Interest Up in Common Application (and Its Competitor)

In a sign of the increased interest by colleges in taking steps to attract more applicants, the Common Application announced that a record 49 new institutions are joining the program, in which applicants can designate multiple colleges to receive their materials. The brings total membership to 392, including a record-breaking 35 public institutions. The numbers are also up for the Universal College Application, a rival to the Common Application that started two years ago with 13 institutions, and now is in the 80s. Some colleges are involved with both applications.