pYou’ve started considering your college application and learned that you have two ways to send it in: the Common App and the Coalition App. Which do you use? Is one preferable to the other? Do colleges care what you use?
The short version of the answer is that there isn’t one since it depends on a lot of factors. You’ve come to the right place if you’re wondering which one to choose.
What is the Common App?
More than 900 schools and universities in the US and 20 other countries use the Common App, a free online application. This online application can help first-year and transfer students apply to several colleges more quickly and easily.
The Common App keeps all the information that will be the same for every application you submit, saving you the time of having to fill out numerous college applications for each college from scratch. For instance, once you enter your demographic information for the Common App, it is retained on your profile and is displayed on all of your college application forms.
What is the Coalition App?
First-year and transfer students can quickly and simply apply to schools and universities across the United States with the Coalition App, a free online application. The Coalition App, like the Common App, keeps your data and materials for applications on file to be used on numerous college applications.
At the moment, only 150+ colleges and institutions are available on the Coalition App. Why? Because the Coalition only accepts colleges and universities that offer significant financial aid to students from underrepresented groups and those with lower incomes.
COMMON APP VS. COALITION APP: PROS & CONS
The Coalition App vs. the Common App comparison involves more factors than just personal preference, but it is still an important consideration. Naturally, there are advantages and disadvantages to employing each, and we’ve listed them here.
COMMON APP
PROS
More academic institutions: The bulk of the institutions you’ll be applying to will use the Common App, which has more than 900 colleges and universities in its database.
Most widely used online programme: Your teachers and guidance counsellors are probably quite familiar with the Common App because it is more commonly utilised. This typically indicates that they’ll be more knowledgeable about how to assist you in creating and submitting a strong application using this system.
Reminders to keep the application process on schedule: You can complete numerous applications at once using the Common App, but that’s not all it offers for you. It also provides you with frequent deadline reminders, which makes it simpler for you to complete your applications on time.
Mobile application: You can easily work on your applications whenever and wherever you have internet access on your mobile device with the help of the Common App mobile app.
Free to use: The creation of a Common App account is free. However, unless you are eligible for a college application price waiver, you will need to pay each school’s application fee in order to submit your applications.
CONS
A few restrictions in schools: Some colleges and universities continue to reject the Common App. One institution that has chosen to use the Coalition App rather of the Common App is the University of Washington, Seattle.
COALITION APP
PROS
An exclusive list of schools: The Coalition is dedicated to assisting students in identifying colleges that have a track record of generously funding underrepresented and low-income students. It only lists institutions that meet these requirements for inclusion.
Easy to start working on applications early in high school: As early as ninth grade, you can build a Coalition App and start preparing your college applications. You can store documents like transcripts, honours, essays, and anything else you might wish to include in your applications using the Locker tool.
More space for imagination. You can upload a variety of multimedia assets to the Coalition Locker as well, including PDFs, photos, videos, audio files, and presentations. You can submit these audiovisual resources to support your application at several schools through the Coalition App.
More flexibility in how you report extracurricular activities: You can list up to eight extracurricular activities on the Coalition App—two fewer than the Common App—but you have greater room to describe your participation and accomplishments in each activity.
Free to use similar to the Common App: Registering for a Coalition App account is free. If you don’t qualify for application fee waivers, you’ll just need to pay the application fees that each institution sets.
CONS
Fewer universities and colleges: You are considerably more likely to not discover some of the colleges on your college list on the Coalition App because it is used by about 750 fewer institutions than the Common App. For instance, you cannot use the Coalition App to apply to Cornell University or the University of Southern California.
No mobile app: The Coalition’s website is responsive to mobile devices, but there isn’t a mobile app available for you to download.
What do colleges prefer, the Coalition App or the Common App?
College admission offices don’t favour either the Common App or the Coalition App for universities that use both of them. They give both applications equal consideration, but they are considerably more focused on the calibre of your supporting documents.
So, which one should you use if there is no preference? It is entirely up to you! Choose the application you feel most at ease with if all of the colleges on your list are available on both the Common App and the Coalition App.
Need help with your college applications?
The Coalition App or the Common App are both acceptable to colleges and universities, since the application materials for both systems are essentially the same. What you include in your application—rather than the way you choose to submit it—is what matters most.
So make sure you’re putting together the best application you can, whether it’s deciding what to put in your Activities List, whether to use the Additional Information section, or (perhaps most importantly) what to write about in your Personal Statement and how to use the essay to show the many ways you’d make a meaningful impact on your future college. You can get assistance from Rostrum Education’s team of highly qualified college counselors with just about any step of the application process. We can help you make a compelling case for yourself and your experiences to the admissions committee. Get in touch with us for a free consultation to find out more.
