What Parents Want - An Easier Application Process - The 2024 Ride to Independent Schools

Sep 15, 2026

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Report summarizes findings from the 2024 Ride to Independent Schools, designed as an enrollment.org/ride initiative built from listening to more than 3,000 parents and developed with Mission & Data. Key results show 55% rate the application process as 7+ on a 10-point scale and 49% report the work is more than expected, while 39% say essays are stressful for students. Quotes highlight prohibitive time demands and perceived economic bias. Data also explains why some families cannot or do not use a common application.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages30

Reading Time1 h 16 min

AccessFree to download

Insights From the Ride Report

Application experience and stress levels

The Rising Tide of Applicant Families

Generational breakdown of surveyed parents

What do we know about Gen Z?

Digital natives and expectations

What Parents Want: An Easier Application Process The 2024 Ride to Independent Schools ● Enrollment Management Association member-exclusive benefit ● Created from listening to over 3,000 parents ● In collaboration with Mission & Data [enrollment.org/ride](enrollment.org/ride) Insights From the Ride Report 55% Rated the application process as a 7 or higher on a 10-point scale (a 12% increase from the 2020 survey). 49% Said the work to apply was more than expected. 39% Said essays are stressful for students. 6 I have been through college admissions with an older child, and the level of stress on my fifth grader was substantially higher than on a highschool junior. And for schools who say they care about the emotional well-being of children, putting such strain on their applicants diminishes their claim.” —A SURVEYED PARENT The time required to attend events, complete applications, and prepare for testing is prohibitive for families who may only have one parent working full time, particularly at hourly-based compensation. . . . The economic bias in the application process alone was astounding.” —A SURVEYED PARENT I wish it was streamlined more—like the Common App when you apply to colleges. It was very time-consuming, and the amount of time that was spent on the applications for each school felt slightly gratuitous.” —A SURVEYED PARENT Why didn’t these families use a common app? 37% 40% 7% Schools they applied to didn’t accept a common application. Didn’t know a common application was an option. Believed their chances for acceptance were better using the school’s application. This jumps to 40% for applicants from African countries and 46% from China. The Rising Tide of Applicant Families GENERATION Generation ZMillennials Generation X Baby-Boomers BORN 1998–2012 1981–1997 1965–1980 1946–1964 % SURVEYED 3% 9% 86% 2% ● Baby-Boomer-led families are aging out of the application process ● Generation X comprises the vast majority of current applicant parents ● Millennials and Gen Z are on the rise, which will signify a shift in parent expectations 11 What do we know about Gen Z? A recent Stanford Report provides insight. Often called digital natives, Gen Z has never known a world without the internet. Gen Z expects—and demands—change, having grown up amidst technological advancements. Gen Z embraces diversity and cares about mental health. I came to understand that Gen Zers are, on the whole, much better adapted to life in a digital age than those of us who are older and that they can be very frustrated by what appear to them to be outdated and often irrelevant ways of doing things.” — ROBERTA KATZ, FORMER SENIOR RESEARCH SCHOLAR AT STANFORD’S CENTER FOR ADVANCED BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES; STANFORD NEWS

FAQs

What feedback did parents give about the 2024 application process?

55% rated the application process as 7 or higher on a 10-point scale, and 49% said the work to apply was more than expected. 39% reported that essays are stressful for students.

Why do some families struggle with the application steps?

Time requirements to attend events, complete applications, and prepare for testing are described as prohibitive for families with limited availability and single-income constraints. Parents also cite an economic bias in the process.

How do parents’ views about the Common App affect participation?

Some families applied to schools that did not accept a common application, did not know it was an option, or believed their chances were better using the school’s own application. The document notes higher percentages for applicants from African countries and for applicants from China.

Sep 15, 2026

Upload by Ezra