College Application timeline: 12th grade
Senior year is KEY! Whether you will soon be a senior or you're currently in your senior year, here's a detailed breakdown of what to keep in mind throughout this time to stay on top of things during the application process.
Summer before Senior Year:
This is when you’ll really start to get going on the nitty-gritty of your college application.
Before August 1:
- If you haven’t already, fill out all the basic questions in the Common Application. This will roll over from one interaction of the Common App to another.
- Write your personal statement and have it in almost final form. It is very unlikely the Common Application prompts will change so much year to year that you cannot use what you’ve written.
- Draft what you’ll include in the activities section of your application.
- Determine your application plan: if you’re going to apply Early Decision to any school, decide this now. Make sure you have an organized way to keep track of application deadlines.
- Make sure you’re taking time to enjoy your last summer before college, too. Keep leaning into those grounding and mindfulness practices you developed earlier.
After August 1:
- Comb through the Common Application and find the supplemental essays you might need to write for the schools on your list, and try to get those written before the end of September.
- Add your recommenders to your application, which will send them an email prompt to submit their recommendation.
- Speak with your guidance counselor at school and make sure you understand their process for knowing what schools you are applying to and where they should send your transcript.
Senior Fall:
Finalize, finalize, finalize. Have a trusted adult read your essays and give you feedback, and make sure they are done and you feel comfortable with them. Check in with your recommenders and be sure they’re good to go. Confirm with your high school that they know where to send your transcripts. Submit your Early Decision application, and also applications to any colleges or universities that run admissions on a rolling basis. If you feel like your essays are ready, it wouldn’t hurt to get in your applications everywhere, but if you feel like more time to edit would help, feel free to keep working.
Breathe! You got this.
Senior Winter:
Keep tweaking your supplemental essays, if you need to. Apply anywhere with a December / January deadline. You’re almost there!
Senior Spring:
Celebrate! Your hard work has paid off, and maybe you’ve even got a mindfulness routine to bring with you to college.
Remember: The best gift you can give yourself in this process is a solid organizational system. If you don’t have one already, today is a great day to build a spreadsheet or start a college calendar!