INSIDE HIGHER ED — The Common Application has released its data from December in a report, and the overall numbers of students using the application to apply to colleges are encouraging for higher education. Through Dec. 16, 2021, 931,540 distinct applicants had applied to 853 Common App returning member institutions, an increase of 13 percent over 2019–20, the last year before the pandemic. Application volume through Dec. 15 rose 18.6 percent from 2019–20 (3,422,635) to 2021–22 (4,058,187), following a more modest increase in 2020–21 (3,653,391). Even more encouraging: the relatively large increases in underrepresented minority (Black, Latinx, Native American and Pacific Islander) and first-generation applicants, which appeared in a November report to persist through this point in the application season. Underrepresented minority applicants increased by 17 percent over 2019–20, while first-gen applicants increased by 21 percent. Typically, minority and low-income applicants apply later than more affluent applicants.