THE COMMON APPLICATION

 Launched in 1976, the Common Application is offered by a group of more than 275 colleges and universities in the U.S. Using the Common App for admission streamlines the process, since you only have to fill out the form once. In spite of its convenience, the Common App has caused only about a 3 to 4 percent increase in applications overall— not as many as you’d think. Some experts feel that there are bad as well as good aspects of the Common App:

 
PRO

 
• takes less time and effort so you can apply to more schools

 
• you can choose among four essays or write your own

 
• easier to use than a lot of schools’ applications

• if you fill it out online, you can save it at any point andgo back to it

• you can cut, paste and move things around

CON

• easier to apply to too many schools

• less opportunity to show specific things about yourself

• not as much depth