PARENT FAQs, PART III: College Timeline Questions
How soon should our students apply? Our understanding is that we must apply as early as November of their senior year for some schools.
All colleges have different deadlines, as well as application types. For example, many prestigious schools only offer Early Decision (a binding contract in which your child is committed to the school if they get accepted) or Regular Decision (non-binding). Some colleges/universities do offer early action (non-binding), but not all, so it’s usually not possible to apply to all colleges early, since a student can only apply to one Early Decision school. Generally speaking, Early Decision/Early Action deadlines vary from October 15th (mostly southern schools), November 1st, November 15th, or sometimes December 1st. Regular Decision (or Early Decision II) deadlines are generally on January 1st or January 15th. My most significant tip is to use the Common Application (www.commonapp.org) to look up college deadlines in one swoop; check out my video to see a demo.
When is the right time to visit colleges?
There is really no “right” or “wrong,” and you’ll have to follow your child’s lead. Listen to and observe your child. If they are interested in looking at colleges, go for it. If they seem hesitant or anxious, it’s best to take it slow. Starting these visits in junior year is the most common timeline, however, select students feel that the “right” time is towards the end of the sophomore year, but others don’t get their feet wet until their senior year.
When do students formally apply for college?
Applications are submitted in senior year. Early action (non-binding) and early decision (binding) deadlines range from October 15 to December 1. Regular decision deadlines are usually between January 1 and February 15. It is suggested that students apply to some colleges in the fall, and others in January to keep an even pace while writing supplemental essays. Remember, juniors should choose their senior year courses wisely as it is exhausting to keep up with multiple rigorous classes while balancing college applications and extracurricular activities.
When can Juniors start to request recommendations from Hopkinton High School faculty?
We recommend juniors ask a teacher or two for a recommendation during the spring of grade 11. See this link for guidelines for letters, though it is best to go to the college’s own website to confirm as policies may change unexpectedly.
What is your recommendation around early acceptance and early decision?
It is my feeling that if a school offers early action, and if the student is in the ballpark GPA and SAT/ACT-wise, it is suggested that the senior capitalize on this opportunity not only because they will hear back early, but their financial aid package may be better. However, early decision is an entirely different beast. Not only is the student, parent, and counselor signing a binding contract, committing the applicant to the school if they are accepted, it will not allow the family to compare financial aid packages from different schools. Hence, the family should expect they will pay full price for the college/university since the institution has no incentive to “sweeten the deal” since the senior is already committed. Although the early decision pool does generate a high acceptance rate, the student really needs to be sure the college is hands-down their #1 choice, and that the family is able to pay the entire expense.
What is the linear process for applying to colleges now? What do we need to be doing now, this summer, and in the fall?
Great question! See this college planning timeline.
