Book log for Common App?

[Job121]

Put this under wrong forum. Here is my question.

 

Last minute crunch time for Nov. 1. My DS has an extensive book log so I want to utilize it. Has anybody done it? Where would be a good place to upload in Common App? This is my first child and I had no idea how it can be a nerve-wracking ordeal! Always thankful for your wisdom!

[snowbeltmom]

Put this under wrong forum. Here is my question.

 

Last minute crunch time for Nov. 1. My DS has an extensive book log so I want to utilize it. Has anybody done it? Where would be a good place to upload in Common App? This is my first child and I had no idea how it can be a nerve-wracking ordeal! Always thankful for your wisdom!

 

I uploaded my kids' book lists under the "transcript" category on the Common App.  I had three files total uploaded: the one- page transcript, the course description document, and the book list.

 

Good luck to your son!

 

[Job121]

Just what I had in my mind. Thanks you!

[mirabillis]

May I bring this thread back up?

 

I just went to our first college fair tonight, and one school said as a special requirement for homeschoolers, they require a book log. Are they just looking to see a voracious reader, reading any and everything, regardless. Or are they only looking for a hearty selection of classics? What is it they want?

 

My ds is a voracious reader, but much of his book selection (for fun and leisure) is in the form of pulp,popular culture, etc - John Grisham, Rick Riordan, Harry Potter, Cherub series, etc. Would these be included? Or do we need to make a break for the classics list? What are they looking for in a book list?

[Sebastian (a lady)]

May I bring this thread back up?

 

I just went to our first college fair tonight, and one school said as a special requirement for homeschoolers, they require a book log. Are they just looking to see a voracious reader, reading any and everything, regardless. Or are they only looking for a hearty selection of classics? What is it they want?

 

My ds is a voracious reader, but much of his book selection (for fun and leisure) is in the form of pulp,popular culture, etc - John Grisham, Rick Riordan, Harry Potter, Cherub series, etc. Would these be included? Or do we need to make a break for the classics list? What are they looking for in a book list?

It probably depends on the school. Ds1 did one for Carnegie Mellon, which requires is of all applicants. He listed any non textbook works read for school, outside reading including fun reads, and magazines he read regularly. He included fiction and non fiction

 

For a school requiring it of homeschoolers only, there may be a different goal. They might want textbooks if they don't always get course description from applicants.

 

You could email the school and ask for more info. I'd be curious about their response.

[mirabillis]

Interesting. I will have to see. I guess I just wondered if I should be pushing him to read a few more classic tomes, rather than his usual pulp-y stuff. He's good at doing what I ask, so just wondering what everyone thinks. If a good book list is for those who read Ethan Frome and Crime & Punishment for fun... 

 

Would anyone be willing to share their book list with me? I'd be interested to see. PM if yes. :)

[Kareni]

My ds is a voracious reader, but much of his book selection (for fun and leisure) is in the form of pulp,popular culture, etc - John Grisham, Rick Riordan, Harry Potter, Cherub series, etc. Would these be included? Or do we need to make a break for the classics list? What are they looking for in a book list?

 

 

 

I sent a reading list with my daughter's college application paperwork (i.e., transcript, counselor letter, profile and course descriptions). We sorted her list into categories such as:

 

Fiction

 

Non-fiction

 

Essays

 

Fantasy (a favorite genre of hers)

 

Latin works (This included authors such as Ovid and Catullus as well as books such as Virent Ova! Viret Perna! by Dr. Seuss, Ferdinandus Taurus by Munro Leaf, and Asterix Olympius by Rene de Goscinny. Since she was planning to major in Latin and/or the Classics, we thought this showed her interest.)

 

We included titles and author names but also shortened the list by having items such as: The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy plus six sequels.

 

We did not include everything she had read for pleasure in high school -- for example, we did not include any manga (though she had read an abundance) nor did we include Calvin & Hobbes or Zits. We did include titles that had been assigned reading.

 

I also included a list of textbooks used since I did not include book titles in her course descriptions.

 

When my daughter looked over her reading list, there were a number of books whose contents she no longer remembered clearly. Many of these she had read in ninth grade. She elected to eliminate them so that she would not be put in an awkward position. We imagined an interviewer looking over the list and saying, "Oh, Vaguest, Dimmest Memories is a favorite title of mine. What did you like best about it?" And, yes, she was asked about some of her reading choices when she interviewed.

 

 

If you'd like to see the list in its entirety, simply send me a personal message with your email address.

 

Regards,

Kareni

[Grantmom]

Wow, this had completely fallen off my radar. I had completely forgotten reading about the need for this. Thank you for bringing this back up.

 

So, would you include textbooks used for classes, too? Like outsourced classes?

 

What info are you including in this log? Are you breaking it down by year, by subject, by genre, or in any other way?

 

Thanks!