COMMON APPLICATION INC

Financials

From the e-filed returns the IRS publishes as XML (latest three processing years; amended returns replace the original). PDF copies at the IRS.

Officers, directors and key employees

As listed on the 990 for the year ended June 30, 2025, highest compensation first.

Address and contacts

Address (IRS master file)

3003 WASHINGTON BLVD STE 1000, ARLINGTON, VA 22201-6710

Principal officer (990 for 2024)

JENNIFER RICKARD, 3003 WASHINGTON BLVD SUITE 1000, ARLINGTON, VA 22201

Signed the 990

KATHY KING, SVP FINANCE & OPS, TREASURER

Phone

(703) 236-2700

Website

WWW.COMMONAPP.ORG

Return prepared by

CHERRY BEKAERT ADVISORY LLC

Mission

THE COMMON APPLICATION IS A NOT-FOR-PROFIT MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATION OF OVER 1,100 COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES ACROSS THE GLOBE COMMITTED TO ACCESS, EQUITY, AND INTEGRITY IN THE COLLEGE ADMISSION PROCESS. EVERY YEAR, OVER 1.5 MILLION STUDENTS FROM MORE THAN 200 COUNTRIES AND TERRITORIES ONE-THIRD BEING THE FIRST IN THEIR FAMILIES TO ATTEND COLLEGE UTILIZE ITS ONLINE PLATFORM TO SUBMIT OVER 10 MILLION UNDERGRADUATE APPLICATIONS TO MEMBER INSTITUTIONS. BUILDING ON ITS 50-YEAR HISTORY OF REDUCING FRICTION IN THE COLLEGE PROCESS, COMMON APP WORKS TO CLOSE THE GAP IN STUDENTS FROM LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COMMUNITIES USING THE PLATFORM.

Program accomplishments

• SEE SCHEDULE OCOMMON APP'S MISSION TO ADVANCE ACCESS, EQUITY, AND INTEGRITY IN THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS PROCESS HAS NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT THAN IT IS TODAY. WE HAVE SEVERAL INITIATIVES UNDERWAY TO HELP MORE STUDENTS ACCESS, AFFORD, AND ATTAIN POSTSECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES.WHILE 1.5 MILLION STUDENTS USE COMMON APP EACH YEAR TO APPLY FOR POSTSECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES, THERE IS MORE WORK TO DO. OUR DATA SHOW THAT LOW-INCOME APPLICANTS ARE STILL SIGNIFICANTLY UNDERREPRESENTED IN COMMON APP'S APPLICANT POOL, AND THROUGHOUT FY25, WE CONTINUED TO WORK TOWARD OUR MOONSHOT OF CLOSING THE GAP IN STUDENTS FROM LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COMMUNITIES ACCESSING POSTSECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES.COMMON APP STRIVES TO BE A TRUSTED RESOURCE FOR OUR MEMBER COLLEGES, STUDENTS, FAMILIES, AND THE PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT STUDENTS NAVIGATING THE APPLICATION PROCESS. TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP ALL STUDENTS ACCESS, AFFORD, AND ATTAIN OPPORTUNITY, ESPECIALLY THOSE FROM LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COMMUNITIES. WE HAVE SEVERAL INITIATIVES IN FLIGHT THAT WILL HELP US REACH OUR MOONSHOT, INCLUDING:- REIMAGINING COLLEGE ADMISSIONS TO BE MORE SIMPLE, LOGICAL, AND JOYFUL - CONNECTING STUDENTS TO FINANCIAL AID RESOURCES, INFORMATION, AND OPPORTUNITIES- DELIVERING TAILORED INSIGHTS TO EXPAND OUTREACHTHROUGHOUT FY25, WE CONTINUED SEVERAL INITIATIVES TO WORK TOWARD THAT MOONSHOT GOAL. REIMAGINING COLLEGE ADMISSIONS TO BE MORE SIMPLE, LOGICAL, AND JOYFULDIRECT ADMISSIONSDIRECT ADMISSIONS IS DESIGNED TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN HIGH SCHOOL AND HIGHER EDUCATION BY PROACTIVELY ADMITTING STUDENTS INTO COLLEGE. COMMON APP'S PROGRAM IDENTIFIES FIRST-GENERATION AND MIDDLE- AND LOW-INCOME STUDENTS WHO MEET THE ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS OF PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS, AND INFORMS THOSE STUDENTS THAT THEY HAVE BEEN CONDITIONALLY ACCEPTED TO A GIVEN INSTITUTION BASED ON THEIR QUALIFICATIONS. IN ITS SECOND YEAR AS A FULL-SCALE PROGRAM, COMMON APP DIRECT ADMISSIONS PARTNERED WITH 119 MEMBER INSTITUTIONS ACROSS 35 STATES TO SERVE MORE THAN 700,000+ FIRST-GENERATION AND LOW-INCOME STUDENTS. OUR RESULTS SHOW:- 22% OF STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED OFFERS ADDED AT LEAST 1 COLLEGE THEY WEREN'T ALREADY CONSIDERING - 3 IN 4 STUDENTS WHO CHOSE TO ADD A COLLEGE THAT SENT THEM AN OFFER ENDED UP ACTUALLY APPLYING - 32% HIGHER APPLICATION RATES AMONG STUDENTS WHO RECEIVED A DIRECT ADMISSIONS OFFER COMPARED TO THOSE WHO DID NOT - STUDENTS WITH THE GREATEST BARRIERS (FEE WAIVER ELIGIBLE, FIRST-GENERATION) ARE TWICE AS LIKELY TO ENGAGEAT THE STATE LEVEL, COMMON APP PARTNERED AGAIN WITH THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT THROUGH THE CONNECTICUT STATE COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES (CSCU) TO OFFER TENS OF THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS IN THE STATE DIRECT ADMISSIONS TO BOTH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS THROUGH THEIR CONNECTICUT AUTOMATIC ADMISSIONS PROGRAM (CAAP). COMMON APP ALSO LAUNCHED A PARTNERSHIP WITH THE STATE OF ILLINOIS THROUGH ITS "ONE CLICK COLLEGE ADMIT" PROGRAM TO OFFER THOUSANDS OF HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS IN THE STATE DIRECT ADMISSIONS.STUDENT CONTEXT PILOTWE ALSO CONTINUED OUR STUDENT CONTEXT INVENTORY, WHICH GIVES STUDENTS THE OPTION TO TELL US MORE ABOUT THEIR CIRCUMSTANCES AND RESPONSIBILITIES IN A CHECKLIST-STYLE SECTION OF THE APPLICATION. THIS CHECKLIST ALLOWS STUDENTS TO THINK MORE BROADLY ABOUT THE VALUABLE EXPERIENCE THEY BRING TO THE TABLE, WHILE ALSO PROVIDING COMMON APP MEMBERS THE ABILITY TO EVALUATE A STUDENT'S ACADEMIC RECORD IN A BROADER CONTEXT. THIS SIGNALS TO STUDENTS THAT THEIR LIVED EXPERIENCES MATTER. OUR FINDINGS INDICATE THAT MOST STUDENTS ARE WILLING TO ENGAGE WITH THE OPTIONAL STUDENT CONTEXT INVENTORY QUESTION, AND THE QUESTION RESPONSE OPTIONS ARE STRONGLY RELATED TO COMMON INDICATORS OF LOW-INCOME AND FIRST-GENERATION STATUS.CONNECTING STUDENTS TO FINANCIAL AID RESOURCES, INFORMATION, AND OPPORTUNITIESWE KNOW AFFORDABILITY IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST BARRIERS TO COLLEGE, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE WHO COME FROM LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME FAMILIES. TO HELP MORE STUDENTS FROM LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COMMUNITIES REACH THEIR POSTSECONDARY GOALS, COMMON APP IS CONNECTING COLLEGE APPLICANTS WITH FINANCIAL AID OPPORTUNITIES AND UPFRONT COST INFORMATION. THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS WITH TWO NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP AGGREGATORS, OUR SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM CONNECTS STUDENTS WITH SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES THEY'RE ELIGIBLE FOR BASED ON THEIR COMMON APP DATA, HELPING SCHOLARSHIP PARTNERS BETTER REACH AND SERVE UNDERREPRESENTED STUDENTS. IN FY25, WE EXPANDED OUR REACH FROM 89K STUDENTS IN FY24 TO 1.5M STUDENTS. PARTICIPATING SCHOLARSHIP PARTNERS AWARDED OVER $5.5M TO FIRST-GENERATION AND LOW-INCOME STUDENTS WHOSE DECISION TO APPLY WAS LIKELY INFLUENCED BY COMMON APP OUTREACH. FURTHER RESULTS SHOW:- STUDENTS MATCHED WITH A MEDIAN OF 14 OPPORTUNITIES IN FY25, UP FROM 2 IN FY24.- FIRST-GENERATION AND BELOW-MEDIAN-INCOME STUDENTS WERE MORE LIKELY TO ACT ON THEIR SCHOLARSHIP MATCHES. 32% OF ALL STUDENTS ACTED ON AT LEAST ONE MATCH, COMPARED TO 37% OF FIRST-GENERATION AND 38% OF BELOW-MEDIAN-INCOME STUDENTS.EACH YEAR, COMMON APP MEMBER INSTITUTIONS WAIVE THEIR APPLICATION FEES FOR STUDENTS WHO MEET OUR ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, SUCH AS RECEIVING FREE AND REDUCED LUNCH, OR IF THE STUDENT LIVES IN SUBSIDIZED HOUSING. IN FY25, THESE WAIVERS REPRESENTED NEARLY $179 MILLION IN SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS PURSUING HIGHER EDUCATION.DELIVERING TAILORED INSIGHTS TO EXPAND OUTREACHIN FY25, COMMON APP'S DATA ANALYTICS AND RESEARCH TEAM PUBLISHED SEVERAL RESEARCH REPORTS THAT HAVE HELPED IDENTIFY POTENTIAL BARRIERS AND OPPORTUNITIES TO IMPROVE COLLEGE ACCESS. THESE REPORTS HAVE RANGED FROM TRACKING PERSISTENCE IN STEMM DEGREES, UNDERSTANDING HOW STUDENTS WHO DON'T FOLLOW "TRADITIONAL" PATHS APPLY AND ENROLL IN COLLEGE, AND OUR DEADLINE UPDATES, WHICH PROVIDE TIMELY INSIGHTS ON FIRST-YEAR COLLEGE APPLICATION TRENDS.IN FY25, WE LAUNCHED OUR FIRST-EVER CALL FOR RESEARCH PROPOSALS FROM THE BROADER SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH COMMUNITY. THIS NEW PROCESS IS MEANT TO MOBILIZE NEW PERSPECTIVES, SKILL SETS, EXPERTISE, AND RESOURCES. IT AIMS TO ENRICH OUR DATA INSIGHTS, WHICH WE HAVE SHARED OVER THE LAST FOUR YEARS, AND EXPAND WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM OUR DATA IN SERVICE TO THE HIGHER EDUCATION COMMUNITY.WE ALSO LAUNCHED NEW ANALYTICS FEATURES TO COMMON APP MEMBERS IN FY25. THE ENHANCED REPORTS ARE DESIGNED TO HELP OUR MEMBER COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES LEVERAGE STUDENT DATA AND IDENTIFY APPLICANT TRENDS, SUCH AS YEAR-OVER-YEAR STUDENT APPLICANT COMPARISONS.ACHIEVING MEANINGFUL IMPACTIN FY25, OUR DATA SHOW NEARLY 1.5 MILLION DISTINCT FIRST-YEAR APPLICANTS SUBMITTED OVER 10 MILLION APPLICATIONS TO 1,097 MEMBER INSTITUTIONS. STUDENTS FROM BELOW-MEDIAN-INCOME ZIP CODES INCREASED BY 10% OVER THE LAST YEAR, AND FIRST-GENERATION APPLICANTS SURGED BY 14%.
  Expenses $44,328,462 · revenue $62,410,476

What it must file and when

IRS records say it files Form 990 or 990-EZ. Based on its last return; a smaller organization may file the 990-N. Its accounting year ends in June, so each return is due on the 15th day of the 5th month after that.

IRS record

EIN

91-2170737

Tax-exempt status

501(c)(3): Charitable, religious, educational or scientific organization

Foundation status

Publicly supported organization (509(a)(2))

Donations deductible (Pub 78)

Public charity, 50% deduction limit

Exempt since

2002

Accounting year ends

June

Files

Form 990 or 990-EZ

Category (NTEE)

Education (B90)

Assets (IRS master file)

$99,213,303

Income (IRS master file)

$70,445,507

Filing history

990-N: the IRS bulk file holds only the latest e-Postcard per organization; earlier years come from archived copies of that file since 2020 and can have gaps (the IRS e-Postcard search lists every one). 990, 990-EZ, 990-PF, 990-T: every e-filed return in the IRS e-file index since 2019; XML for the latest three processing years, amounts from the IRS Statistics of Income extracts before that. PDF copies and determination letters at the IRS (search EIN 91-2170737).

Questions about COMMON APPLICATION INC

What is the EIN of COMMON APPLICATION INC?

The employer identification number (EIN) of COMMON APPLICATION INC is 91-2170737.

Is COMMON APPLICATION INC tax-exempt?

Yes. The IRS lists it as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) since 2002.

Are donations to COMMON APPLICATION INC tax-deductible?

Yes. It is listed in IRS Publication 78 (Public charity, 50% deduction limit).

Which annual return does COMMON APPLICATION INC file?

Form 990 or 990-EZ. Based on its last return; a smaller organization may file the 990-N.

When is the next return of COMMON APPLICATION INC due?

The return for tax year 2025 (the year ending June 30, 2026) is due November 16, 2026. Form 8868 extends it by six months; the 990-N cannot be extended.

When did COMMON APPLICATION INC last file with the IRS?

The latest return in the IRS public files is the 990 for the year ended June 2025.

Who is the principal officer of COMMON APPLICATION INC?

The 990 for the year ended June 30, 2025 names JENNIFER RICKARD.

Who are the officers and directors of COMMON APPLICATION INC?

The 990 for the year ended June 30, 2025 lists 30 people; 13 received compensation from the organization, the highest $810,169 (JENNY RICKARD, CEO).

How much revenue does COMMON APPLICATION INC have?

On its 990 for the year ended June 30, 2025 it reported revenue of $65,847,203, expenses of $53,059,962 and total assets of $99,213,303 at year end.

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