<p>When can rising seniors start working on their applications under the Common App? Will it be open late June/Early July? I want to get started on my apps as soon as possible.</p>
<p>I was wondering the same thing, sort of anxious to get started. I also would rather get this stuff done in the summer when there’s no other work to do rather then trying to squeeze it in with schoolwork in the fall.</p>
<p>It’s open August 1, but you can preview the new app on the Common App website</p>
<p>Only the essays will take a significant amount of time, and you can certainly work on those over the summer.</p>
<p>My friend noticed that the preview version had a “language proficiency” section and was wondering this: </p>
<p>If my friend wasn’t born in the U.S., and English wasn’t his first language - BUT he spent the majority of his life in the U.S. speaking English, and he knows it more proficiently than his first language… should he just put English as his first language so he doesn’t have to take the TOEFL? Or would the TOEFL not be required (even if he marked English as a second language) since he’s attended public school in America since first grade?</p>
<p>^By first language they usually mean language you speak best. So his would probably be English, and he could list his native language in the other language options. </p>
<p>By the way, the TOEFL is ridiculously easy for someone who speaks English well. He would ace it</p>
<p>finished my essay! i’m so ready to apply. gotta visit a few colleges first though.</p>
<p>@pch340, thanks for the helpful response.</p>
<p>From the Common App Support Center: “For the first language question, you should choose the language you spoke when you first began speaking.”</p>
<p>It is open to the class of 2012 (at long last!!!) on August 1st.</p>
<p>But make sure to start your supplements, get teacher recs, create a resume, and write your essay.</p>
<p>Some schools do paper apps, so you can start those early. Some schools only do online apps, but not through the CA (common app) (MIT is one of these, I think).</p>
<p>We’re almost there, guys!! :D</p>
<p>While the actual Common Application isn’t released until August 1st, there are several things you can do now:</p>
<p>1) Start your Common App essay (the main essay has a “choose your own topic” prompt so there’s no way you can go off-topic)
2) Prepare your resume
3) Ask teachers for recommendations</p>
<p>(just to name a few)</p>
<p>I wouldn’t recommend asking for teacher recommendations before the fall. At least at my school, teachers can get a little offended and interpret it as an overanxiousness to go off to college.</p>
<p>@kameronsmith, I’ve actually heard the opposite - that teachers prefer being asked earlier so they have time to think about your letter over the summer if they want and to know how many letters to expect.</p>
<p>@batfan: Maybe it’s just at my school, where there’s a lot of animosity towards college admissions from the faculty. They try to encourage students to focus entirely on our school and not worry about or think about college until their last year. (For example, most students take their <em>first</em> SAT that fall.)</p>
<p>Still, I do think there’s a difference between “early” and “too early.” Spring seems too early. September seems just right.</p>
<p>how do you preview the application… i made an account but now im stuck</p>
<p>From the news feed, just download the “preview” application.</p>
<p>Will the essays be the same as last year?</p>
<p>I think so, but you can just download the preview and see the essays for yourself…</p>
<p>I’ve got a lot of Questions…If anyone can answer, that would be awesome!! :)</p>
<p>1) How long are essays? - a word limit set by Common App?
2) Is it better to write about a topic of your own choice for the Common App, or is it ok to go with one of their suggested ideas?
3) Do you send your resume along with your Common Application? If so, does the resume have to fit within one page?</p>
<p>1) There’s guideline of 500 words. Write no more than 600.
2) Either one is fine, but I recommend just writing about whatever you feel like writing about. Then, if it fits one of the prompts, use it. Otherwise, topic of your choice.
3) Yes, you send it along. No, it doesn’t have to fit one page. Though it might be a good idea to condense it.</p>