When Can you Start Working on your College Applications? What Are the Important College Application Deadlines?
August marks the key milestones for the most popular destination country, the US. High school seniors have multiple deadlines to choose from when applying to colleges.
First are early decision deadlines, that is due in November. Students who apply via early decision, or ED, will hear back from a college sooner than their peers who turn in applications later. However, students should be aware that ED acceptances are binding, meaning an applicant must enroll if offered admission.
Early action is another type of application deadline that tends to be in November or December. Similar to early decision, students who apply via early action will hear back from schools sooner. The difference is EA acceptances aren't binding.
Students can also choose to apply by a school's regular decision deadline, which can be as early as Nov. 30 at certain colleges but is typically Jan. 1. Students who apply regular decision generally hear back from schools in mid-to-late March or early April.
Schools that come under UC system (university of California) has a standard deadline of Nov 30th.
Deciding Where to Apply and the steps to choosing the right college:
Develop your shortlist - A lot of thought should go into developing a short list of schools you would like to attend. But what kind of factors should drive your thinking when crafting that list?
Urge you to think about location, enrollment size, majors and programs, the people on campus, opportunities outside of the classroom, cost and selectivity.
Rank your priorities- weigh the pros and cons of a particular school when you are working on choosing the right college.
Focus on your final vision- Ask yourself where you want to be in four years.
Delve into departments- Research the departments you'd be studying in, Visit college websites and reach out to faculty for more information.
