<p>I know colleges STRONGLY encourage applicants to apply online, but I still consider to apply on paper because I have SO MUCH STUFF!! And my parents are kind of uptight, so....</p>
<p>I have a few questions for those who applied on paper...
(1) Do I have to stable the all the documents and put the pile in the binder? just to be organized? </p>
<p>(2) Do I need to document all the certificates that I have? But that would be very thick!!!</p>
<p>(3) Can I enclose teachers' recommendations? Because I don't want them to send the recommendations to 15 colleges. </p>
<p>(4) Is it legal to have a "brag sheet"? Even though you use common app?</p>
<p>(5) For application fee, should I put the check in there or submit separately?</p>
<p>(6) will college like you more if you apply on paper? (I know, this is silly)</p>
<p>THANKS FOR ANSWERING!!!!!!!!!</p>
<p>Please feel free to tell me some tips when applying on paper.</p>
<p>The thicker the file , the thicker the kid.</p>
<p>They want almost everything electronically filed because they disseminate your file electronically. Papers that get sent get scanned then shredded. Your certificates? No way. No one wants to see those things.</p>
<p>Teachers send or online submit their own rec letters, most of the time. Brag sheet is redundant. Check should be included. Colleges will like you less for submitting paper. </p>
<p>Do not staple the pages together or put them in a binder. Use paper clips or a “binder clip” so that it is easier for the college to separate the pages for scanning if it wants to.</p>
<p>Make sure that each page has your name and a page number at the top so it is easy to see if something is missing.</p>
<p>You can include you letters of recommendation and your transcripts in the same package, but each of these should be in a separate sealed evelope. Have your referees sign their name across the envelope’s seal so that it is clear that it hasn’t been tampered with.</p>
<p>Include your check or money order for the application fee. You can paperclip it to the first page of your application, or to a cover letter.</p>
<p>A cover letter listing everything in the package is a good thing. That way the person who opens it will know what to look for.</p>
<p>At my daughter’s prep school, a resume was included with every application, so I think the brag sheet as you call it is fine.</p>
<p>Some teachers may not hand over their letters to you, so you may need to provide them with stamped, addressed envelopes. If you do not have much support in your guidance office at school, they may really discourage your plan of submitting paper apps. If I were writing your letters of recommendation and I had to either write one letter and submit it on-line (common app), or I needed to print out a dozen individually, the on-line option would certainly be easier FOR ME. You do want to consider those teachers.</p>
<p>No it won’t lower your chances of getting in. They can’t have that kind of discriminatory policy in place. There are any number of reasons why some students would need to complete a paper application, and some of those students would be people that they do want to admit.</p>
<p>Paper applications make for a bit more work. Few people like having to have to do more work than absolutely necessary.</p>
<p>How will you track the status of your app if you submit paper? </p>
<p>One of the benefits of applying online is knowing whether all your parts have arrived and been checked-off by the deadlines. Sending paper means you probably won’t have any assurance that you’re complete. </p>
<p>You seem to be someone with a lot of attention to detail, to put it nicely. Will you really be comfortable mailing your life away and not knowing for sure if it arrived intact?</p>
<p>DougBetsy - even if the application is on paper, the college has to verify that all of the items have arrived, so if the applicant wants to double-check with the college, he/she can do that. Back in the stone age, applicants used to package everything together, and then mail it in one big envelope as certified mail with a return receipt. My post office still offers this service, so I imagine that the OPs does as well. The only things that would need to be sent separately would be the ACT/SAT/other exam scores. And frankly, if the admissions staff is so incompetent that they can’t match that up with a previously-arrived file, well you may not want to have anything to do with that college anyway.</p>
<p>Until the colleges in question are willing to state that they will only accept electronic applications, the OP has the right to expect that a paper application will be handled properly.</p>