Dive Brief:
- The Common Application’s new software ran into glitches last fall because it hadn’t been tested adequately, and the problems were compounded by a pricing policy that left many colleges without a viable backup, according to a consultant’s report.
- Common Application, with more than 500 member colleges, offers its lowest prices to colleges that don’t allow any admissions applications without it. So when the software failed during early admissions season, colleges had to either wait for it to be fixed, quickly build their own system, or track down software from a competing vendor.
- The consultant also raised concerns about the Common Application’s mission and board structure.
Dive Insight:
The Common Application's software glitches created furious guidance counselors and admissions officers, as it forced many colleges to move deadlines back, Inside Higher Ed reports. They also were a factor in Rob Killion losing his job as executive director of the organization. On the organizational issues, the consultant recommended that Common Application sort out whether it is primarily a membership organization or a technology vendor, and that it add chief information officers or chief financial officers to its board, which is now made up entirely of college admissions personnel.