<p>I have a few friends who are stretching the truth on their common app’s. Mainly in the extra curricular area such as saying they have been a member of Key club for 4 years when it’s only senior year, claiming to be president of certain clubs, ect. ect.?</p>
<p>I mean, this must go on all the time accross the country. I recently achieved Eagle Scout and it angers me that there are most likely people that are going to put Eagle Scout on their app when they are not, and get away with it, unless i’m wrong?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>I assume universities do background checks occasionally, but they can’t do it for all applicants, and most certainly not everything that needs to be verified.</p>
<p>“What prevents people from lying?”</p>
<p>It’s called good-character, I guess. Your friends seem to lack it.</p>
<p>Take a look at the history of the human race. A majority of us seem to lack it. </p>
<p>Point is, we all know people lie. Now since these lies can have a huge impact on whether or not you get into university, I’m pretty confident the colleges don’t want to accept people with faked resumes. They must have some system, it only seems logical.</p>
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<p>They will confirm significant awards (such as USAMO) and investigate extreme implausibilities (such as having a combined time commitment that borders on impossible).</p>
<p>Probably nothing stops them from getting away with lying. I suppose that’s why EC’s aren’t valued too highly if they’re not major awards. You can’t fake your cirriculum and standardized test scores.</p>
<p>Lying about ECs is very wrong, no doubt. But compared to students preparing their own transcripts and writing their own recommendations?! They get their transcripts/ recommendations signed by their counselors/teachers later. So the school and the students are acting hand in glove.This happens outside the US. Hope the adcoms have the insight to identify such applicants and reject them.</p>