I am not sure how the system is set up exactly but I am guessing that when they are private only accounts with the right permissions get added to the group for the thread. It looks like all the current applications were put in before my account was updated so I am guessing that I'll be able to see any new ones that are submitted.
Bingo!
Applications, when set to "Private mode" will retain the information of "Who has access to this application when it was created." The point of this is to provide the option that no one can ever see their own application.
With it set to "private" however, they will have access to all future apps.