How many activities did you list on your application?

[featherdelights]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Is 10 including shadowing and hobbies acceptable? Should I try to include more things to get to 15?

 

[partypantss]

Include as many significant activities you have done that are worth mentioning.

 

[BKNbkn]

I maxed out the 15 with diverse and meaningful ECs (and rightly so, as a non-trad).

Traditional students tend to have less since they're balancing a full-time credit load. Consider any meaningful activity that can be categorized in:
- Paid employment (not medical/clinical)
- Paid employment (medical/clinical)
- Community service / volunteer (not medical / clinical)
- Community service / volunteer (medical / clinical)
- Military
- Research / lab
- Teaching / tutoring
- Honors / awards / recognitions
- Conferences attended
- Presentations / posters
- Publications
- Extracurricular / hobbies / avocations
- Leadership (not listed elsewhere)
- Intercollegiate athletics
- Artistic endeavors
- Other

 

[Pagan FutureDoc]

7-10 good activities is far better than 15 activities just listed to pad your app

 

[kb1900]

10. technically 9 bc one was for awards. technically 8 bc one more was for shadowing

 

[wizzed101]

Question: What kind of impression will I make if I listed a bunch of substantial activities then a very trivial one (passing a class with an A, for example) then on the description I explained why it was so significant to me?

 

[Frogger27]

I had 15 activities that I felt were meaningful and added value to my application

 

[UberUdder09]

7-10 good activities is far better than 15 activities just listed to pad your app

I think this is decent advice. I am certain if you try to push it to 15 it would look stretched for the average person. Then again, if you put 4 or less it will look like you aren't trying (i.e. not putting effort into your app). Since the ECs are arguably the most important part of your app (see other SDN wisdom, PS + LORs = nothing) outside of numbers (GPA/MCAT), they are worth spending some consideration on.

 

[ChrisMack390]

I listed 15 but I'm old.

 

[holdthemayo]

I listed 15 but I'm old.

Same. If I had applied straight out of undergrad then I would have had less than.

I'm a Nontrad with a career and years out of school. I had to cut things to limit it to 15, but it would have been weird if I hadn't done anything worthwhile during the past 5 years.

Don't pad your application. It will waste your time and probably won't fool anyone.

 

[Goro]

That's reject territory. So superficial and juvenile, really.

Question: What kind of impression will I make if I listed a bunch of substantial activities then a very trivial one (passing a class with an A, for example) then on the description I explained why it was so significant to me?

 

[Doggo]

I think I listed around 6-7? I didn't want to put too much because I wanted whoever was reading my app to focus on the most important stuff. I didn't list any hobbies because I figured Adcoms don't really care unless you get asked in an interview what you like to do for fun.

 

[ChrisMack390]

I think I listed around 6-7? I didn't want to put too much because I wanted whoever was reading my app to focus on the most important stuff. I didn't list any hobbies because I figured Adcoms don't really care unless you get asked in an interview what you like to do for fun.

Hm. Obviously worked out for you, but I am very glad to have listed 2 hobbies on mine. I've been asked about one or both in nearly every interview!

 

[Levrone]

I put 15. But quality over quantity..

 

[DiscusKeeper]

I put 15 on mine, but that's because I had 15 activities that I felt were significant.

Put yourself in the shoes of the admissions committee. Would you rather read fewer but more meaningful activities or 15 where a lot of them are completely insignificant? The latter is incredibly annoying and makes you look bad.

You do not need 15 to get accepted. Less is more, unless you truly have 15 significant activities.

 

[featherdelights]

Same as many above.... Non-trad and I had 15, but was careful to not try and include extra in random categories just to make it look better (i.e. left out some college clubs and what not).

Thanks, yeah I have some random college clubs I did and stuff I did for one semester that I could include but feel like they weren't that meaningful. But then again I don't know if listing only 10 activities (including shadowing and hobbies) looks like I'm not putting in enough effort.

 

[featherdelights]

Question: What kind of impression will I make if I listed a bunch of substantial activities then a very trivial one (passing a class with an A, for example) then on the description I explained why it was so significant to me?

I've heard people do this with free online courses but I feel like it's not such a good idea if it was a regular school course that's on your transcript.