The University has no plans to abandon its unique admission application, but it is constantly reassessing options such as adopting the Common Application, Dean of Admission Jim Miller '73 told The Herald.
Brown and Columbia University remain the only two Ivy League schools that have not adopted the Common Application, which is used by 315 colleges nationwide.
Still, Brown could switch to either the Common Application or the newly formed Universal College Application for future classes, Miller said.
"In terms of making Brown accessible, there is some amount that the Common App would allow us to do that," Miller said.
A possible impetus for change is the introduction of the Banner system, which Miller said could integrate with the Common Application more easily than the previous system.
Though he agrees that joining one of the consortia would likely increase the number of applicants, Miller said that isn't a primary concern. The University has seen applications rise by about 25 percent in the last five years, he said.
"We're not looking for more applicants," Miller said. "The key is to have the right people in the applicant pool."
A school that has more applicants apply for the same number of spots is able to reject a higher percentage - a criterion used to determine the widely cited U.S. News and World Report rankings.
Brown tied for 14th in the U.S. News rankings this year, but Miller said that moving up the list is not an incentive to use a general application.
"I'd love for us to be number one, but I want to make sure people reflect us accurately," Miller said.
Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director for external relations of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, said a school loses some of its individuality when it uses a general application.
"In going with the standard set of questions, you are compromising on the particular needs of your institution," he said.
In order to ask applicants questions relevant to their institution, about two-thirds of the colleges that use the Common Application mandate that students fill out a school-specific supplement in addition to the standard Common Application.
The number of schools that use the Common Application has almost doubled in the last 10 years. Aaron Zdawczyk, assistant director of admission and financial aid at Northwestern University, said Northwestern decided to join the Common Application last year in order to reach out to underrepresented and international
populations.
"The decision to move to the Common App was one primarily of access," Zdawczyk said. "We saw a pretty dramatic increase in applications last year."
He was unsure how much the switch to the Common Application contributed to the spike in applicants, since there was a large jump the year before as well, he said.
Chris Munoz, Rice University's vice president for enrollment, said Rice is using the Common Application exclusively for the first time this year, though it has offered the application as an option for several years. He said he expects the move to save money for the school.
"From the university side of it, we're hoping that we're going to gain some ... efficiencies," he said.
Miller said a switch at Brown would not likely affect the cost of applying, which is currently $70.
Other than the supplement, Miller said any new application would need to accommodate applicants who are eligible for fee waivers, as the current application does.
Any changes in the application would not go into effect until next year, he said, when prospective members of the class of 2013 apply to the College.
Jordan Mainzer, a senior at Highland Park High School in Illinois, is applying early decision to Brown's class of 2012. Just in case, he said, he has also filled out the Common Application for other schools, but he didn't mind the extra work.
"Most schools, anyway, are having me do a supplement, and I have to write separate essays," Mainzer said.
Among current freshmen on campus, feelings about Brown's unique application range from pleased to frustrated.
"I thought the select nature of Brown's application made it easier to express myself," Dan Ricker '11 said. "I thought the Common App was a little too restrictive."
Salsabil Ahmed '11 disagreed, saying that Brown's application "was a hassle."
"Plus, (the Common Application) is easier to organize," she said.
But even as each year brings a growing number of institutions accepting the Common Application, Nassirian said some schools will always retain their own
application.
"I'm very convinced that there will always be at least one school that has its own unique needs, and it's going to go with what it needs," he said.
Time will tell whether or not Brown will continue to be one such school.
