Students enter the college application process on unequal footing--with various levels of financial, social, and cultural capital they can rely on to navigate it. At least 10 states and hundreds of colleges and universities have begun "direct admissions" programs, which proactively admit students using data like their GPA and ACT/SAT scores rather than asking them to apply. Simplifying the college application process is one necessary but still insufficient way to broaden access to higher education. New evidence has helped identify those who are most disadvantaged by the current college application process and shed light on emerging strategies to reduce the negative impacts of applications on students' college-going behaviors. This post reviews two important areas of research: (1) students who start applications but do not submit, and (2) direct admissions.