The Common Application announces new members for 2019-2020

By: Nancy Griesemer

The Common Application recently announced the addition of 50 new members to a roster of what will be almost 875 colleges and universities accepting the Common App for 2019-2020. The popular online platform and college planning website annually serves and supports over three million students, teachers and counselors in the U.S. and around the world. And with the addition of several large public institutions including the University of South Carolina, the University of Arkansas, Florida Atlantic University and Florida Gulf Coast University well as Elon University, Duquesne University and Landmark College, these numbers are bound to increase significantly.

“Our increasingly diverse member institutions, now located in all 50 United States, have demonstrated a shared commitment to pursuing access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. Thanks to our members, all students, regardless of their background, have the opportunity to easily apply to the college or university that will help them achieve their best future,” said Jenny Rickard, President and CEO of The Common Application. “These colleges and universities are helping us forge a direct and unambiguous path to a viable future for all students, and we are elated and honored to welcome them into our membership.”

Membership in The Common Application is open to colleges sharing the organization’s mission of advancing college access and must be

• Not-for-profit
• Undergraduate degree-granting
• Accredited by a regional accrediting association (if inside the U.S.)
• A member of the Council of International Schools (if outside the U.S.)
• Committed to the pursuit of equity and integrity in the college admission process

Member institutions are no longer required to also be members of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). The requirement to evaluate students using a “holistic” selection process including a recommendation and an untimed writing sample (essay) was also dropped to accommodate a wider variety of member institutions.

As a result, the Common App membership includes

• Colleges from 50 states plus Washington, DC
• 370+ colleges with no application fee
• 170+ public universities
• Over 330 colleges not requiring a personal statement
• 64 international universities
• 340+ test-optional/test-flexible institutions (including colleges that only “sometimes” require tests)

But the Common App isn’t the only online application from which students can choose. This year, the Coalition Application was accepted by over 140 colleges and universities, including four exclusives: Virginia Tech and the Universities of Florida, Maryland and Washington. The Universal College Application (UCA) was welcomed by 18 institutions including Harvard University, Johns Hopkins, Cornell University, and Princeton. The Common Black College Application enabled students to apply to any number or combination of 53 HBCUs for a single low fee. The Cappex Application, with its promise of no application fees and no supplemental essays, was accepted by over 125 institutions including Cornell College, Eckerd College, Ohio Wesleyan, Queens University of Charlotte, and the University of Tampa. The Greenlight Scholars Application was accepted by 30 colleges and universities, including Carleton College, the College of Wooster and the Wentworth Institute of Technology. The QuestBridge National College Match application was welcomed by 40 highly selective colleges and universities.

And the following new member colleges and universities will be offering the Common Application for 2019-2020:

• Arkansas State University (AR)
• Baruch College, The City University of New York (NY)
• Bridgewater College (VA)
• Brooklyn College, The City University of New York (NY)
• College of Staten Island, The City University of New York (NY)
• Duquesne University (PA)
• Elon University (NC)
• Florida Atlantic University (FL)
• Florida Gulf Coast University (FL)
• Hunter College, The City University of New York (NY)
• Kansas State University (KS)
• Landmark College (VT)
• Messiah College (PA)
• Methodist College of UnityPoint Health (IL)
• Midway University (KY)
• Missouri Southern State University (MO)
• Missouri State University (MO)
• Mount Aloysius College (PA)
• North Central College (IL)
• Pennsylvania College of Technology (PA)
• Dominican University (IL)
• Eastrn Michigan University (MI)
• Ryerson University (Ontario, Canada)
• Shawnee State University (OH)
• Simpson University (CA)
• University of Arkansas (AR)
• University of Charleston (WV)
• University of Minnesota Crookston (MN)
• University of North Dakota (ND)
• University of South Carolina (SC)
• University of Texas - Arlington (TX)
• University of the Incarnate Word (TX)
• Wichita State University (KS)
• Wisconsin Lutheran College (WI)