A lackluster extracurricular list can keep you out of many selective colleges so figuring out how to best present yourself is a must. With all the attention put on the college essay, the extracurricular part of the Common Application is often overlooked. But before you rush through it, make sure to consider the following four extracurricular list essentials:

一个出众的课后活动清单能让你在学校精心挑选中脱颖而出，让你明白在必要的时候如何最好的表现自己。在全心全意扑在课程论文上时，常见申请的课后部分通常会被忽略。但是在你完成以前，请将以下课余生活清单的必要性考虑在内：

Quantity

Some people swear that the number of extracurricular activities you do doesn’t matter. They insist that doing a few things well is better than doing a million things on a surface level. While I’m not a proponent of sending in a list of 30+ activities (at that point, it can just be annoying to the admissions officers!), most accepted students to the most elite colleges fill in 8-10 activities on the common application. That is not to say that there aren’t accepted students with fewer extracurricular activities that get in for their academic/personal accomplishments or who stand out so strongly in the few extracurricular activities they have that it compensates for a lower quantity, but in general, a fuller extracurricular list makes for a stronger application.

数量

一些人说你毫不在意的课余活动的数量，他们坚持认为做少数几件事情远比敷衍了事地完成上万件更重要。而我不是推送30多个活动列表的支持者（在这点上，这个列表只会触犯招生办），大部分被最顶尖大学录取的学生在他们的申请表中只列出了8-10个活动。这并不是说没有接受课外活动较少的学生，他们十分出色的学术和个人成就弥补了只有寥寥几件的课外活动，但在一般情况下，一个完整的课外活动列表使得有申请更有效。

If finding 8-10 extracurricular activities seems hard, think back to everything you’ve participated in over the past four years. Keep in mind that you can write down your summer activities, volunteering work (even if you only did it once for a few days), school clubs, local clubs, political activism, sports both in and out of school, music, theater, art, employment, as well as unstructured activities like baking, reading, and teaching yourself how to play the guitar. With a little creativity and reflection, most students I work with find that they have plenty they can use to fill up the list.

如果写上8-10件课外活动看起来有点困难，那就回忆在过去四年里你参与的每一件事情。记住，你可以写暑期活动，志愿者活动（即使你曾经只做了几天），学校俱乐部，当地俱乐部，政治活动，校内外的体育活动，音乐、剧院、艺术、实习以及类似于烘焙、阅读、和教自己弹吉他这样的无组织活动。及时只有一些创造性和记忆，但很多我帮助的学生都发现了足够的活动可以被写进申请表的清单里。

Quality

Although having a long list of activities is great, having a list that includes some high quality activities is also important. A high quality activity is one that you’ve shown a commitment to. It can be something you’ve done continuously for several years or something you devote a substantial amount of time to every week. Ideally, it is also an activity where you’ve managed to gain some level of distinction, either as a founder, leader or officer, or by winning some sort of award.

质量

虽然有一个长长的活动清单是很好的，但是列出高品质的活动也十分重要。一个高品质的活动是你在其中做出了贡献。这可以是这几年来你持续做的事情或者你曾经每星期都付出大量时间的事情。理想的情况下，这是一个你设法获得某种程度的区别，无论是作为一个创始人，领导人或官员，或通过赢得一些奖来区别的。

You should make sure to put the highest quality extracurriculars at the top of your extracurricular list. Those listed at the top will be the first ones your admissions officers read and will form their initial assessment of your extracurricular profile.

你应该明白把最高品质的活动放在活动列表的最前面。因为这些被放在最前面的活动通常是招生办人员最先阅读的，并且会对你形成最初的评价。

Diversity

You’ve probably heard that there are two kinds of applicants who get into competitive colleges, “pointy” and “well-rounded.” A pointy applicant is one that stands out for one particular reason. For instance, a nationally ranked tennis player would conceivably stand out as a pointy applicant. A well-rounded applicant is one who excels in many different areas – academics, music, sports, etc. – but who may not have a any particular jaw-dropping accomplishment.

多样化

你也许听说了会有两种申请人进入最具竞争力的高校，“尖子生”和“全面发展的学生”。尖子生就是在某些方面特别地突出。比如，一个全国数一数二的网球运动员就是这方面的尖子生。一个全面发展的申请人就是在很多不同的地方高人一等---学术，音乐，体育等等，但是他可能没有任何特别的令人惊叹的成就。

Both types of applicants can succeed in the admissions process, but it can be difficult to know going into the process how you will be viewed. You may think your state-wide singing award will make you appear pointy, but maybe your admissions officer won’t see that as a standout enough accomplishment to grant you acceptance largely on that basis. The best strategy – whether you think you are pointy or well-rounded – is to fill out your extracurricular list with at some degree of extracurricular diversity.

这两类申请人都能在招生过程中成功，但是这很难知道在这个过程中你将会被如何审视。你也许认为你国家级的演唱奖励会让你很突出，但是也许你的招生官不会认为这一点足够突出，也不会很大程度上基于这一点就录取你。最好的策略就是，不管你认为自己是尖子生还是全面发展的，在清单中列出多种多样的课外活动。

Even if you see yourself as primary an athlete, try to put some artistic, community service-oriented, or civic pursuit on your extracurricular list. If you are a star member of your math team, see if you can add some less academic activities to your application like baking, theater, or art. While your primary focus may be in one area, showing that you can be more than one thing can help you seem more human to an admissions officer and convince them that you are the kind of student who will take advantage of the opportunities presented in a liberal arts institution.

即使你认为自己最初是运动员，但要尝试写上一些艺术、社区服务或者城市范围的活动在列表里。如果你在自己的数学小组中是一个佼佼者，那你可以在申请表里写一些不关乎学术，比如烘焙、剧院或者艺术。在你最初只关注某一个一个方面的同时，也应该在更多事情上显现自己，这可以帮助你显得更人性并且让你的招生官相信你就是能在文科学院运用自己长处充分表现自己的学生。

Clarity

One of the most overlooked aspects of the extracurricular list is clarity. You might know what the YRE Club is at your school but that doesn’t mean your admissions officer understands that means the Young Robotics Enthusiasts Club. Furthermore, just because you say you are the president of the YRE doesn’t mean your admissions officer has any clue that as president, you were required to organize five trips to local universities and robotics competitions, that you had to spend ten hours per week supervising robotics projects, or that you launched an annual school-wide robotics expo.

清晰性

清晰性是在罗列活动清单时最容易被忽略的一方面。你也许知道学校里的YRE俱乐部，但是这并不意味着你的招生官知道这就是年轻机器人爱好者俱乐部。更多地，因为你只是说了你是YRE俱乐部的部长，这不意味着你的招生官清楚作为一个部长，你需要组织5次与当地学校一起的机器人比赛。并且你需要每周花10个小时监视机器人项目，或者你需要退出全校范围的机器人展览。

It is your responsibility to make sure your admissions officer knows exactly what your extracurricular activities mean and what the position entails. There is a small amount of space given on the Common Application to explain the nature of the extracurricular activity and your leadership position. If you feel that you cannot adequately explain your role in this space, write up a description elsewhere and attach it to the last page of the application where you are able to send in any additional information you feel is pertinent for the admissions committee to review.

让招生官清楚地知道你课余活动具体的职责是你的责任。通常，常见的申请表只留了一小部分来解释课余活动的性质和你的领导地位。如果你觉得你不能充分解释自己的角色，那就在申请表的最后一页---如果合适，你需要提交额外信息给招生部门浏览的页面，写下职位描述。

It would be a shame to lose out on getting credit for all of your hard work and efforts purely because of lack of clarity.

如果因为不能清除表达自己在活动中的辛苦和努力而丢失了一些分数，是很可惜的。

There is a lot to think about when it comes to your college application, but don’t overlook your extracurricular list. You must be honest about the activities you have done up to this point, and to some extent you are stuck with what you have, but most students I’ve worked with find that they can adhere to these principles if they spend enough time reflecting on the things they’ve naturally done while in high school. Chances are, you’ve likely invested hundreds, if not thousands, of hours pursuing your interests outside of the classroom, and you have every reason to make them count!

在你填写大学申请表格的时候，有很多东西需要思考，但是不要忽略你的课外活动列表。在这一点上，你必须诚实地去写自己做过的事情，在某种程度上，你就是你所拥有的。但是我帮助的很多学生坚持一些原则，如果他们花足够的事情回忆高中时候自发做的事情。机会就是你已经花了上百个小时的时间，如果不是上千个小时追求自己的课外兴趣的话，你还是有很多理由让他们变得更加有意义！

翻译：洪艳

原文转自：http://thecollegematchmaker.com/master-common-apps-extracurricular-section/

文中生词：

Swear：v.发誓；咒骂n.发誓，宣誓；咒骂

1)If someone swears, they use language that is considered to be rude or offensive, usually because they are angry.

2)发誓要；郑重承诺If you swear to do something, you promise in a serious way that you will do it.

3)If you say that you swear that something is true or that you can swear to it, you are 4)If someone is sworn to secrecy or is sworn to silence, they promise another person that they will not reveal a secret.

Pointy：Something that is pointy has a point at one end.有尖头的；尖的

Pertinent：Something that is pertinent is relevant to a particular subject.有关的，相干的；恰当的，中肯的；关于…的；切题的

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