Common Application Transfer Tips 4


The Common Application is the free online application system most private and many public colleges use. Use it and you can save so much time. It organizes everything for you. Just read these tips and get started.

Tip 1 Account Set Up. www.commonapp.org. Use an email address you check often.

  • Set up an easy user name and password. Your user name and password are okay.
  • Text yourself and save in a million places your user name and password.

Tip 2 Left hand column. Learn that left hand column is the links to each core section of application.

Tip 3 My Colleges. Click on it. Add all your college choices. You will see core information about each college. Deadlines. Application. Supplemental. Payments. School Forms. School Details.

Tip 4 Collect deadlines and requirements. Each school has its own deadlines. You will see them under Future Plans. You also need to check for requirements. They differ by college.

Tip 5 Future Plans.  Complete the Future Plans for each college. The rest of the application is the same for each college. The Future Plans page will have the deadlines.

Tip 6 Overall Application. You can keep changing info until the minute you submit the application. So don’t worry. You can go back and make changes. Any requirement with a YELLOW DOT in front of it is MANDATORY to fill in. 

Tip 7 Education and Academics. Education: List your most recent college. You must find a counselor’s name and contact info to add.  You can add other colleges at the bottom of the the Education page. With Academics, most schools don’t require SAT scores for those who have 30 units or more by end of year. If your school does require them, send your scores but you don’t need to list them here. List your classes. Put winter session classes under Fall Semester. Remember to put name and units. English 101 3 units.   

Tip 8 Activities. Put in order of your most important activities and jobs. Make sure to express leadership and initiative in the one line. If you have more than the allotted number of activities, you can combine some common activities or put extras under additional information.

Tip 9 Writing. Start working on essays now. Short: You have 1000 characters for short paragraph about activity or job. Long: You upload the long essay but try to keep it to one page. Remember, this is a great way for you to re-use your UC 1 essay.

Tip 10 Supplements. Click on this tab on left. You will see information about supplements for each college on your list. Start a master list of the supplemental short and long essays. Color code overlapping prompts.

Tip 11 School Forms. These are the forms for your counselor and professors. Transfer students must print these forms out. Each school has different requirements so check to see which forms they want you to use. Contact professors now and make them stamped envelopes so they can send recommendations. Some colleges want your high school counselor to fill out forms as well. Check. Also make sure to send transcripts 1) after fall grades come out and 2) again after winter session grades come out.

Tip 12 Submission. Make sure you submit 1. Common Application. 2. Payment 3. Supplement. The order may differ by school but make sure you submit all three.

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About rjoseph

I am the creator and visionary behind this site. I want to do everything I can to help students consider college as an option, even when they may be the first in their family to go or may not have the funds at hand. Don't let anyone tell you that you don't have the right or the ability to go to college.

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4 thoughts on “Common Application Transfer Tips

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