What's wrong with the (online) common application?

Question

So I'm completing the common app online, and I noticed that there was a flaw in the system. I was wondering what you guys think of my dilemma:

In the "Family" portion of the application, you write what colleges your parents attended. My parents attended college in China– meaning no CEEB codes. Without entering a CEEB code, I can't finish the application. (If I press submit, I am told my application status is "Incomplete" and says that I must provide a CEEB code for where my parents went to school.)

You can't print the application either, until you finish it. So I can't just leave the CEEB code blank, print out what I've got, and submit it.

Anyways, even if I could, most universities don't want you to send in the common app by mail. They want it submitted online. (I think– correct me if I'm wrong. Is it possible to get a blank common app, fill it out, and send it in?)

So what should I do? Say that my parents never attended college, so I don't have to write in a CEEB code?

Answer 1

Your solution is probably the one you'll have to take, but on the same site should be a way to call or email the company. Tell them about their application, and ask them what you should do. I'm sure they will just say to pretend your parents didn't go to college, uncool to have to do, but I bet you are right.

Call them first.

Answer 2

Is there any kind of box for entering additional information on the form?  If there is, just say your parents never attended college (in the CEEB code box), then explain later that they actually did, and your problem in entering the correct information.

https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs...

This form has a section for additional information (right at the bottom, scroll down), and it doesn't seem to require a CEEB code for parents.

Answer 3

So pick a UC school -- codes 4833 - 4837 for instance.  They all have thousands of Chinese students.  In the unlikely event your prospective school or employer checked, the registrars would find a name similar to your parents name and give you the benefit of the doubt since there are always misspellings of Chinese names.

In the unlikely event your parents don't have a Chinese name, the odds are good that your ruse will not be discovered.  These schools have 5 -10 thousand graduates each year.

Answer 4

You should probably print out the application and fill it out by hand. Don't bother saving the information in there and just print a copy out and send it in. I'm considering doing this because my mother is in the midst of finishing her master's, but they have no option for "partial completion" for master's work.

I believe there is a regular paper common app that can be printed on the site. Good luck with your applications!

Answer 5

I was able to find a booklet at my school that contains the whole common app.  The benefit of doing it by hand is you can make a note that your parents went to school in China.  Although many schools prefer the electronic version, they will accept the printed out one.