Common App or individual apps for public WUEs?

[grableca]

My son is applying to four WUE schools as safety/fit options. We live in California and he’s also doing the UC and CSU applications. Currently, he doesn’t have any private schools on his list and probably won’t.

It’s harder than I thought to get accurate info about what the app looks like behind the registration wall. Initially, it seemed simplest to just do the Common App if all four of the OOS schools accepted it. But it’s a long, involved app with a lengthy activities section and an essay, right? Also, googling suggests Bozeman doesn’t accept it, but it’s available to choose in the Common App. So confusing.

Questions:

1. Should he do the Common App or individual apps for each?
2. Doesn’t the CA require an essay? What if none of the schools do? Is there anything else they would use it for, like Honors College or scholarships? Or is he wasting his time?
3. Would the application fees be the same?

Here are the schools:
University of Nevada Reno (someone said recently that the regular app is free?)
Oregon State University Corvallis
Montana State University Bozeman
University of Montana Missoula

Thank you for any info you can provide.

[ucbalumnus]

UNR does not appear to mention The Common Application on its web site: START YOUR APPLICATION

Oregon State (Corvallis or Bend) allows either its own application or The Common Application: Apply Now | Undergraduate Admissions | Oregon State University

There is an Apply Montana application that can be used for the Montana schools, although The Common Application is also used: Undergraduate Application Process

[grableca]

Thanks for the response! That’s what’s odd: if you click “find a school” on the common app itself, it lists all four of them. Yet some don’t mention it on their own web site app pages. Common app actually does include some basic info if you drill down by school that way (eg, Oregon state seems to require the essay and those other three don’t).

[Izzy74]

My son applied to Bozeman this week on their individual application, it took 5 minutes. I think the cost was $35.