Common App Review

The Common App (common application) is the online college application that you can submit to over 450 universities and colleges in place of the individual application of these schools.

Even before you get your ACT results you can get familiar with The Common App, so keep reading. For students who could not complete their regular high education, taking the GED test may be the best solution.

Please bear in mind:

The Common App is a standardized college application that you can use for undergraduate admission mainly at 4-year universities and colleges.

Students who want to apply to a community college, who want to earn an online degree through distance learning courses, or those who want to pursue a higher degree like an MBA, are required to fill out the school’s individual application.

If you want to know which universities and colleges are accepting the Common Application, just check out their website where a current list is featured of the universities and colleges that are receiving the application.

When you research colleges and universities, you can easily keep track of the schools that participate in this great program.

All participating schools are offering numerous academic courses and majors that students are looking for, and continuing your education at one of these universities or colleges will guide you towards a wide variety of exciting and rewarding careers.

Both private and public schools across America are accepting the Common Application, also several Ivy League schools. Among the universities and colleges that now are accepting the Common Application are for example USC, Yale University, Davidson University, University of Michigan, University of Notre Dame, and the University of Virginia. If you want to check your knowledge level, take a free online practice GED test.

Why use the Common App?

Because not only you but also schools want to be highly effective. The benefit lies, especially for you, the student, that you don’t have to fill out the same responses over and over again. Many questions all of a lot of institutions are identical but until now had to be filled in on each application separately, so you had to do this multiple times. Apparently, the Common Application now has made this more efficient.

The Common Application is offering students the possibility to complete one essay and fill out one form, and send it to many member schools, whereas in the past this had to be separated for each college application. You can see the Common Application like a sort of one-stop online college application that allows you to submit your request to numerous schools on your favorites list with minimal effort and time.

Please be aware that you really should NOT send a request to schools that do not perfectly match your interests, just for the reason that it is so easy as the schools are included in The Common Application list. Be sure to just apply to those colleges and universities that you would have chosen anyway.

Common Application Facts

  • The Common Application is used throughout the U.S. Last year, over 2.6 million college and university admissions applications were submitted by using the Common Application.
  • All more than 450 member schools have agreed on the standards of the Common Application. There are participating universities and colleges that are using the Common Application only for undergraduate admissions, This way of applying is valued at the same level as the schools’ use.
  • You can use the Common Application also when you are a transfer student. There is a Common Application particularly for transfer students wishing to sign up for a major degree program from a different school.
  • One of the main advantages of the Common App is that a standardized admissions application saves you a  lot of time. So when you find the college admissions process a bit stressful, thanks to the Common Application you now have more time to attend classes,  focus on your essays or find more time to prepare for college.
  • Some colleges and universities require additional essays or forms that don’t come with the Common Application. Some will ask you to submit an extra letter of recommendation from, for example, your math teacher when you want to apply to a business program, and there are also schools that require you to submit a separate application if you want to pursue, for example, their English program.

Writing your essay in the Common Application

Please also bear in mind that your essay must be limited to 650 words, so you should be planning your writing according to that maximum. Ensure that all relevant and most pertinent details and information are included, and note that the suggested minimum of 250 words will only rarely be enough to strike a balance.

When you’re writing your essay, keep the following in mind:

  • Be honest at all times. Embellishing your titles, achievements, or offices is useless.
  • Be coherent and consistent, but don’t try to include too much in your essay, and write about only one subject at a time.
  • Make sure you come across as likable. Universities and colleges are communities. People need to be able to get along with other students during classes, assignments, in dorms, etc.
  • Be as smart as you can. Colleges and universities are first and foremost places of intellect, even when they hide that attitude when they talk to you about their dorms, or how many sports you’re good at.

Admissions professionals say that a good personal college admission essay is telling the admissions committee things about students that otherwise wouldn’t have been picked up from an application. The best essays not only describe who you are and what you experienced, but they also will explain in what way these experiences have been affecting the students.

Extracurricular activities in Your Common Application

You can just list no more than ten extracurricular activities, and some students may find some difficulty in choosing which ones to include, and you really should be pretty strategic in what way you list them. Tell them also if you have or had a part-time job.

Admissions experts are recommending that students should take every opportunity to their application to submit details about what kind of person they are and in what way they are spending their time. You can mention your Etsy shop, musical experience, or your lawn mowing service, for example, if those activities are highlighting your individuality, your personality, and your passions.

If you explain your hobbies on your application, school officials may be recognizing valuable traits that will not be revealed in your high school transcript. Admissions officials say, for example, that entrepreneurship during high school years is indicating that you have leadership skills, that you are not afraid to take action. And this is a characteristic valued by universities and colleges.

Students need to submit a comprehensive application that includes all relevant extracurricular activities so that admissions officials can get a good and detailed idea of the applicant.