Booklists for college transcripts, etc.

[mlktwins]

Having registered my guys for their 12th grade classes (what a relief), I am now full blown into college research and apps. I am going through Motherload threads for college and looking through the high school ones again, in addition to all the other great info on the high school and college boards.

While I am reading and taking lots of notes, I wanted to ask about book lists.  For books associated with a specific class (i.e. history, literature), I was planning to include those in the course descriptions.  Is that the right way to go, or do we just do a general book list?  I'm slowly going through all my notes, their work, (a lot has been outsourced), etc. to get caught up on all of it.  I'm way behind due to caring for my dad since 8th grade, helping care for my in-laws, my in-laws passing last year, and helping to clean out 2 houses with 50+ years worth of accumulated stuff.  Not ideal timing for being on top of "my part" of my boys' high school years, but at least they have done fabulous 😁.  And...it will be all caught up and ready to go for college apps.  I have everything.  I just need to get it down all pretty on paper.  

Thanks much!

 

[royspeed]

31 minutes ago, mlktwins said:

For books associated with a specific class (i.e. history, literature), I was planning to include those in the course descriptions.  Is that the right way to go, or do we just do a general book list?

mlktwins:

I think course descriptions is the right way to go.

The danger of a general book list is that the admissions officer's eyes will glaze over long before he or she reaches the middle of the list, let alone the end.

In a course description, by contrast, each booklist is A) shorter, and B) viewed in context; it's therefore much easier to digest at a glance.

[regentrude]

Put the few relevant titled into the course description. There's a pretty good chance the admissions folks won't bother to give your course description more than a cursory glance. There is a much greater chance they will never look at a booklist.
(ETA: We didn't submit booklists for any of the apps. Those would have been pages and pages. Kids got acceptances to good, and several extremely selective, schools)

Edited May 15, 2022 by regentrude

[BusyMom5]

Where are they applying?  Most colleges don't want a book list.  I put some in my course descriptions,  but I cannot imagine anyone cares to see every book my kids read in high school.  Before you stress out, start a list of most likely colleges and look at their admission requirements.   I found that most colleges are more interested in the test scores, AP, DE, than in my course descriptions.  They may want to see some writing samples, and outside scores for math placement.  Don't stress it!  

[Farrar]

Most don't want a book list anymore. But... some families do one. I don't have a hard and fast rule. But I do think most of the families who found success with a book list submitted it several years ago. Course descriptions are more common now. Do include books for classes in your course descriptions though. And a good reading list for a course makes it stronger.

Also, for everyone... if your kids read a bunch of children's books, just leave that off. I mean, unless it was children's books as literature or something - like a very specific intentional choice - or a few YA titles in your English lists. But I've seen people have these long lists of books and it includes middle grades books or old classics that are considered children's books at this point. Telling colleges that half or even a quarter of your English class books were written with 10-13 yos in mind is not a good look.

[Roadrunner]

I have them listed in course descriptions as well. 
 

I am not including anything by he read for fun because kids in PS wouldn’t be listing those either. 

Edited May 15, 2022 by Roadrunner

[Kareni]

My daughter has been out of college for quite some time now. 

From an old post ~

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.

Regards,

Kareni