Applying to colleges and universities can be a tedious and stressful process for students. Most students are finishing high school and juggling standardized testing, university research, counseling sessions, and many more related to the admissions process.
Applying to multiple universities and colleges and going through the entire process over and over again would be overwhelming and challenging. Therefore, to ease the stress of applying to various colleges and universities, we have the Common Application in place!
About the Common App
Common Application, aka Common App, is a single college application form used by over 900 colleges and universities. Instead of filling out the same general details a dozen times, you do it just once - through the Common App, which makes it easy to apply to multiple colleges and universities. The Common App dashboard also helps you keep track of necessary documents and important deadlines for your admission. As a result, the Common App enables you to streamline a crucial part of the admissions process.
"The idea behind the Common App is to try and reduce the barriers that students face when applying to college,"
- Jenny Rickard, President and CEO of The Common Application
Benefits of The Common App
There are multiple benefits of filling your college applications through the Common App:
Saves time
Tracks important information
Receive regular updates
Avoid filling in the same information multiple times
Widely accepted by universities
Cost-effective
When should you start working on your College Application through the Common App?
The new edition of the Common App opens on August 1 every year. However, given the variance in college application deadlines, students should pay attention to when they need to submit their applications and related materials.
Therefore, students do not have to wait until August 1 to start their Common Application; they can create an account anytime and transfer their information into the new app when it opens.
According to experts, the summer before senior year of high school is an excellent time for you to start working on your applications. Starting early allows you to review the requirements for colleges, drafts essays, and get your documents ready in time and also leaves you with enough time to get the needed help without the pressure of meeting deadlines.
How to Complete the Common Application?
Here are steps for how students can work on an application through the platform.
Go to commonapp.org and click on the "Start your application" button to get details about how to create an account and log in. Additionally, you can download the Common App's mobile app to keep track of deadlines, invite recommenders, and set reminders.
Choose the first-year student or transfer student option.
Add user information such as name, email, phone number, address, date of birth, and prospective enrollment year.
Fill out the user profile with requested details on education, extracurriculars, demographic data, household information, and more.
Add collaborators such as teachers, counselors, and others providing letters of recommendation or other supporting documents.
Search for and add schools to "My Colleges."
Get familiar with each college's application requirements and follow those accordingly when applying.
Components of The Common App
Parent/legal guardian information
Citizenship information
Military service information
High school transcript
List of your interests, hobbies, extracurriculars, clubs, community engagement, and work experience
Standardized test scores (SAT, ACT, etc.)
List of academic honors and achievements
List of up to 20 colleges/universities you want to apply to
Letters of recommendation, such as from counselors, advisors, teachers, coaches, employers, mentors, and/or parent/legal guardians
Personal essay
Depending on the college or program, you may also need:
Additional essays or answers to prompts
A portfolio to show your work
A resume
Optional:
A Common App fee waiver form
A college-specific fee waiver form
What are the Common App Essay prompts?
Within the Common Application, the common app essay is the primary and the most personal writing sample you submit to the Admissions Offices. The point of this essay is to showcase your personality in front of the admission committee and provide them with reasons to pick you over the other applicants. This 250-650 word essay helps the officers assess your interests, background, character, and personality.
Students can see the essay prompts on the Common App’s website. The prompts released for this 2022-23 are:
Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.
Not all colleges and universities require you to submit a common app essay; some may require you to submit supplemental essays or additional information. You can see the requirements for all colleges and universities on the Common App.
If you wish to learn more about how to approach these Common App Essay Topics, please visit our blog about the Prompts Breakdown: https://www.theheadmaster.in/post/common-app-essay-breakdown-2022-2023
Cost of the Common App
The Common App is free, and almost 50% of member schools do not charge an application fee for first-year students. However, students who apply to colleges that charge an application fee must pay it when they submit their applications. There is also an additional option to seek a fee waiver for the Common App. You can obtain the waiver upon meeting specific criteria. Go to the “Common App Fee Waiver” section on your dashboard to apply for the waiver.
International students may be eligible for a need-based Common App fee waiver and can look for the same in the Profile section. Some colleges may also offer their own application fee waiver. It’s important to check each university’s fee waiver policy for international students.
Deadlines for Colleges & Universities
Each college can choose its own admission plans and deadlines. Admission plans include - early action, early decision, regular decision, and rolling admission. You can see your college’s specific deadlines on the Dashboard. Keep in mind that to meet an application deadline, you must submit your application materials by 11:59 pm in your local time zone, not the college’s time zone or any other time zone.
To learn more, visit our blog about the types of deadlines at: https://www.theheadmaster.in/post/types-of-application-deadlines-in-the-united-states
The Headmaster Tip for The Common Application
Our tip for students filling out the Common App is to not wait until the last minute to complete their application process. Even though some schools still accept applications that might be a few minutes late, the stress of fighting against the clock increases the potential for typos and other mistakes. You wouldn’t want to sabotage your admission into a prestigious university just because you weren’t preparing in time. Be aware of the deadlines and prepare the needed materials before them.
We highly recommend taking the help of your counselors while filling out the application since they can guide you about the nitty-gritty of the application and prevent you from making mistakes that reflect negatively on your application. They can also help you keep track of deadlines and ensure all your submissions are well-revised and proofread.