@TheGFG Same thing happened to my son last night. But after he logged out and logged back in and clicked “Profile,” it let him in to start entering data.
I think it’s good that a platform may encourage more effort and resume-building in more children at the 8th and 9th grade level. Too many parents aren’t seriously thinking about college prep until 11th grade – that’s where most of the there hysteria comes from – but by then it’s largely too late. In 11th grade everyone tries to load up on ECs and volunteering, wouldn’t it benefit the kids and schools and communities if these students take these things seriously during 9th and 10th?
Further, you hope this snuffs out more of the distortion, leading to more authentic kids being accepted over coached and phony applicants.
It is interesting to see colleges have no idea about students until application submission time. I must have been misreading the original stories which seemed to claim this is to get colleges to be aware of upcoming students who fit their needs and start targeting them early on.
@Karenk6 I think it’s going to make the kids more stressed out and worried about cramming activities into their schedules that they don’t really want to do but will feel they need to do it to keep pace with others. Parents will really be monitoring and fine tuning the kids resume from 8th grade on, instead of just letting kids be kids and enjoy learning and doing stuff on their own.
@RightCoaster Hate to break it to you but the grooming is already occurring this early in wealthy enclaves. How do you think kids qualify for elite preps, prestigious publics like Stuy, or even the advanced high-honors tracks at your local high school?
You’d hope this catches on in the middle and lower class areas that really don’t seem to consider resume building very early. Far too many are not engaged early leading to an 11th grade achievement gap that is impossible to ever overcome.
My take is that for high performing kids in middle and upper middle class suburbia, the coalition app will give
those that start early a substantial advantage. The public universities in the coalition, such as Rutgers and UMD, may want to grab some of the talent, at full-pay level, early on. And they can - given the limited spots at the top private universities.
I fear that the students who will most lose out are the bright kids from hard-working middle class families, where the parents and the school may not be so savvy about college admissions. It will be all up to the kid, and as the process stretches out, the disadvantage accrues. The kids from very disadvantaged backgrounds and URM’s will be probably be given special consideration, because that’s one of the aims of this process, supposedly.
The coalition members, especially the public, tax-supported ones, are committed to access - for themselves- to the best talent (and most $$) they can grab without much effort on their part. DS2 is only in middle school, so I guess he will be stuck with this, as our state flagship is part of the coalition.
What is so intimidating about setting aside some record of a positive?
Everyone complains about the wealthy prep kids getting oh-so-much support. I’m sure their GCs are keeping a tally. Why can’t less advantaged kids be given a tool? If this were some private company, would you be as upset?
There’s nothing neurotic about filing that A paper or some ditty about the community project you worked on.
Another comment about the rationale is the dissatisfaction with the Common App (especially after 2013’s flubs) and how colleges have no real input or the ability to suggest changes to CB. Don’t we all gripe about CB and its near monopoly?
One more change the class of 2021 has to go through! It will be very hard to navigate Common App, this new Application format, new SAT, New ACT and god knows what else… will be interesting to see the acceptance rates I think there will be so much confusion that only those who are wealthy enough to hire an independent help will be able to navigate these “NEW” system
If the Coalition locker is just an organizing tool, then it shouldn’t be a problem. However if suddenly the class of 2021 has to dig up old English papers from 9th grade or a community service letter from middle school praising their volunteering spirit (both of which were long discarded), then it’s an issue.
Now the cynical part of my brain can’t help but wonder if the schools who seem to be pushing the Coalition app hard are going to show any admissions bias towards kids who use it vs. Common App to “prove” its viability.
Middle school doesn’t count. (I know you know.) And the idea is collect as you go. I know many kids will do this last minute, but then it’s not as effective. And it could be said, that’s on them, their approach or their organizational skills. If your kids had a “file,” they could reflect back on it. For most of us CC parents, we’re their file.
I’m not defending this change as some miracle. The tools need using.
“In 11th grade everyone tries to load up on ECs and volunteering, wouldn’t it benefit the kids and schools and communities if these students take these things seriously during 9th and 10th?” No, actually, I don’t see any benefit to anyone in pressuring kids to spend several years doing things they are only doing to look good to colleges. Surprised that you do.
I like this application. BTW, it is promoted as a help to low income student from public schools with overwhelmed counselors.
this application shows kids the importance of EC and honors. It is helpful, IMHO.
<58 schools are using their application system for this application cycle and the remaining 36 will use it for the 2017/2018 cycle.>
My D tried to create an account. Lots of sections are still “under construction”.
“pressuring kids to spend several years doing things they are only doing to look good to colleges”
Who says involved kids are only doing things to look good to colleges? I mean other than some folks on CC. If you want a college that only looks at stats, there are plenty. If you want to do nothing in hs but schoolwork, there are colleges that won’t care.
But most kids are doing something beyond their studies. The issue isn’t driving them to do more padding. It’s get them to look at their own “whole” over the 3.5 years of hs.
And sure, it will take many some time to get the hang of this.
I think for those who are interested in elite schools, no matter rich or poor, it is a good thing to have this platform which makes the competition fair to everyone. Because in the past, the riches had the resources to hire consultants to polish up, where the poor did not have the same resources. With the platform, everyone who is interested can post their activities along with the riches and there are guidelines from the coalition to compete.
We went to visit Columbia with D several years ago. We met a kid and his parents in the waiting line, they were very confident that their S will get 80% of the ivies admission, because they spent 10’s 1000s from 9th grade with consultants and tutors while D was in a lost because we did not do anything other than just go to HS and had good grades.
The children of CCers are the first ones with coalition accounts 
@lookingforward, @karenk6 did. And I do as well. Our school isn’t nearly as fixated on top colleges or competitive as some on here, not even in the same league, and yet I do hear stories about kids doing stuff just to look good to colleges.
I also think that if something is meaningful to a kid, they probably don’t need someone telling them to save it.
I know from experience most public colleges don’t actually have the time to consider ECs. The essays are never even read. It’s all for show. They look at GPA and SAT/ACT.