The Coalition Application – Part I

A diverse group of eighty leading private and public colleges, including all of the Ivy Leagues, has joined together in a collaboration called the Coalition for Access, Affordability, and Success. The free online platform, slated to launch in April 2016, is reshaping the way students apply to college. The website is the most recent attempt to both increase college accessibility and the number of students who undertake the application process. An alternative to the Common Application, which consists of a standardized undergraduate college admissions application that allows students to apply to more than 500 colleges and universities, the Coalition for Access also offers students the opportunity to complete and send their applications through one domain. Additionally, the new platform will allow students to develop their own distinct portfolios. As early as their freshman year, students can get a head start in thinking about and preparing for college admissions years in advance.

The purpose of the coalition is also to disentangle the complex and labyrinthine college application process and to make it easier and more streamlined, especially for minority and low-income students. The formation of the coalition developed as a result of data and patterns researchers have noticed for many years. The time-consuming and often times, convoluted, admissions process discourages students from applying, especially those who come from lower-income families and those who cannot afford the resources, such as hired counselors or classes, that are accessible to their higher-income peers. The coalition hopes the streamlined process and new portfolio system will combat the disadvantages some high school students face when considering applying to college, as well as help students who may, otherwise, not receive as much guidance in navigating the application process.

For further information, visit Insider Higher Ed’s article about the NEW application.