Understanding the New Coalition Application

The Coalition Application is the brainchild of over 90 colleges and universities (including many elite and top-tier schools) who want to improve access to education for all students. This application, which encourages kids to be working on their colleges applications throughout grades 9 - 12, offers tools you won't find on the two existing private school applications, The Common Application and the Universal Application, such as the opportunity to collect classwork, art and music samples, and other materials to support future applications in an online "locker." Though all of the features of the application are still rolling out, the "locker" and essay prompts are now available.

It's likely that over 100 colleges will accept the Coalition Application as an option in the Fall of 2016, and some, including the University of Washington, will use it exclusively.

What are the pros and cons for students?
For some kids, the Coalition application process will be an opportunity to highlight their unique talents and educational accomplishments. It also might encourage the planning process throughout high school and enable them to demonstrate their interest in particular colleges earlier and with more detail.

On the downside, for kids who already feel like their entire high school experience is nothing but a breakneck race to college, the Coalition application might just be one more task to manage and one more thing to stress about. This might be especially true for kids in grades 10 and 11, who could feel like the game board they were beginning to understand was just upended beneath them: Should I use the Common Application or the Coalition Application? Do colleges (as they say) really have no preference? What if I don't have work saved from grades 9 and 10 to add to my locker? Will not doing it mean I can't get into (fill in the blank)?

There also seems to be no real plan for training high school counselors in using the Coalition application. Many of them are already busy trying to support students and families in using Naviance, another college planning tool which many high school have purchased to help families navigate the college process. And speaking of Naviance, will the new application interface with Naviance features like storing and uploading teacher recommendations (as it does with the Common Application), or will kids and teachers need to go though yet another process to add recommendations for Coalition schools?

It's early days and there are still many unanswered questions. Our hope is that the new application truly will improve access for underrepresented students and support all students in having a kinder, gentler application process that lets them truly show colleges who they are and what they have to offer. But at least for the near future, his new application will raise questions and, no doubt, stress levels, for students and the parents, teachers and counselors who are working to support them.

Tips for Successful Supplement Essays: The Why Us? Question

Carleton College

College application deadlines are coming...and they'll be here before you know it. If you're applying to private colleges and universities, by now you've probably finished the main Common Application essay and are facing (or trying not to face) the dreaded college supplements. Specifically that oh-so-difficult question so many colleges want the answer to: Why us?

Even if a school is your hands-down favorite, addressing this question can be daunting. It can be downright intimidating if the school is one you like but have never visited, or have just heard about through friends or relatives. So how should you respond when the colleges ask why?

First of all, understand why they are asking. It's not to hear about how awesome they are (because they know that already), but because they want to find out why you believe you and their college are a good match. They want to know what you're going to bring and what you expect them to give. To do this effectively, you need to research the college...and yourself.

If you've been able to go on a campus visit, great: you have a lot of material to draw from as you pull together your ideas. Even if you haven't, you can glean a wealth of information about a college on their website. Check out all kinds of things--the academic departments, special programs, campus life, sports, clubs, student publications, campus happenings, current research--and make notes about the things that genuinely excite you or that seem like things you need or want to have a successful, satisfying college experience. If you can come up with even three things that really speak to you, you've got enough to write your essay.

Next, think about who you are. Given what you've learned about the school in your research, can you really see yourself happily spending four years there? What do you think will get you jazzed or challenge you? What about you "fits" with the school and its culture? How can you see yourself being a part of its community?

When you start writing, be authentic. This is your chance to share what you know about their school in the context of who you are. Let your personality come through. It's perfectly fine to mention quirky things that appeal to you, as long as you are genuine in your discussion.

What should you avoid? Don't write about how beautiful the campus is. They know that. Don't write about how they offer an exceptional education. They know that, too. Don't write about their fabulous reputation. You get the idea. Your job isn't to kiss up to the schools by mirroring their wonderfulness back to them. It's to show them that the two of you are right for each other.

The why? questions are challenging, but they're also a great opportunity for you to really think deeply about why you are applying to the schools on your list. In the process, you may find that some go up on your list of preferences, and that others go down (or even drop off). The whys are a lot of work, but they're one more way (and an underrated one) to ensure you're making a great choice...and at the end of the college admissions process, that's really what it's all about.

New Common Application Essay Prompts

There's been a good deal of speculation, controversy and confusion about the Common Application's decision to change their essay topics and word limits. For several years now, the  six prompts, including an open-ended "topic of your choice" option, and unlimited word count have remained the same.

The waiting ended yesterday when the Common Application released its new essay prompts as well as the news that essays written for the 2013-14 admissions season and beyond will now be subject to a 650 word maximum, after which the essay will be cut off. The essay may be no shorter than 250 characters.

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