SuperAPP™ Helps Time-Pressed Students Securely Meet Fast Approaching College Application Deadlines

BOSTON, Nov. 19, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- For time-pressed students with higher education on their minds, deadlines for applying to their preferred colleges are fast approaching.  Indeed, the vast majority of college applications are due by December 1st.  Needless to say, completing the required forms and essays, gathering the necessary transcripts and recommendation letters and then getting them all in on time can weigh heavily on students this time of year.  

ConnectEDU makes the college application process infinitely easier with SuperAPP.  SuperAPP is a web-based, comprehensive application completion tool that enables students to efficiently manage their data from a single, secure location.  In one sitting, students can complete multiple applications simultaneously.

Here's how it works: Students select the schools they would like to apply to from a list of 1,500 institutions.  SuperAPP then creates a single set of interview questions, eliminating duplicates while including all of the unique questions from each of the college applications.  Once a student has completed the interview questions, SuperAPP takes his or her answers and then populates each college's actual application in exact format for submission to the school.  Students can also use SuperAPP to pay the application fee for each college using PayPal, Visa, MasterCard or American Express.  

"SuperAPP is the fastest and easiest way to apply to college.  It eliminates repetition and lets students, parents and guidance counselors track each application, once it's submitted," explained Craig Powell, Chief Executive Officer, ConnectEDU.  "Perhaps best of all, SuperAPP helps students make informed choices about where they're going to go to college by expanding their options as well as by presenting scholarship and financial aid opportunities and reminders."

SuperAPP is a free service, made available to students through a public portal as well as through ConnectEDU's Connect! platform, which empowers schools to electronically send official transcripts directly to colleges and universities.  

High schools are rapidly adopting SuperAPP as the standard for facilitating their students' college applications.  Students connected to high schools adopting SuperAPP have the ability to have transcripts and recommendations uploaded and sent in through the system.  SuperAPP also provides early planning information, including details on the GPA needed to get into a specific college program as well as which scholarships are available from each school and how to apply to them.  For those students who do not attend school in a district utilizing SuperAPP, a streamlined version is available and still empowers those students to efficiently manage their application process.  SuperAPP is also accessible via websites like YOUniversityTV.com and Zinch.com.  SuperAPP is currently available in hundreds of high schools, including several major urban districts such as Baltimore Public Schools, Detroit Public Schools and the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.  ConnectEDU also recently inked deals with Miami-Dade School District, as well as Massachusetts, Michigan and Texas to develop statewide college and career planning portals.

"While ConnectEDU was created to allow students to apply to colleges in a fast, secure and efficient manner, we also wanted to provide a way for students to plan ahead, learn about their options and begin thinking about the courses they need to take in high school and what GPA they will need to maintain in order to achieve their dreams," reiterates Craig Powell, CEO of ConnectEDU.  "We also focus on educating students, counselors and parents on the many scholarship and financial aid options that exist but aren't always easy to find.  The bottom line is that it's about planning for the success and future of each and every student."  

Cleveland school district's chief academic officer, Eric Gordon, was quoted in a New York Times article describing how SuperAPP has relieved some of the burden off of his counselors.  "Previously," he says, "counselors didn't know what colleges students applied to, and if they didn't report grades and recommendations in a timely way, the application didn't get completed."

SuperAPP uses and supports all of the most popular application formats including: the Common Application®, Universal College Application™, as well as unique applications from 1,500 colleges.  SuperAPP also streamlines the application process for college admissions officers by delivering a full electronic student application to colleges in a single integrated data feed in the preferred format of each college.

ConnectEDU is also poised to debut additional SuperAPP capabilities designed to simplify the process of completing and filing FAFSA and other financial aid forms.  The new SuperAPP Financial Aid capability will be available in early 2011.  This application will also help keep students on track to re-apply for financial aid at the right time each year to avoid losing their financial support.

To view a demonstration video on how SuperAPP works, please visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32V7ywgeibk

To see what a difference SuperAPP can make within a specific school district and how students feel about it, please visit http://www.connectedu.com/detroit.html

About ConnectEDU, Inc.:  (www.connectedu.com)

ConnectEDU, Inc. is the web-based leader in empowering students to manage their education.  The company is devoted to helping students find and enroll in the right college, get a degree, and launch their careers. Created, developed and run by people who have worked in every area of college counseling, admissions, and career development, ConnectEDU uses information technology to connect real students and real data with real colleges, and real career opportunities. We make the college admissions process simpler, more efficient, more reliable and more effective. ConnectEDU's approach gives every student, from every neighborhood across the country, the best opportunity to achieve their dream of a college education and promising career.

SOURCE ConnectEDU, Inc.