Students: How to Sign your FERPA in Common App

Cristina Hernandez Updated by Cristina Hernandez

Before your school can send letters of recommendation or other documents to Common App colleges, you’ll need to complete the FERPA Release Authorization in your Common App account.

FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) gives you the choice to waive or not waive your right to view those documents after you enroll. Completing this step is required—even if your school sends documents through Scoir.

If your school is using the Common App integration with Scoir, signing the FERPA Release Authorization in Common App is what allows your accounts to fully sync and documents to be sent.

Here’s how to do it:

  1. Log into your Common App account at apply.commonapp.org/login.
  2. You’ll need to have at least one college added to your My Colleges list in order to access the Recommenders and FERPA section. If you haven’t added a college yet, go to College Search to do so first.
  3. Go to My Colleges in the left menu.
  1. Click on any college in your list to open its application details. Then, select the Recommenders and FERPA section. If you have not already added your High School in the My Common Application section, you will be prompted to do this first.
  2. Click the Complete Release Authorization button to begin.
  3. Read the FERPA explanation carefully, check the box to acknowledge you understand your rights, and click Continue.
  1. Choose whether to waive or not waive your right to view your recommendations. Type your name in the signature box and click Save and Close.

If your school uses the Common App integration and you’ve connected your Scoir and Common App accounts, you’ll see the status of your FERPA waiver in Scoir. Your counselor will be able to view it as well.

Note: This only applies if your school is using the Common App integration. If you’re not sure whether your school uses it, check with your counselor.

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