{"id":98459,"date":"2018-02-19T17:28:04","date_gmt":"2018-02-19T17:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/"},"modified":"2026-08-20T14:11:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T14:11:17","slug":"the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/","title":{"rendered":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><span class=\"js-paste-start-1516637305975\"><i><b>Editor\u2019s note: <\/b>The following article was contributed by Marine Corps Community Services. The content may be edited for clarity, style and length. Find more at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.usmc-mccs.org\/\" title=\"\" class=\"selected-link\">http:\/\/www.usmc-mccs.org\/<\/a>.<\/i><span class=\"js-paste-end-1516637305975\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If not, let\u2019s fix that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Common Application, also called the Common App, is an undergraduate college admissions application. By filling out that one application, you can apply to any of the colleges that accept the form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are many benefits to applying with the Common App. Over 700 colleges and universities use it, which means you can apply to <em>multiple colleges and universities<\/em> with just one application!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can also view the writing prompts and supplemental questions. In addition, the Common App helps you keep track of all your application deadlines in one place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Using it is fairly straightforward:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>1.<\/b> Go to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.commonapp.org\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.commonapp.org\/<\/a> and create and account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>2. <\/b>Add the schools you are applying to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>3.<\/b> Review and follow the requirements for each school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>4.<\/b> Gather references and materials<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><b>5. <\/b>Begin applying<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All applicants using the Common App must respond to the personal essay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFrom all the applications I\u2019ve seen and schools I\u2019ve worked with, the personal essay is by far the most important piece of the application process,\u201d said Deborah Marconda, a Marine Corps <u><a href=\"http:\/\/www.usmc-mccs.org\/services\/education\/leadership-scholar\/\">Leadership Scholar Program<\/a><\/u> Manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Common App allows you to see what standards (word count, formatting, etc.) different colleges expect you to adhere to when drafting your personal essay. This information can be found under the \u201cWriting Requirements\u201d tab on the Common App website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The personal essay has a big impact on the outcome of your application. Be sure to stay within the 650-word limit and leave enough time to edit and refine your essay. If possible, ask several people to review your essay before submitting it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your chosen college or university may provide you with a writing prompt to help you draft your essay. Here are some of the most popular prompts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.<\/li><li>The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?<\/li><li>Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?<\/li><li>Describe a problem you\u2019ve solved or a problem you\u2019d like to solve. It can be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma&nbsp;\u2015 anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took or could take to identify a solution.<\/li><li>Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal, which marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some schools may require you to answer supplemental questions in addition to writing an essay. These supplemental questions are also available through the <u><a href=\"http:\/\/www.commonapp.org\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\">Common Application<\/a><\/u>. <br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":95931,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[35],"tags":[8543,8542],"coauthors":[3032],"class_list":["post-98459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsletters","tag-gi-bill","tag-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"NCKXJXOCUZGHVG7E5ZFDUBOL3I","arc_canonical_url":"\/transition-tips\/education\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Common App: your college application secret weapon - Military Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Common App: your college application secret weapon\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Military Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marine Corps Community Services\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marine Corps Community Services\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"The Common App: your college application secret weapon\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 534,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/easyC.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"keywords\": [\n\t                \"gi bill\",\n\t                \"veterans\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Newsletters\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"The Common App: your college application secret weapon - Military Times\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/easyC.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/easyC.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/easyC.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/2018\\\/02\\\/19\\\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Newsletters\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/newsletters\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"newsletters\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"The Common App: your college application secret weapon\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Military Times\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Independent News About Your Military | Military Times\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Military Times\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/military-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/military-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"Military Times\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/militarytimes\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon - Military Times","description":"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon","og_description":"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/","og_site_name":"Military Times","article_published_time":"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00","author":"Marine Corps Community Services","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Marine Corps Community Services","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon","datePublished":"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/"},"wordCount":534,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/easyC.jpg.jpg","keywords":["gi bill","veterans"],"articleSection":["Newsletters"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/","name":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon - Military Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/easyC.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2018-02-19T17:28:04+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-20T14:11:17+00:00","description":"Have you heard of the Common Application? Do you know what it is or how it works? If not, let\u2019s fix that.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/easyC.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/easyC.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/2018\/02\/19\/the-common-app-your-college-application-secret-weapon\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Newsletters","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/newsletters\/","ad_zone":"newsletters"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"The Common App: your college application secret weapon"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","name":"Military Times","description":"Independent News About Your Military | Military Times","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#organization","name":"Military Times","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/military-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/military-logo-white.png","caption":"Military Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Military Times","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/easyC.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98459"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98459\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98477,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98459\/revisions\/98477"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95931"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98459"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=98459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}