The Common App is the primary college application platform utilized by nearly 1,000 US colleges and universities, along with about 70 institutions abroad. In 2023, it oversaw more than 7 million college applications from 1.25 million students around the globe. Its rising popularity has solidified the Common App as a core part of nearly every college applicant’s journey.
Through this series of articles, I’m going to explore the intricacies of the Common App, breaking it down section by section to provide students and parents with a comprehensive understanding. Additionally, I’ll cover some valuable strategies and techniques for effectively completing the Common App. Today, I’ll be doing a deep dive into the Profile and Family sections of the Common App
Ultimate Common App Guide – Article Links
- Part 1 – Overview and Account Creation
- Part 2 – Profile and Family Sections (this post)
- Part 3 – Education and Testing Sections
- Part 4 – Activities and Writing Sections
- Part 5 – College Supplements and FAQ
Profile Section
The profile section of the Common App collects personal details like your address, contact info, demographics, language, geography, nationality, and eligibility for the Common App fee waiver.
This begins at the top with Personal Information, which asks about your name, alternate names, and date of birth. One thing to keep in mind is the use of a nickname or a different first name. It’s crucial to provide alternate names that you or people around use, especially if other submitted materials like essays or recommendation letters, will reference this nickname. For example, if your name is Zachary but you’re more commonly referred to as Zach by teachers or others around you, it’s advisable to state this to prevent confusion when other parts of your application are reviewed. Other than this, the section requires simple information such as your last name, middle name, and date of birth.
The address subsection asks about your permanent home address and any alternate mailing addresses you have. Here, you’ll need to input your current home address. You can do this with the robust address lookup system – it’s very accurate for both domestic and international students. If your address is not listed, select ‘Don’t I see my address in this list,’ and you’ll be able to manually enter your information.
If you don’t receive mail at your permanent home address (e.g. you attend a boarding school), be sure to enter an alternate mailing address. Colleges will often mail acceptance letters and financial aid award letters, and you don’t want to lose access to those at your best mailing address. Finally, remember to update your address in the Common Application as soon as possible if it changes during the application process. If your family moved homes or you’re back from boarding school and forgot to update the address, it could lead you to miss vital information from colleges.
The “Contact Details” subsection is short and sweet – it only asks about your phone number(s). When you fill this out, you should use a phone number that you know you’ll answer – if a college is calling you, typically, it’s for something important. Most students find that a landline phone is preferable, as they are more likely to be answered if called. Conversely if you gave the Common App and/or colleges permission to contact you and provide your mobile number, they will text you. The important takeaway here is to use a phone number that you’re certain you’ll respond to promptly, regardless of format.
Next up is the “Demographics” section, which asks questions about your gender, sex, pronouns, ethnicity, and armed forces status. You’ll be asked to share your gender identity, as well as your sex assigned at birth. This refers to your biological or legal sex as indicated on your official government-issued documents like a driver’s license, state ID, or passport.
Following this, there will be sections for your preferred pronouns. You are more than welcome to answer these or leave them blank. Selective colleges are specifically trying to increase representation for students with non-binary or diverse gender identities, so if you fall into one of those categories, you should share that decision. Conversely, it’s really important to respond authentically to the gender and pronoun questions, – attempts at humor or trolling will be received poorly by admissions officers. It’s also worth noting that if you opt to add a custom pronoun set, you’ll be required to fill it out before the Common App will allow you to submit the form.
The section for US Armed Forces status comes next. If you have a military background, there are a series of additional questions that follow. There can be valuable benefits for applicants with military affiliations, as many colleges offer financial aid, fee waivers, or scholarships to veterans, current military personnel, or their children.
Answering Race Questions on the Common App
The final part of this section delves into your ethnic or racial background, with two optional questions that may trigger further questions depending on your answer. One specifically asks about Hispanic or Latino heritage, while the second asks about other racial identities. Once you make a selection, a dropdown menu will appear and ask some additional questions about your tribal identity or specific heritage or background. If you’re biracial or multi-racial, you can select multiple boxes which align with your ethnic heritage, and respond to further questions if you desire.
Many students are uncertain about whether to fill out this information. Due to the recent Supreme Court decision banning the use of race in college admissions, leaving these questions blank will have less of an impact – as many colleges are choosing to hide this info when reading applications. However if you decide to begin answering these questions, you should complete it fully. If you click on ‘Asian’, for instance, proceed with sharing your Asian background in detail. It’s perfectly fine to choose not to answer or to answer all questions, but leaving only one or two questions answered might create an odd impression.
Another dynamic to note is that many colleges have included race-focused supplemental essay questions. Even if you choose not to answer questions about your race on the Common App, it’s likely that selective colleges will ask you about it in your essays. Remember, consistency is key. If you avoid discussing your racial identity in this section but then write extensively about it in an essay, that might appear inconsistent.
Finally, if your name hints at your heritage, colleges may deduce your ethnicity regardless of how you answer the race and ethnicity question. For instance, with a name like mine, Vinay Bhaskara, it’s quite clear that I have South Asian origins. So, if your name reveals your ethnic identity in a similar manner, colleges will be able to figure it out.
The next part of the Profile section covers languages. If you’ve studied a language in school, like Spanish, for a number of years, it’s beneficial to mention it here. Leaving it out might come across as inconsistent, particularly if your schooling reflects years of Spanish instruction. Any language spoken with your parents at home — especially if English isn’t your primary language there — should be also indicated in this section. This offers a deeper look into your background, and colleges often value this kind of diversity.
After languages, the Common App asks about your geography and nationality. This section is generally straightforward. You’ll need to fill out your place of birth, including the city and state, as well as the number of years you’ve lived in the United States. International students might only list one or two years, specific to your time spent in a U.S. boarding school. Domestic students will likely list the entirety of their age, such as 16, 17, or 18 years.
Citizenship status is a particularly impactful question. You’ll be given options such as U.S. citizen, non-U.S. national, U.S. dual citizen, permanent resident, refugee, U.S. DACA status, or a citizen of a non-U.S. country. All options apart from “citizen of non-U.S. country” will categorize you as a domestic applicant, meaning you may qualify for financial aid. However, if you select “citizen of non-U.S. country,” you’ll be considered an international applicant. This categorization typically excludes you from qualifying for financial aid at most institutions, particularly federal aid. It’s also critical to remember your social security number, especially if you plan on applying for financial aid.
One common issue arises for students who are attending boarding school and do not have access to their green card. This situation can lead to a last-minute scramble, requiring parents at home to find and upload the green card to the Common App. So it’s essential to plan ahead and ensure you double-check and enter this information as early as possible.
More broadly, you shouldn’t wait until the last day before an application deadline to complete your Common App. Unfortunately, the platform often experiences surges of activity in the period leading up to deadlines, causing it to slow down, or even become unavailable.
The last portion of the Profile section assesses your eligibility for a Common App fee waiver, based on a set of criteria assessed by the platform. The criteria range from already receiving an SAT fee waiver to family eligibility for a Pell Grant to eligibility for free and reduced price lunch. If you are eligible for a fee waiver, you won’t be required to pay a fee when you submit an application.
Filling Out the Family Section of the Common App
The Family section in the Common Application asks questions about about your household, your parents, siblings, legal guardian and step parents. The extent of the data you are required to fill out changes based on your responses. For example, if you state that your parents are divorced or have never married, the option to list step parents becomes available.
Many students ask whether it’s really necessary to provide all these additional details. Generally, it’s recommended that you provide information about your parents, step parents, legal guardian, etc, as determined by your circumstances. Parent data acts as a potentially useful contact point for colleges, particularly for the parent who plays a significant role in your college applications. For any additional parents or step parents, providing extra, non-mandatory information is only beneficial if they have attended a college that you plan to apply to. This could afford you some legacy benefit, though colleges are gradually paying less attention to legacy status.
You should also give college extra information about your step parents if they will be taking an active role in your college application process, whether in the form of completing a financial aid form or making direct contact with colleges. If not, this information becomes unnecessary and can be skipped over.
Remember, optional fields may appear based on your responses. For instance, if you note that you have a legal guardian, a section for legal guardian data must be completed, which closely mirrors the parent data section. Conversely, if you live with your parents, only their data is necessary – along with optional step parent details, if you choose to provide them.
For occupation details, it’s beneficial if your parents are employed by a college. If that’s not the case, omitting this information won’t affect your application and, in fact, could work slightly in your favor. For instance, more selective colleges seek diversity and may view an affluent professional background neutrally or possibly as a slight disadvantage. However, if your parents hold more blue-collar professions, it could serve as a minor boost. Still, this impact is quite minimal and varies in effect across more and less selective colleges.
Sibling information, on the other hand, doesn’t really carry much benefit. Answer: Although in the past inputting more siblings in college could translate to financial aid benefits, this is no longer the case. Nevertheless, as the application requests this information, it’s best to fill it in, even though it doesn’t significantly affect your application.
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