Zander noted the Coalition Application is similar to the Common Application — which has been the customary application tool for UD — and the University will accept and consider both equally.

In addition to the Coalition Application, which can be used to apply to all 140-plus member schools, the Coalition for College offers students a set of free college planning tools, called MyCoalition. The platform encourages college awareness — beginning as early as ninth grade — which is especially important for lower-income and under-resourced students. MyCoalition includes:

• A private digital space for students to collect and organize important high school materials that they can then submit with their application to Coalition schools.

• A virtual collaboration area where students can connect with counselors, teachers and family members and get their input.

• A library of informative articles on key topics including financial aid, standardized tests and college essays.

The Coalition offers fee waivers to eligible students, including those from lower-income backgrounds and veterans and active members of the U.S. Armed Forces, so they can apply for free to UD or other Coalition schools through the Coalition Application.

Coalition members comprise Ivy League institutions such as Columbia, Harvard and Yale Universities; liberal arts colleges including Amherst, Swarthmore and Williams Colleges; and public schools such as University of Michigan, University of Maryland, Rutgers University and Penn State. Members must meet strict eligibility criteria, including providing substantial support to lower-income, under-resourced and/or first-generation students; offering responsible student financial aid; and demonstrating a commitment to student graduation.

UD has several initiatives in place to attract Delaware students and provide access and affordability for residents, including pipeline programs, priority admission, generous aid, the ability to choose whether or not to submit SAT scores, and special academic pathways to obtain a degree.

These initiatives have resulted in successive years of record applications from Delaware students. Resident applications increased 25 percent over the last five years, from 2,979 for fall 2014 admission to 3,743 for fall 2018. In the last two years, the University has seen the largest classes of Delaware students in over 15 years.

What’s more, over the last decade, the number of Delaware resident students on the main campus receiving Pell Grants has risen from 17.7 percent to 29 percent, while the number of underrepresented minority students went up from 13 percent to 23.5 percent.

With a strong dedication to student success, UD has one of the top 20 on-time graduation rates among public colleges and universities nationwide, with 72 percent of students earning their bachelor’s degree in four years. 

Visit UD’s undergraduate admissions webpage for more information about admissions requirements and important dates.

Learn more about the Coalition for College and set up a free MyCoalition account at http://coalitionforcollegeaccess.org/.