Comments on: The Uncommon Application, Part I: The personal touch http://chapter42.whitewhale.net/2008/11/22/the-uncommon-application/ Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:41:26 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Jason http://chapter42.whitewhale.net/2008/11/22/the-uncommon-application/comment-page-1/#comment-37 Jason Mon, 24 Nov 2008 22:30:21 +0000 http://chapter42.whaleblogs.net/?p=138#comment-37 Sure. Don't get me wrong, Janie— I don't think the Common App turns applicants away. On the contrary, it makes things much easier for them— so many schools are using it now that an enterprising applicant will almost certainly have at least one school that accepts it. This is why it's such a good business model— the more schools accept it, the more prospects use it; the more prospects use it, the more schools will accept it. (I really should find out if it's a publicly traded company.) What I'm saying is that in this atmosphere of centralization and outsourcing, the right online application could forge a tighter connection than you'd have with the 10 schools you sent your Common App to. The real point, I'd argue, is that in a competitive environment, the more you can get a prospect to engage intellectually with what a school has to offer, the better your chances are of getting that student to matriculate. Sure. Don’t get me wrong, Janie— I don’t think the Common App turns applicants away. On the contrary, it makes things much easier for them— so many schools are using it now that an enterprising applicant will almost certainly have at least one school that accepts it. This is why it’s such a good business model— the more schools accept it, the more prospects use it; the more prospects use it, the more schools will accept it. (I really should find out if it’s a publicly traded company.)

What I’m saying is that in this atmosphere of centralization and outsourcing, the right online application could forge a tighter connection than you’d have with the 10 schools you sent your Common App to. The real point, I’d argue, is that in a competitive environment, the more you can get a prospect to engage intellectually with what a school has to offer, the better your chances are of getting that student to matriculate.

]]> By: Janie http://chapter42.whitewhale.net/2008/11/22/the-uncommon-application/comment-page-1/#comment-40 Janie Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:59:08 +0000 http://chapter42.whaleblogs.net/?p=138#comment-40 No, I don't think the Uncommon App was ever fully online, which is a shame. Or... maybe a blessing to admissions counselors? Can you imagine sorting through 8,000 YouTube vids of high-school seniors who have been raised to relish in their sheer giftedness? http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/01/15/college_hopefuls_get_creative_to_a_fault/ But once a student has made the decision to apply to a school, would the coldness of the CommonApp really turn them away? Or is it just the next necessary step? (Even the perfect dinner-date ends with paying the bill?) No, I don’t think the Uncommon App was ever fully online, which is a shame.

Or… maybe a blessing to admissions counselors? Can you imagine sorting through 8,000 YouTube vids of high-school seniors who have been raised to relish in their sheer giftedness?

http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2008/01/15/college_hopefuls_get_creative_to_a_fault/

But once a student has made the decision to apply to a school, would the coldness of the CommonApp really turn them away? Or is it just the next necessary step?

(Even the perfect dinner-date ends with paying the bill?)

]]> By: Jason http://chapter42.whitewhale.net/2008/11/22/the-uncommon-application/comment-page-1/#comment-39 Jason Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:42:46 +0000 http://chapter42.whaleblogs.net/?p=138#comment-39 Yep. (I'm an alum of the graduate school, so I never used the Uncommon App, but yeah, it's a bummer.) I'm not sure if Chicago's Uncommon App ever had a full online version— do you know? Yep. (I’m an alum of the graduate school, so I never used the Uncommon App, but yeah, it’s a bummer.) I’m not sure if Chicago’s Uncommon App ever had a full online version— do you know?

]]> By: Janie http://chapter42.whitewhale.net/2008/11/22/the-uncommon-application/comment-page-1/#comment-38 Janie Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:37:33 +0000 http://chapter42.whaleblogs.net/?p=138#comment-38 The decision (made only this year!) for U of C to finally drop the "Uncommon Application" must have been particularly stinging to you as an alum. Chicago is keeping the unusual essay prompts as a "Chicago Supplement" to the Common App, but dropping their usage of the term "Uncommon Application". The original message from the Dean suggested that they would keep both, but now you can only find the Uncommon App in the "Myths and Legends" section of the site. http://uncommonapplication07-08.blogspot.com/2006/12/truth-about-common-application.html The decision (made only this year!) for U of C to finally drop the “Uncommon Application” must have been particularly stinging to you as an alum.

Chicago is keeping the unusual essay prompts as a “Chicago Supplement” to the Common App, but dropping their usage of the term “Uncommon Application”.

The original message from the Dean suggested that they would keep both, but now you can only find the Uncommon App in the “Myths and Legends” section of the site.

http://uncommonapplication07-08.blogspot.com/2006/12/truth-about-common-application.html

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