partiers, but it’s definitely not the majority.

Alcohol is pretty easy to come by, but drugs are still pretty underground. Weed is easy, but anything harder is a really nichey market.

The thing is, that even if a school doesn’t have a big party scene, it does have parties.
A fun goes to die school will have parties. They’re a bit calmer and lower budget than other schools, but there are frats and dance parties and lots of alcohol.  But not everyone participates. Not drinking is fine, if that’s what you choose to do.

And if a school does have a big party scene, you’ll still be able to find friends who aren’t into that. The type of friends who want to hang out in small groups on Saturdays, rather than go out dancing.

You’ll be able to find your niche wherever you go. So as important as nightlife is (and it is important) you’ll be able to find a group who lives your type of lifestyle if you’re looking for it.

But make sure that you’re going to be comfortable with the type of school you attend, because while it is possible, it’s a whole lot easier to find those friends when they’re the majority.