For seniors filling in the activities section
Common App Activities List Writer
Paste messy notes or drop your résumé. Get every activity ranked and written to fit Common App's 50, 100 and 150 character boxes, counts shown.
Free to start. No card needed.
Activity 1 · Robotics · example
- Position/leadershipBuild Lead10/50
- Organization nameWestview High School Robotics Club34/100
- Description, version ARedesigned intake, cutting cycle time from 12 to 7 sec; lead 8-person build crew; taught 3D design to 5 freshmen; team made state for 1st time142/150
- Description, version BTeam's 1st trip to state: redesigned intake (cycle time 12 to 7 sec), lead 8-person build crew & taught 3D design to 5 freshmen127/150
What you'll get
Every activity ranked and written to fit Common App's character limits, with counts shown
- Up to 10 activities, ranked by importance and written to fit every Common App box
- Two versions of each description, with strong verbs, your real numbers and the exact character count
- Grades, hours and weeks filled from your notes, with a bracket wherever a number is missing
Before and after
Your notes in. A finished activities section out.
Robotics club at Westview High since 9th grade, build lead this year. I redesigned our intake and our cycle time went from 12 sec to 7. Run the build crew (8 people), taught 3D design to the 5 new freshmen. We made state for the first time! Probably 10 hrs a week during season. Weekends I work the counter at my parents' restaurant, Golden Wok, Sat and Sun, and take phone orders in Cantonese and English. Started a free Scratch coding club at the Elm Street library for middle schoolers last year, 14 kids signed up.
Activities and experiences · Common App 3 activities, ranked by importance. Every count checked. 1. Robotics · Build Lead (10/50) · Westview High School Robotics Club (34/100). A (142/150): Redesigned intake, cutting cycle time from 12 to 7 sec; lead 8-person build crew; taught 3D design to 5 freshmen; team made state for 1st time Grades 9 to 12 · 10 hrs/wk · [weeks] wks/yr. 2. Family restaurant · Counter & Phone Orders (22/50). A (105/150): Work front counter & take phone orders in Cantonese & English every Sat & Sun; [one more task you handle] To fill in [weeks] How many weeks a year does robotics season run? [one more task you handle] What else are you trusted with at Golden Wok?
Every fact comes from the notes. Anything a box needs that the notes don't say becomes a bracket and a question.
Why it works
How do you write the Common App activities list?
The Common App activities list gives you up to 10 entries, and each one has three short boxes: position or leadership (50 characters), organization name (100) and a description (150), according to Common App's activities guide. Spaces and punctuation count. River's activities list writer turns messy notes or a résumé into that finished section. It ranks your activities, writes every box to fit, gives two versions of each description and shows every character count, so each line pastes straight in.
For 2026–27 the section is renamed “Activities and experiences”, the position box becomes optional and the character limits stay the same, Common App announced. Its guide for first-year applicants names work, hobbies, clubs and community engagement, plus responsibilities at home, so a weekend job or caring for a sibling belongs on the list. Applying to the University of California instead? Pick UC and River writes up to 20 entries in UC's six categories.
River uses only what you give it. When an entry needs a number or title you didn't mention, like how many weeks a season runs, it leaves a short bracket and asks, because a made-up number is worse than none. A filled-in brag sheet makes great input too. Then turn your strongest activity into a story with the college essay writer, and run the final check before you submit to catch numbers that don't match your essays.
What lands in your doc
What's in your activities list
- Up to 10 activities ranked by importance, weighing years, hours, responsibility and real results
- Position, organization and description written to fit 50, 100 and 150 characters, with exact counts
- Two versions of every description, one leading with what you did and one with the result
- Strong verbs, your real numbers and the short forms strong lists use, with no filler words
- Grade levels, timing, hours per week and weeks per year filled in from your own notes
- A bracket and a plain question for every number or title only you can supply
How it works
From your notes to a finished list
Paste your activities
Paste notes, a résumé or an old list, or drop files. Messy and incomplete is fine.
Pick the application
Choose Common App or the UC application. With no choice, River writes it for Common App.
Get every entry
Each activity lands in your doc, ranked and sized to its boxes, with every character counted.
Fill and paste
Answer the bracket questions, pick version A or B, then paste each box into your application.
How to write your activities list yourself
Start with a long list, not ten. Write down everything you have done since ninth grade: clubs, sports, jobs, family duties, hobbies you taught yourself, summer programs and anything you started. Then rank it. Common App asks you to list activities in order of their importance to you, so weigh years of commitment, hours, responsibility and results. Put first the activities you would most want to talk about in an interview, even if one of them is a job or caring for family.
Write each description as verb, action, result. "Redesigned intake, cutting cycle time from 12 to 7 sec" says far more than "Member of the robotics team." Use a number wherever you have one: people, hours, money, rankings. Drop "I", filler like "helped with" and anything already in another box. Common App's own example cuts a 256-character description to 141 by removing the time spent, which has its own boxes. Short forms such as hrs, wk and & are normal here.
Then fill the other boxes. Put your title in position or leadership and the group's full name in organization, then choose grades, timing, hours per week and weeks per year. Common App says a best guess is fine when you can't remember exact hours. Count characters, spaces included, before you paste, then watch the box's counter. If an activity needs more than 150 characters, such as a family duty that shapes your week, explain it in Additional information, which allows 300 words.
Questions applicants ask
Common questions
How many characters is a Common App activity description?
150 characters, counting spaces and punctuation. The position or leadership box allows 50 characters and the organization name 100, and Common App kept those limits for 2026–27. River writes every box inside its limit and shows the count beside it, such as 142/150, so nothing gets cut off when you paste it in.
How many activities should I list on the Common App?
As many as genuinely matter to you, up to 10. Common App's own activities guide says the limit of ten doesn't mean you need to enter ten. Five specific entries with real numbers beat ten vague ones. If you have more than ten, River merges related items, such as two tutoring jobs, and lists anything it left out.
What counts as an activity on the Common App?
Far more than school clubs. Common App's first-year guide names work, hobbies, clubs and community engagement, and reminds you that responsibilities at home matter too. A paid job, caring for a younger sibling, translating for family or a skill you taught yourself all count. Family duties that take several hours every week belong near the top.
What changed in the Common App activities section for 2026–27?
Three things. The section is now called “Activities and experiences”, the position or leadership box is optional, and time spent on experiences after high school can be reported more accurately. The 50, 100 and 150 character limits did not change, and you can still list up to 10 activities. River writes to the 2026–27 version of the section.
How do I write a strong activity description?
Lead with a verb, say what you did, then give the result with a number. "Started free coding club for middle schoolers; 14 signed up in 1st yr" beats "Coding club founder." Leave out "I", hours and anything the position or organization box already says. Fragments, semicolons and short forms like wk and & are normal in strong lists.
Can River write my UC activities and awards?
Yes. Choose UC application and River writes up to 20 entries, each in one of UC's six categories: Award or honor, Educational preparation programs, Extracurricular activity, Other coursework, Volunteering/Community service and Work experience. UC asks applicants to focus on their role and to avoid unfamiliar acronyms, so River writes UC entries in plain full sentences with names spelled out.
Is the activities list writer free?
You can start free, with no credit card. River's Free plan includes a monthly amount of AI use, and your list stays in your own workspace, where you can rework any entry or turn one into an essay. When you hit the limit, AI pauses until it refreshes. Paid plans start at $14 a month, as the pricing page shows.
Your next step
More for your application
Start with the list you already have
Paste your notes or drop your résumé. River writes every activity to fit its box and counts every character.