Common App and Naviance: Key Differences Explained

Purpose

This is a centralized college application platform where students can submit applications for up to 20 institutes.

This is a college planning tool which can be used by students, counsellors, and parents. Note that college applications can only be planned but not submitted on Naviance.

Main functions

Main functions include submitting applications, providing essay prompts to which students write their main college essay, application status tracking and submitting recommendation letters and transcripts. 

Main functions include planning applications, searching for colleges to apply to, matching students to colleges based on their personal and academic interests, and exploring career and degree pathways.

Target users

High school students who are ready to apply to colleges and universities.

Students, school counsellors, and parents.

Registration

Users can register directly on the Common App website. For an account setup guide, see this post here.

Students need to obtain login credentials from their school as Naviance is accessed through a school account.

Use by colleges

Colleges use the Common App to manage student applications to their institutes.

Colleges do not use Naviance. It is mainly a planning tool for students, counsellors, and parents.

College search options

Contains a college search feature with filters (location, size, majors, etc.) and allows students to bookmark schools.

Provides a wide range of college search tools, including past admissions data from the student’s shortlisted schools. Scattergrams are provided which can compare student profiles (e.g., GPA, SAT/ACT scores) to applicants accepted in previous years.

Counsellor involvement

Limited involvement - can only submit recommendation letters.

High degree of involvement - counsellors can track how well a student is researching colleges, recommend colleges for students to apply to, and upload transcripts and recommendation letters.

Integration with other platforms

The Common App is a standalone platform. However, it accepts external transcripts sent from high schools.

Students can enter their Common App ID into their Naviance account to link these accounts to share information like transcripts and recommendation letters.

Financial aid

Provides some FAFSA and scholarship links which students can explore to apply for financial aid.

Offers a detailed search for scholarships, at both the national and local level, and includes financial aid planning as well.

Cost

It is free to use the platform, however individual schools may charge an application fee. Some students may be eligible for a fee waiver. Check out this post here for more information on how to apply for a fee waiver.

Naviance is a subscription-based platform and is usually free for students to use as the subscription fee is covered by the school board or individual school. However, in some schools students may be required to pay a small fee to cover the cost of the subscription but this depends on each school.