The Common Application: Pro or Con? Learning Process

The Common Application: Pro or Con?

Written on January 12, 2011 – 12:16 pm | by Justin Fraser

More and more high school seniors are using this tool to ease the application process. But it may carry some pitfalls.

Using the Common Application, an estimated 600,000 will be able to apply to about 414 schools with a single form. Last year, 500,000 students used the services to submit to about 2 million applications. For them, filling out individual paper submissions is like something from ancient history.

The five-page form asks requests information about grades, courses, extracurriculars, family and disciplinary problems and requires a 250-word essay. Students can also attach additional writing samples for schools that require them.

But it’s not ideal for some colleges, as officials begin to worry that the ease of sending a shared form to multiple schools has added to admissions stress due to an influx of frivolous applications from barely-interested students.

There is also pressure for other colleges to start using the Common App for fear of being left behind. University of South Carolina, a longtime holdout, is currently studying whether to join next year.

On the other hand, Georgetown University has voiced concerns that the shared system removes the human touch from the process. More troubling: It may encourage schools to take in extra applications to boost rejection rates in an effort to appear more competitive.

Does your admissions department use the Common Application? Share your experiences in the comments section, and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter.

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