Thoughts about the common app

Applying to College
1

<p>The common app is a great idea, letting students fill out just one form, and submit it to many colleges. However, I have become increasingly frustrated with it for a few reasons:</p>

<li><p>Many schools require a supplement with duplicate information of what’s on the common app itself. Moreover, most schools also require an ADDITIONAL essay. I find this to be defeating the point of the common app; isn’t it to alleviate the need for students to fill out more than one application if applying to many schools?</p></li>
<li><p>There’s no central “clearing-house.” Personally, what I’d like to see would be the common app(at some processing center) recieve all paper-based application materials(that is, transcripts, mid-year reports, SAT scores, AP scores, recommendations, etc.), and scan this information in so that colleges you have applied to can see all of your documents. So many colleges get backed up with a TON of paperwork(Cornell won’t even let you SEE what they have recieved until mid-Febuary); it would be much simpler and faster if there was a giant clearing house where all of the documents were processed within the same day they were recieved.</p></li>
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<p>This would translate, with no doubt, to faster turn-around times for decisions. Colleges could probably turn around RD with deadlines of 1/1 out by 2/1 or 2/15 if all the documents were scanned into the system in a timely fashion(i.e. same or next day after they are recieved) by the common app clearing house. A ton of time is spent by admissions offices just sorting things into your file(without even reading anything). Why put the burden on the small admissions offices of the schools to do this mindless paperwork? Let a fast, efficent clearing house do it!</p>

<li><p>Going along with point #2, colleges require you to have applicant ID numbers in addition to the common app. These should all be managed by the common app site, in my opinion. Why can’t the common app site show you what materials have been recieved(the college could update this information), or what your admission decision is(again, colleges could update this)? </p></li>
<li><p>Many schools require additional financial aid forms. Why can’t the common app cover this, too? It’s a pain to fill out one for each school. The common app should cover all aspects of your application(including financial aid), akin to the CSS Profile.</p></li>
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<p>What does everyone else think? Are these complaints of yours too? Anything else?</p>

2

<p>Agree agree and agree. But what else are you going to do? At least (and the obvious purpose) the common app makes all the personal info available to any school you apply to.</p>

<p>Just wait until you do all the financial aid stuff. It's enough to make you scream.</p>

<p>Colleges create all their own "paperwork" some are better than others but just like government, there are so many "wheels within wheels", with layers upon layers of "turfism" and "kingdoms".</p>

<p>Keep all this in mind as to where you might want to go to school. Hmmmm</p>

3

<p>The common app is my friend.</p>

4

<p>Considering that I only applied to one school through the common app, I really didn't have that advantage of killing two (or three of four or even sixteen) birds with one stone. The idea behind the common app is good, but there will always be room for improvements. The supplement is pretty redundant. As for the applicant numbers, I've wondered how much they actually matter, but meh. And the reason I hate the CSS profile so much is because I have to pay College Board even more money to show that I actually need money. </p>

<p>That's my two cents. Merry Christmas!</p>