How many colleges does average student apply to?

In general, most students apply to between 8 and 12 colleges. This is a good range to aim for, provided that the applications you submit represent a broad variety of colleges. Ideally, you want to apply to at least two safety, four target, and two reach schools.

Is 20 colleges too many to apply to?

While there's no cap on the number of schools you can apply to, some students, especially those from affluent backgrounds who want to go to a selective college, can go overboard, applying to more than 20 or 30 colleges. Personally, I would strongly discourage any student from applying to more than 15 colleges.

What is the average college application number?

The average applicant submitted 6.22 applications in the 2021-22 admissions cycle, Common App found. That number has climbed steadily over the years from 4.63 in 2013-14. But students sending large numbers of applications is still far from the norm.

How many colleges does Common App let you apply to?

Keep in mind you may only add up to 20 colleges. You may adjust your list of colleges at any time. Once you've submitted, you will not be able to remove those schools from your My Colleges list.

Do colleges know how many colleges you apply to?

For the most part, the answer to this question is: no. College admissions officers don't have secret meetings to gossip about which of the incoming freshmen applied to their schools. They are much too busy reviewing applications for that.

The Average Student's College Application Process

Is it OK to only apply to 4 colleges?

Still, you also should avoid applying to too few colleges. In general, it's a good idea to apply to a minimum of five schools. Submitting more applications increases the likelihood of an acceptance and the odds of receiving financial aid offers.

Is it OK to apply to many colleges?

Experts disagree on a specific number of schools applicants should aim for, with recommendations ranging anywhere from four to 15. The College Board suggests students apply to between four and eight colleges.

Why can I only apply to 20 colleges on Common App?

Has anyone been in this spot before? How do you manage or get around this limit if you're looking at more than 20 places? The Common Application does indeed have a limit of 20 colleges, and that's intentional to encourage students to focus on applying to schools they're truly interested in attending.

Is it better to apply through Common App or directly?

Some colleges may accept all of these forms of applications and some schools may only accept one form. However, the Common Application is generally the best choice, as this application is most widely used across the country.

Which colleges don t use Common App?

Notable schools that don't use the Common App include the University of California system, which uses the UC Application, and MIT, which uses its own platform called MyMIT. Georgetown University also uses its own application.

How many colleges is ideal to apply to?

There is no magic number, but five to eight applications are usually enough to ensure that a student is accepted into a suitable institution (depending, of course, on the individual student's record and circumstances). This number should be made up of a combination of “safety,” “match,” and “reach” colleges.

Why college applications are so tricky this year?

The precipitous drop in admit rates–and the resulting intensification of competition among applicants–can manifest in predictable and measurable ways. Average admitted-student SAT and ACT scores, for example, have risen along with selectivity, making an already stressful process feel all the more arduous.

What is the average GPA to apply for college?

The average high school GPA in the US is 3.0, which also accounts for roughly 35% of students who don't end up applying for college. However, for college applicants, the average GPA is more likely between 3.5 and 4.0, depending on their target university.

Can applying to too many colleges hurt your chances?

The College Board recommends that high school seniors narrow down their application list to five to eight schools. It's okay to stray a little outside this range, but as a general rule of thumb you should aim to reach those numbers because sending more than ten applications can have drastic consequences.

Is applying to 15 colleges enough?

We recommend applying to anywhere from 8 to 12 schools. If you are applying to the UC system then you might be able to increase this number, but the total number of individual applications shouldn't be anywhere above 15 applications.

What is the common application limit?

After all of the necessary information has been collected to create a sensible college list, Common Application allows each student to apply to a maximum of 20 colleges under one created profile.

Is there a downside to using Common App?

Con: It's Easy to Overdo It

It's important to still do your research and apply to colleges that align with your needs and goals. On the other hand, don't avoid applying to colleges that don't accept the Common App just because it may be more difficult or time consuming.

Do Common App recommendations go to every college?

Important note: The Common App for recommenders is a one-and-done process. That means that once you submit a form, it's sent to all the colleges you're assigned to. That's why it's important not to customize your forms for a specific institution.

How do you know if you got accepted into college on Common App?

Selected students then receive a direct admissions offer email from Common App. The email has 1 or more offers from colleges and links to find details about each offer. Each college may have different requirements or exceptions to their offer.

Is 12 colleges too many to apply to?

In general, most students apply to between 8 and 12 colleges. This is a good range to aim for, provided that the applications you submit represent a broad variety of colleges. Ideally, you want to apply to at least two safety, four target, and two reach schools.

What happens if you remove a college from Common App after applying?

You cannot make any changes to your Common App after it's submitted. And you cannot resubmit your application - you can only submit it once to this college, that's it. You can make any changes in the application before you submit it to the other college, but you cannot change anything in the submitted application.

Is applying to 3 colleges enough?

How many colleges should students apply to? While there is no “magic number,” research shows there is a big benefit to keeping it on the higher side. A study by economist Amanda Pallais found that when students submitted college applications to four schools, as opposed to three, there was a major positive outcome.

Why do some people apply to so many colleges?

If you're not sure where you stand academically (maybe you earn good grades but attend a large high school where it's difficult to figure out where you truly rank), applying to six or seven colleges with varying entrance criteria and different student body numbers may give you multiple options to determine best fit, ...

Can you apply to the same college twice after being rejected?

Yes. While students certainly can ask a university to reconsider, these are rarely, if ever, successful in changing an admission decision. Many counselors only recommend that students appeal their decision if an important piece of information was missing from their application.

Is 15 schools too many to apply to?

There's no magic number for the number of colleges you should apply to, but there are some general guidelines. Apply to 5-8 colleges. If the schools you're interested in are extremely selective, then you may want to fill out more applications, but going over 15 isn't recommended.