College by red green

Changes happen every year to the application and the process. This year’s changes have affected the process on all levels. 

“This year the Common Application has joined forces with Xello. Xello and Common App now share information when a student applies to college and the submission of this information by the student has been difficult to confirm,” guidance counselor Matt Willett said. “Without direct confirmation that the Xello and Common App have indeed shared the information, it has caused some confusion and stress for both the students and the counselors.”

As a result, there have been many more seniors coming to student services for help with their applications. 

“Some colleges weren’t receiving transcripts that were sent through Xello. There were also some issues with recommenders and sending recommendation letters,” Student Services Secretary Sarah Judas said. 

Seniors this year are stepping up and filling applications out quickly. Turning materials in early is very beneficial to avoid stress, for rolling admissions and receiving early feedback. 

“One of the best things happening this year so far is that many senior students are filling out college applications and are getting positive feedback from the admissions offices at many colleges they are applying to,” Willett said. “Many seniors are taking control of their own destiny and getting started on college applications, apprenticeship opportunities and meeting with military recruiters.”

Not only do applications take a lot of time and dedication, most bigger colleges and universities make students pay to apply. This causes added stress on the seniors who want to apply to many larger schools but do not have the money to apply.  

“The application costs are very expensive and it makes it hard to choose where to apply. There are a ton of colleges I’d love to apply to but $70-80 per school adds up way too fast,” senior Mateja Clark said.