College Applications: Clarifying the Confusion

Dates & Deadlines

Early, Regular, Rolling

As October 1st approaches the college application process takes on a new urgency.  If students did not take advantage of their summer to start their college apps, they need to do so now. With the advent of online applications, students are able to apply to numerous schools, each with different application platforms. Here are some tips, mistakes to avoid, and common questions that arise this time of year:

Schools have different application deadlines:

• The UC and CSU can be submitted starting November 1 and have a filing deadline of November 30 at 11:59 PM PST. (Please don’t wait that long!) If you miss the deadline, you may not be considered for admission.
• The Common App schools all have different filing dates, depending on the school. The Common App clock is set to Eastern Standard Time; it logs your application according to EST.
• Individual school applications will set their app clock according to the time zone in which the school is located.

Of course, all of the stress of meeting deadlines can be avoided by submitting well before the due date.

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The application deadline also depends which decision time frame you apply under. You should have a plan for whether or not you are applying early, (not all schools offer the early option.) Here is what you need to know:

• Early decision is binding, you can only to apply to one school this way and you are contractually bound to attend this school if you are accepted. You must pull you apps at other schools.
• Early action is not binding you can apply to more than one school early action and you do not have to reply until May 1.
• Single choice early action is not binding, but you my only apply to one school early with this option.
• Regular decision is just as it sounds, you will be notified later in the admission cycle, but always by March 30. The UC and CSU do not offer any early admissions, except for Cal Poly, SLO which has early decision.
• Rolling admission means that schools admit as qualified applicants apply. The sooner you apply to a school with rolling admissions, the more likely you are to be admitted because they have more seats available at the beginning of the admissions cycle.

Know What Schools Want

It is important to send only what the schools are asking for, when they ask for it. Some schools want transcripts sent right away. Other schools will ask for transcripts later. Some want letters of recommendation, some do not. You must have your test scores sent after you self-report on your application. Admissions offices want and need students to send the appropriate documents at the appropriate times. You don’t want to annoy the admissions officers at your dream school do you?

Be Truthful!

It might be tempting to enhance your application or leave something off that you’d rather forget. Colleges have been known to rescind acceptances when transcripts or other information do not line up with what you have reported. If you make an honest mistake, or change a planned course, call the admissions office ASAP so they can note it in your file. Colleges do not like surprises!

Check Your Status

After you submit your application, you should receive a confirmation with instructions to set up a portal for each school. These need to be checked frequently as the schools will ask for documents or further information from you. If you do not hear back from a college you think you applied to, call and make sure they received your application. (Yet another reason not to wait until the deadline!)

More tips in my next blog: if you have a question you’d like me to cover, please submit it through the contact form on this website. Click Here.

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