A new kind of student group is beginning to flood the college application pool, and with them come unique challenges they must overcome to succeed in postsecondary education.
Since 2016, the Common App has identified a subgroup of students who’ve nearly doubled over the last eight application seasons. Dubbed the independent student, the popular college application software focused on four subgroups in its latest report.
- Applicants old enough to be considered independent per the FAFSA definition
- Applicants who are veterans or active-duty members of the U.S. armed forces (“military-affiliated applicants”)
- Applicants with dependent children
- Applicants who are wards of the court or state, are in legal guardianship, or do not reside with a parent, step-parent or legal guardian (“applicants with independent household structures”)
More characteristics can be found on the Federal Student Aid website.
Student parents and first-year applicants aged 23 or older are becoming particularly prominent. Their applications have increased by at least 200% between the 2016-17 and 2023-24 academic years.
More from UB: Micro-credentials grow more popular in the U.S. and beyond
While poised to account for an increasing share of students in higher education, independent students are also more likely to be navigating the college application and financial aid processes on their own.
Moreover, little research exists on independent students’ aspirations, goals or blueprints for long-term success, which could ultimately impede them from finding their right fit or finishing their credentials, the report read.
“These applicants may not have ready access to college counselors and thus may benefit from separate channels of sharing information about college, potentially through states, nonprofit organizations or postsecondary institutions themselves.”
Independent students are the partial focus of Common App’s moonshot goal, which plans to eliminate disparities prevalent in low- and middle-income communities seeking to enroll in a postsecondary program.
What traits comprise the independent student?
While research is still sparse on how to properly gauge the independent student, the Common App found mutual traits among the subgroups.
-
Underresourced: They are more likely to be first-generation and be from a ZIP code with lower incomes and higher poverty rates than all other applicants.
-
Limited application pool: Independent students applied to fewer colleges than other applicants, were more likely to apply in their home state and were likely to apply to less-selective institutions.
- Modest resumes: They had lower high school GPAs, SAT and ACT scores.
- College completion struggles: Independent students had lower enrollment rates at four-year institutions. They were also less likely to complete a bachelor’s degree in 2023-24.
