The Common Application

1. The Common Application Application Workshop AchieveMpls Career & College Center Fall 2011

2. The Common Application • 450+ applications on one site! • When given an option between the Common App or institutional application, choose the Common App. • 45 new members including: Howard U, UNC – Chapel Hill, University of Kentucky, University of Southern California, Seton Hill, Whitworth University • For full list of participating schools, go to “Member Colleges and Universities” on the homepage

3. Common App Cautions • Spend the same amount of time on short and long answer questions • Double check the names of all universities on all supplements • Verify you’ve completed all supplements • Prioritize your list of activities (even if attaching an activity resume) • Leadership positions, hours/years of involvement in activity

4. Common App Cautions • Don’t ignore character count • Common App has a 1000-character count maximum on short answer questions • Look for the character count *with* spaces. • The Essay • “Because the essay is an uploaded document, the online system cannot enforce a word count.  Nonetheless, applicants are expected to adhere to the instructions specifying a range of 250-500 words” (CommonApp website)

5. Common App Tips

6. Some Common App Tips • How to submit the Common App for multiple schools: • After you have submitted your first application, to submit further applications please follow these directions • “Go to the Signature page • check the box for the college to which you would like to submit  • Ensure all boxes in the Certification area are checked  • Type your name and the date into the appropriate fields  • Click the Submit button at the bottom” Source: CommonApp Website

8. More tips • List the activities most important to you first! • Hours completed • Number of years participated? • Leadership positions held? • Common App will only allow you 10 activities in this section • Complete all supplements • Supplements can be found in the Future Plans section (you must first add colleges to “My Colleges”) • Check the college name on all supplements before submitting your application • Complete everything online!

9. More tips… • If you can’t find a CEEB code • “If you do not see the school name on this list, you will need to refine the search, then click the search button once again.  • If you are still unable to find the CEEB code, you can click "not found" at the bottom of the page.  This will populate the CEEB code field with 0000. (CommonAppwebsite)

10. Helpful Tips (from Common App) • “Save your work often. • Logout after each session. • Use a word processor to type your writing samples before cutting and pasting or uploading them into the online forms. • Use Print Previews to view your forms before submitting. (You will need to install Adobe Acrobat Reader. It's free.)”

11. Places to go for help…

12. Help resources • Common Questions • Common App Homepage • Help Button • Top right corner after signing in to your account • Support Center for Applicants/Applicant Support • Based on a category • Example – “Account Issues”, “ Early Decision” • http://s3.parature.com/ics/support/TSFolder.asp?task=ticket