As the title says above, I created a petition for a particular issue that I care deeply about and have close connection to through a flat mate.
This particular issue will most likely never be fixed and I don’t think a petition will change that. However, I did campaign for the petition, advertise it using social media and other channels, and talk to people around my campus so that they’d sign the petition.
Is there any way I can spin this as a good positive even though I know, and the admissions people will likely know, that nothing will change with regards to this issue?
Again, as per your other post, it’s **what you have done **that adds to your resume.
Trying to put a “spin” on something just says that you grasping for straws.
Your biggest attributes are your grades and your test scores.
Everything else is an EC.
Depending on the schools, they may or may not place emphasis on your EC’s.
As an international transfer, you have to hope that they have space for you.
Well, I mean I have a 35 ACT, perfect SAT 2 scores and my test scores are pretty damn great. But, with that said, every kid applying will have a 35 ACT and great test scores etc. I don’t exactly have anything that differentiates me other than I’ve done a lot of work in my local community. But everyone’s done work in their local community.
Technically, this is something I have done that adds to my resume. It taught me a hell of a lot about campaigning, reaching out to people etc. and persuading them to believe in a cause that I’m deeply involved in.
I’ve also shown my local MP and he’s willing to create legislation etc. for that issue. Therefore, that’s something I can put on my resume that I’m championing a cause and getting politically involved.
The best thing I have going for me is that I can afford to pay the $70k a year fees so I’m full pay at some need-aware schools. With that said however, there are so many internationals in my position.
You could write about the petition experience in an essay (if transfer students have to do essays). You can put “created a petition for city to ban straws and gathered 2300 signatures” in your EC list. It doesn’t matter if the petition is hopeless, I don’t think…unless it was frivolous (example: “created a petition to raise minimum wage by 200%” or the petition makes you look bad or clueless “petitioned to legalize marizuana for teenagers”
Effectively, one of my close friends in my flat is from Yemen and his parents have had to flee several times. So I’ve been campaigning on raising awareness of Saudi Arabia’s bombing campaign in Yemen because I was deeply moved by his story. Not many people seem to be aware that the Saudis are currently bombing Yemen at university.
The petition was in regards to being less entangled with Saudi Arabia and reducing our involvement (my country’s involvement) with Saudi Arabia. I’ve shown the petition to my local MP and he might be willing to sponsor legislation (that will likely not go anywhere).
You can include it. At this point, it will not tip you in. Partly because nothing has come of it. And it appears you did this solo, not as part of a mature organization, led by experienced folks.
Yeah. You’re right. It was solo and not organised by experienced folks. The main aim was to raise awareness rather than change anything in particular.
But could I not frame it as on-going - my academic university recommender could talk about it with regards to “currently working with my MP” closely on this issue which is technically true. It’s just that the legislation would have no hope of passing at all.
I agree this isn’t going to tip things in your favor. As passionate as you are about the cause, it doesn’t seem you’ve been active in it very long, and with mixed results at best.
I would revisit the “lot of work” you have done for your community. It’s true that a lot of people do volunteer work, but that doesn’t diminish your contributions. You may be able to weave your activism into that story… a new challenge by way of helping a neighbor.p
I mean I’ve helped raise £10,000 for local charities in my area etc. but that’s not really a huge achievement and technically I did it part of an organization. Lol, all this just looks like I’m grasping at straws which is mostly true.
Literally, I’m at that point where my academics are pretty great but my ECs aren’t exactly going to be “tipping” the boat into any institution.
I mean if it’s fairly obvious to everyone here (and me included) that I’m grasping at straws, it’s gonna be obvious to an admissions committee.
I take solace in the fact that the only good thing is that I’m at least in a position where I can easily afford a $70k a year school lmao. But not even that helps that much.
“But everyone’s done work in their local community.”
You’d be surprised how many don’t.
I disagree with some others here. It won’t make or break an application necessarily but it is worth including and, IMO, it shows many skills including leadership and initiative, things colleges like. You just have to wordsmith it. You don’t need to be “successful” in your effort for it to have meaning - either with your time spent or your college applications. You did it, you learned skills by doing it. That’s what matters. Honestly I think it is more impressive you did this on your own rather than through some big organization that would hold your hand and direct you each step of the way.
I’d include it in your activities section of the application, something like:
Grassroots/Community Organizer - Spearheaded a self-directed campus-wide initiative to blah, blah; experience with social media promotion, public speaking, petition creation and promotion, fundraising, coordination with local legislators