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From Gaps to Growth: Building a Stronger Application Résumé Summer Before Senior Year
The summer before senior year is one of the most valuable windows in the college admissions journey. With your final year of high school just ahead, now is the time to reflect on your application résumé and take action to strengthen it—before deadlines arrive.
Maybe you’re missing a connection to your intended major. Maybe your activities list is shorter than you’d like. Or maybe you’ve been busy with school and haven’t had time to lead or explore beyond the classroom. No matter where you’re starting, there’s still time to grow.
Here’s how to make the most of this summer—and tell a more complete story in your applications.
Step 1: Take a Clear Look at Your Activities
Start by listing what you’ve done so far during high school: clubs, sports, jobs, volunteering, creative projects, internships, and summer programs. Then ask:
- Have I been consistent in anything?
- Do any of my experiences connect to what I want to study in college?
- Have I shown leadership or taken initiative?
- Is there something missing that I want to highlight this fall?
Identifying those gaps helps you focus your summer plans with purpose.
Step 2: Add Meaningful Experiences This Summer
If your current résumé feels light, this summer is the perfect time to add experiences that show growth, responsibility, and direction. A few ideas:
Get a Job
A summer job—any job—is a powerful addition to your résumé. It shows maturity, independence, and reliability. Whether you’re working retail, lifeguarding, babysitting, or supporting a family business, the experience matters.
Volunteer Locally
Consistent service in your local community speaks volumes. Admissions officers don’t need to see international trips or expensive programs—they’re more impressed by commitment and care. Help out at a library, food pantry, nonprofit, or neighborhood school.
Explore Your Academic Interests
If you’re planning to apply as a biology, business, or political science major, try to connect that interest to a real-world experience this summer. That could mean shadowing a professional, taking an online class, reading deeply in the subject, or starting a related project. Even one experience can help support your future major on your application.
Take Initiative
Summer is also a great time to create something. You might launch a podcast, organize a fundraiser, design a website, or build a small business. Admissions teams love to see students who take ownership of their ideas, even on a small scale.
Step 3: Reflect On Your Growth
As the summer unfolds, keep a simple journal or log to track what you’re doing and what you’re learning. You’ll thank yourself in the fall when it’s time to write college essays.
Prompts to guide your reflection:
- What’s been the most challenging part of this experience?
- What surprised me?
- How has this shaped what I want to study—or how I see myself?
Reflection helps you connect the dots between your experiences and your goals.
There’s no such thing as a perfect résumé. What colleges want to see is intention, growth, and effort. If you look at your activities list now and feel like something’s missing, that’s not a problem—it’s an opportunity.
This summer, choose experiences that matter to you. Be consistent. Take ownership. And when you start your senior year, you’ll have more than just a list of activities—you’ll have a story to tell.