College Applications: How Important is the Resume?

When applying to college, how much emphasis should I place on my resume? Are there any examples or templates that might give me a better idea of what colleges are looking for?

In the college application process, your resume is not typically the main focus, but it can be beneficial in certain situations. For instance, it's an excellent tool to organize and keep track of all your activities and awards over the years, which can be helpful when filling out your Activity List in the Common App, Coalition App, or UC App. Moreover, many highly selective schools offer the opportunity to submit an activities resume, which gives you more space to detail your activities.

When constructing your resume, you'd want to include your education, extracurricular activities, awards & honors, work experience, volunteer work, and any special skills or hobbies you have. It's typically best to limit the content of your resume to just the high school years (9th-12th grades), with the most significant and recent activities towards the beginning.

With regard to formatting, I recommend keeping it clean, easy to read, and straight to the point. Utilize bullet points to detail your responsibilities and achievements for each activity. Remember, admissions officers read hundreds of applications, so it's important to keep your resume concise and easy to scan.

As for examples, there are no strict templates that perfectly work for all applicants as each student's resume will differ based on their individual experiences. However, online resources like CollegeVine can offer general advice on structuring a resume for college applications. Again, the key is to provide clear and concise information about your accomplishments, roles, and responsibilities in your activities.

Please also keep in mind the process of creating a resume is often one of valuable self-reflection. It forces you to take a step back and review all you've accomplished throughout high school. This reflection can be particularly important when writing your essays, as they often ask you to reflect on personal experiences.