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Duke University
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Unweighted GPA: 3.7
1.0
4.0
SAT: 720 math
200
800
| 800 verbal
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800

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Low accuracy (4 of 18 factors)

What to do if I want to apply to more than 20 colleges through Common App?

I've heard that the Common App has a 20 college limit. Is there a way I can apply to more than 20 colleges through the Common App? Or do I have to go to each college's individual website and apply separately? Lowkey stressing a bit.

11 months ago

You're correct that the Common App has a limit of 20 colleges per account. If you want to apply to more than 20 schools, you have a few options:

1. Coalition Application: Some schools accept the Coalition Application in addition to or instead of the Common App. You can use the Coalition App to apply to schools that accept it, saving your Common App slots for other colleges. Check the website of each school you're interested in to see if they accept the Coalition Application.

2. College-specific application portals: Many colleges, especially public universities, have their own application portals. You will need to apply through their websites directly. For example, the University of California system has its own application and doesn't use the Common or Coalition App.

3. Program-specific applications: For some specialized programs or honors colleges, you might find unique application processes that are separate from the Common App. In this case, you'd have to complete those applications individually.

Before you decide to apply to more than 20 colleges, though, it's important to consider whether applying to such a large number of schools is really the best approach. Instead of trying to find a way around the 20 school limit, perhaps focus on researching and narrowing down your college list to include only the schools that are the best fit for you in terms of location, size, academic programs, and other factors. By doing so, you can concentrate on crafting stronger, more personalized applications for each school, rather than spreading yourself too thin with a long list of colleges.

If you want help cutting down your current list, I'd suggest checking out school search engines like CollegeVine's: https://www.collegevine.com/schools/hub/all/. This tool provides you with a wealth of information about hundreds of colleges all across the country, from their programs offered, sizes, and locations to their acceptance rates and admissions requirements, which can be invaluable as you evaluate which schools are truly the best fit for you.

If you make a CollegeVine account and enter your personal information (grades, extracurriculars, etc.), you can even receive your personalized odds of acceptance at each school, which can also be an incredibly useful data point as you finalize your decisions about where to apply!

Best of luck with your applications!

11 months ago

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CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.