@Dave_N Agree with @CT1417. If a for specific school app, the school should have listed what kind of resume it should be. Example is UMD. They ask for an activities resume. D edited it to only have activities. If a resume is to be used for interview and/or when it is meant to give an overview of the students (the receiver does not have all the info handy), I would think you want to make it comprehensive.
@Dave_N – sorry – I thought you were talking about the common app - not resume. We did not put GPA or test info on resume bc it was on Common App, transcript, official score reports being sent & GC report - GC said do not repeat that info on the resume. But if giving a resume for an interview, why not include it?
S17’s school does not rank or calculate GPA so we did not put it on the resume but he did put his testing scores. This was for Georgetown and they are not CA so added it on under education.
We put gpa and test scores at the top of the resume for interviews and to give to recommenders as a reference tool but are not using a resume for any apps. With the exception of one school that needs a music resume for a scholarship app but we’ve not created one yet.
I don’t think it’s wise or fair to give an interviewer a resume that lists GPA or awards. The alumni interviewers are only given the name and contact information of the student, not specific academic info. I think the reason is that the interviewer should have no preconceived notions of the student, and judge them more on their presentation of themselves. Interviewers, in turn, are not supposed to ask the interviewee where else they are applying (though my older daughter encountered this inquiry a couple of times in the dozen or so interviews she had. She was deliberately vague on the topic and said that her GC and parents insisted that she apply to the flagship state university.)
Thanks for all the input. This is one of those ambiguous areas in the process that I don’t really like. Admissions offices really like their information asymmetry here.
One app says:
“Please make sure you complete the Activities section of the Common Application. If you would like to highlight additional activities, you may upload a brief resume”
So, D wants to be competitive for merit aid here, but as far as reasonably significant activities I think the 10 on the common section is enough. The academic / activity resume here seems like a repeat, although there is more space for “description and color” of the most important activities. The resume makes it clearer about being hired by the place where she has the majority of her volunteer experience.
Another says:
“If you wish to submit your résumé, you may upload it here.”
I’m thinking D is not adding anything new here really. But she wants to be competitive for merit aid.
The engineer in me is slipping out. SHUTUP AND JUST TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT ME TO BUILD!
I guess I’m leaning more towards submitting for these two. Between a tired admissions reader missing something and a tired admissions reader getting irritated for seeing the same thing twice, we’ll error on the side of submitting it.
Now is an appropriate time for me to plug UVa again and their box of “Stuff we didn’t ask for and won’t look at.” D 17 not interested in UVa though.
Good times…
I see the resume as a quick way to see everything in one place unlike the common app. D used her standard expanded resume.
Help! Where is there an activity resume asked for on UMD-CP’s app?? I’m going out of town w dh (anniversary :D) and returning 10/28. I thought D had filled everything in, minus the essay she had to upload. Argh!
@WhereIsMyKindle Towards the end. You upload a PDF.
Son of a gun.
Thanks @itsgettingreal17
20 some kids in our house… D’s 3rd annual swim team Halloween party in full swings…I am relaxing after a day of baking, decorating, cooking, cleaning, offering constructive feedback on essays and be ignored. As of today, she submitted 1/3 of her total applications!
I think I had a little milk come out my nose just now. 
Seems like that would make for a pretty plain resume, and anyone not putting a GPA is either at a disadvantage, or simply doesn’t have a great GPA (not that there’s anything wrong with it). I don’t have a problem with interviewers asking about other schools, either, even though it’s possibly awkward for the student.
@Dave_N wrote: SHUTUP AND JUST TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT ME TO BUILD!
Oh man, that would certainly be helpful!! :-?
@hadmeathello I’m speaking only from my own limited experience with my children’s college process. It is not customary at our high school to show up for alumni interviews with a resume in hand. Neither of my children has been asked for one or was one expected. Perhaps it’s different at your high school. I know MIT specifically recommends against this practice|
http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/interview-tips-from-an-mit-educational-counselor
I also don’t see the upside of sharing with the Tulane interviewer the desire to go to Vanderbilt, Princeton, or Rice. do you? I see it as an opportunity to convince the interviewer that their school X is my number one choice hands down.
But in the scheme of things, the interviews are a very small part of the whole process. If the interviewer has spent an hour with your kid, he or she will have a great understanding of what kind of student the kid is and the resume and GPA are pretty redundant at that point.
@chillkitty Wow. That link was interesting. Who knew? As far as our HS, they aren’t even aware of interviews, or give any of these guidelines. We’ve been winging it, and so far D has forwarded a copy of her resume to the interviewer on all 3 occasions. Oops! I’m pretty sure she’s been thanked for sending it, but who knows if they read it.
Yeah, I would suggest to my D to dance around that ‘other school’ question. I’m not sure yet of a great answer, without flat out lying. I just don’t have a problem with the interviewer asking it.
@hadmeathello Yes, it is dicey when interviewers start asking about other schools on your list. I remember D15 being asked, “Well if University X is your first choice, why didn’t you apply ED?” She handled it pretty well and said that even though it University X was her dream school, she needed to be able to compare financial offers among schools. The interviewer seemed to respect this answer (which was the truth!) and think that was a mature way of thinking about it.
Rice U used at have the question “What other schools are you applying to?” right on it’s application! It might have been labeled as an “optional” question, but still! I think it might have been dropped because, really, what point does that serve?
@chillkitty Some kids have been told by the interviewer to bring their resume so I think it is dependent on the situation. Interviewers have been very specific as to whether they want a resume or an activities resume. Wise or fair is out the window once it is requested and it seems to be a common occurrence.
@Dave_N I think you should add a resume if it’s additional activities not already included on common app but if after 10 activities permitted on common app it hasn’t made it on there, is it that important of an activity to the applicant? I would take them literally and upload a resume only if 1) there are additional activities and would limit it to being an activities resume and 2) an activity has such significance that it deserves additional attention. For your D17, can she fit in volunteer to hire without adding in a full resume to add that point?
Some of the schools are asking for the student to identify their most meaningful activity and write a brief essay on it. If the school asks that question, that is the best place to elaborate on an activity already listed in the activities section. I’ve also found some of the supplemental questions provide the opportunity to include information on the activities in the essays asking the student to tell the school about themselves or even the “Why X?” if it can be rolled into why the applicant is a good candidate for the school.
For a school that is not common app, add the resume where the activities/ honors section is not as extensive as what is permitted on common app. Georgetown only permits 5 activities and 3 honors so uploading the resume for schools that don’t provide much room and tell you to add a resume are fair game to have a resume uploaded.
@paveyourpath I agree with you that if a interviewer specifically requests a resume then you should bring one to the interview! I would stick with activities/interests only and not include test scores and GPA.
A very worthy read from the perspective of the interviewer.
http://www.myadmissionsedge.com/images/Confessions_of_an_College_Interviewer.doc
@chillkitty I just read your post # 18997. If MIT specifically recommends against this practice, their interviewers haven’t received the memo because this interview season, they are sure asking for them. S17 is not applying to MIT but I know of 3 kids who it was requested from by their interviewers. Different interviewers and two different high schools.
@hadmeathello Hey! S17 has a fabulous GPA but doesn’t have it on his resume because his school does not calculate not because he doesn’t have a great GPA! I forgive you though since you have been cracking me up with your JOTD. S17 has had many interview practice sessions (an alum interviewer at school, college counselor and myself). He has certain talking points that he is to touch upon and while the school is not permitting the students to list a GPA (as it is not official) they can speak to what a calculation of their GPA would look like if a calculation were undertaken. This is also where the honors section can support the strength of an undisclosed GPA.