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Each year, more than 1 million students apply to more than 1,000 Common App member colleges worldwide through our online college application platform. Learn more about applying through our first-year application by following our step-by-step guide below.
- Requirements Grid
The requirements grid is a useful listing of every college...
- Essay Best Practices FAQ
- If you are pasting your essay into the Common App, paste...
- FERPA Release Authorization
2. In the application you'll be asked if you want to waive...
- Common App
Each year, more than 1 million students, a third of whom are...
- Account Rollover
Account rollover is a way to keep your Common App account...
- Requirements Grid
- What’s Covered
- How Important Is The Activities section?
- Types of Activities and Positions Held
- Selecting Activities to Include
- Position/Leadership Description and Organization Name
- Writing The Description
- Participating Grade Levels
- Estimating Time Commitment
- Participation in College
- A Few Other Considerations
Selective colleges use grades and test scores to filter out applicants, but once you get past that initial stage, extracurriculars make up about 30% of your admissions decision. This shows us that they’re almost as important as academics! Since there are many applicants with similar academic backgrounds, colleges use extracurriculars to help them d...
The Common Application offers a drop-down menu with the following activities from which to select: 1. Academic 2. Art 3. Athletics: Club 4. Athletics: JV/Varsity 5. Career-Oriented 6. Community Service (Volunteer) 7. Computer/Technology 8. Cultural 9. Dance 10. Debate/Speech 11. Environmental 12. Family Responsibilities 13. Foreign Exchange 14. Jou...
The activities section has alimit of ten extracurricular activities. The restrictions mean you will need to be selective in reporting your activities, limiting you to the most important ones or those that are most meaningful to you. If you need to add more activities, use the additional information section or your essays. However, you should only d...
After you choose the activity type, the application will ask you to describe the position you held (or hold) and the organization name. This section is limited to 50 characters. Be as specific as possible here. If you participate in a club, define your role, rather than just listing “member.” If you participated in an activity for multiple years an...
You are limited to 150 charactersfor details, accomplishments, honors won, and accomplishments within each activity, so you will need to be concise and offer only the most pertinent details. If you absolutely need more room to thoroughly explain truly important details about the activity, use the additional information section to expand, or describ...
The application will ask you in which grade levels you participated in a particular activity. The key is as follows: 9-12: High School Grades Post-graduate: After High School If you participated in an activity over the summer between grade levels, choose the rising or later grade level (e.g., the summer between 10th and 11th grades should be listed...
When you estimate the amount of time you spent on a particular activity, it doesn’t need to be exact. However, it does need to be realistic. If you claim to spend ten hours per week on all ten activities, colleges will know you’re exaggerating, to say the least. It’s understandable that you spend more time on some activities than others. If you are...
The last question for each activity asks you whether or not you plan to continue a similar extracurricular activity in college. The application asks this because colleges want to know what kind of student you will be when you arrive. Remember, they are looking for a diverse student body filled with future leaders in their respective fields. If you ...
List your activities in order of importance. To delete an activity, move it to the bottom of the list and click on the delete icon. You can also simply edit the activity to reflect a different one. You may want to start by watching the short tutorial video available at the top of the section to get started. Try not to feel too overwhelmed — college...
Common App first-year application 2022–2023 walkthrough. In this video, Common App walks students through the first-year application process to help them prepare for their college applications.
- Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it.
- The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure.
- Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? This prompt is difficult to answer because most high schoolers haven’t participated in the types of iconoclastic protests against societal ills that lend themselves to an awe-inspiring response.
- Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
Jan 27, 2022 · The Common App essay prompts will remain the same for 2022-2023. Because as we enter the third year of a global pandemic, consistency is not a bad thing.
Aug 1, 2022 · Nearly 50 years later, we are so excited to kick off the 2022-2023 application season with more than 1,000 colleges and universities for students to explore. Our goal remains the same: We want all students to feel supported by Common App — regardless of where they are in their journey.
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Breaking Down the 2022-23 Common App Essay Prompts. Now that we've established the basic ideas you need to keep in mind as you brainstorm, let's go through the 2022-23 Common App essay questions one at a time and break down what admissions committees are looking for in responses.
