THE COMMON APPLICATION

The Common Application allows students to fill out one college application to send to multiple colleges within its network of 700 public and private institutions. To view colleges that accept the Common Application or for more information, visit www.commonapp.org.

Helpful hints for students

Go to www.commonapp.org to create a new account.

  • Download the Common App on Track to help you stay on track with your application, testing, recommendations, etc.

  • Talk to your counselor and parents before you sign the FERPA Release Authorization. You have the right to access your letters of recommendation after you enroll in college, assuming the college saves those forms. In the “Recommenders and FERPA” section of the application, you’ll be asked if you wish to waive that right. You’re free to respond as you choose, but you need to know that the choice you make could have significant implications for how colleges view your application. (We explain this in more detail in the application.) Once you complete the FERPA Release Authorization, you can’t change your answers.

  • Check your application for accuracy before submitting. When it comes time to submit your applications, make sure everything on it looks right. (Yes, that means proofreading, but it also means checking that your responses appear exactly as they should. If something looks amiss, we want you to tell us so we can help you fix the problem before you send the application.

  • Add <appsupport@commonapp.net> to your address book or contact list to make sure our responses don’t end up in your SPAM or Junk folder.

  • If you experience a problem or have a question, go to the Applicant Help Center. View the FAQs or click the Ask a Question tab.

Helpful hints for recommenders (those asked to submit letters of recommendations for students)

  • Create a new account, if you’ve never used the Common App system to submit letters of recommendation. You’ll be able to create your account as soon as you receive the first Recommender Invitation from an applicant.

  • Don’t use college names in your recommendation letters. The Common App system is designed to be one-and-done for Recommenders. That means you don’t need to resubmit your recommendation every time a student applies to a new college. It also means that every single college will receive the same recommendation.

  • Add <recsupport@commonapp.net> and <appsupport@commonapp.net> to your address book or contact list. This prevents email responses from the Common App support team from ending up in SPAM or Junk folders.