<p>1) Can you send different essays for different schools that all use the common application? Like, is it possible to send off your application to college A first with essay A and then paste essay B onto the application and send it off to college B?
2) Is it bad or good to write your essay and/or short answer responses about the same activity? Because some schools have a supplment essay that asks you what you enjoy doing the most outside of academics, but the commom application already have you write a paragraph on your most meaningful activity.</p>
<p>1) no unless you create diff. accounts
2) depends… personally 150 words isn’t enough to explicate on an activity so I would devote two essays to a particular activity. Just have each essay address a different facet</p>
<p>so its only one common app essay for all colleges? Eh, that’s pretty restrictive. What if you are doing EA and find that you’d like to improve your essays for RD?</p>
<p>I was going to ask the same question! bump…</p>
<p>i think someone said they tried to create different accounts, and it didn’t work. you’ll probably have to send in the paper version</p>
<p>Why couldn’t you complete the Common Application online, send it to some colleges, then go back in and edit it (changing the essay) and then send it to the other schools?</p>
<p>Puzzled88, just search the other threads on the Common App for many comments on this very issue. The Common App website clearly states that once you have sent your application off to the first college, it becomes “locked” and you can’t change the essay for your other schools.</p>
<p>YES, you CAN send different essays to different schools! And it is better to write your essays about different topics than your short responses.</p>
<p>How do you do it menloparkmom, if CA actually does lock the application?</p>
<p>Unless the rules have changed recently for the CA, the application is only “locked” for a college when you actually click the submit button to send your application to that college. If you send your applications one at a time, instead of checking off ALL the colleges you are applying to with the CA, then you can change the essay for each college. The additonal benefit to sending each application individually is the other colleges won’t “see” where else you are applying.</p>
<p>Interesting, menloparkmom. Seems like that <em>might</em> be right (I haven’t checked myself). I think I will email CA just to make sure.</p>
<p>I think all the info can find found with a careful reading of CA directions.</p>
<p>Oh and if you are right menloparkmom, then we can even change the common app itself, not JUST the essays then?</p>
<p>menloparkmom, they changed the comm app this year. once u submit to 1 school, u cant go back and edit for the other schools. I think now, u submit one at a time</p>
<p>OH… too bad!</p>
<p>I sent them a tech question, asking them if it were the case, and I explained how it gives Early action students a distinct disadvantage and how what if things were to change in those two months that we need to include the updates in our application before regular decision. </p>
<p>If this change is actually true, I encourage you guys to send an email too.</p>
<p>yeah, thats unfortunate. i wish the rules wouldnt have changed.</p>
<p>tech support at the common app site advises that sending the app “all at one time” does not inform schools where your apps were sent (eg, schools do not “see” where else you are applying.</p>
<p>IF that is the case, then they may have done some modification of the application, but I wouldn’t trust everything the Collegeboard has to say.</p>
<p>wait, so your colleges on the common app won’t be able to see the other schools that you are applying to?</p>