Forgive me as we are just now embarking on this journey with our DD and I have a lot to learn. I know most of the schools my daughter wants to apply to take the Common App. Each school has different information they want and some even explicitly say not to submit certain things as they don’t consider those items at all in their decision. So if we are filling out the Common App, how does this work? For example, if one school requires classes listed and another doesn’t. Or if she wants to submit test scores to some school but not others. When she picks a school to apply to will the Common App app show what each school requires or does she have to go to each school’s site and see what to include or not. Is there a way to include or exclude certain things on the Common App? Does it customize for each school?
Thank you for your help. I’m sorry if this is very basic information but we are just now starting this process.
This is second hand information from my daughter that went through the application process last year. You fill in the Common App (all of it) to the best of your ability. The colleges then pick and choose what they need. She said some colleges had extra information that they needed (like short answers to a bunch of questions) and that it was pretty visible on the app when more info was needed. Hope that helped and good luck!!!
IIRC When you select a school to apply to, the common app will prompt you to complete the necessary information for that school. Although it is a common app and some portions apply to all schools, each individual app is customized to that school. I also believe that the common app lets parents set up a “dummy” account so that you can see how it works. I hope that all makes sense. Good luck!!
The Common App will have your standard requirements - each school will have questions and prompts to fill out of their own. some schools allow you to upload a resume, some have short essays etc. before you submit to each school make sure to carefully review EVERYTHING!!
You can fill in questions and review as you go. then you can close the app - and come back to work on it - it saves your info.
You can enter colleges as you go and check out all the requirements - change things as much as you want BEFORE you submit.
Nothing will happen until you review and submit.
Have her write her essays on a word doc and proof - then cut and paste into common app.
If there are questions in the common section of the App that schools don’t need, they won’t receive/use it.
The grades section explicitly listed that 4 of my D22s schools wanted the info and the others don’t. She filled it out so those 4 can take the data they need. The others will just ignore it.
The only data I could see being a concern is standardized testing scores. If you fill out the scores and then check the “test optional, do not use my scores” box for the individual school, you just have to trust that they will.
(I guess you could transmit it to some schools, then delete the scores, and then transmit it to the schools that you don’t want to have the scores. Personally, I wouldn’t bother. I don’t think schools are out to trick you into providing scores).