Earlier this week, Oct. 15 marked the first round of early application deadlines. There are dozens more before December.
According to CollegeBoard, over the next two months, about 450 colleges and universities will accept applications for early action and early decision before they begin regular admission.
Senior Maya Sundar said that applying early has its benefits, but it comes with additional challenges.
“[It’s] all the deadlines, and for me, it’s getting the letters of recommendation in because some of my teachers still haven’t done that.” Sundar said, “I’ve finished all my essays, so [that’s] the main part I have to worry about still.”
Many schools suggest or require submitting teacher and counselor recommendations, personal essays and standardized test scores in applications. For students applying through early action or early decision, they need those materials prepared within the month.
According to CollegeBoard, the most common deadlines for early action and early decision applications are Nov. 1 and Nov. 15, compared to regular deadlines throughout December and January.
Early decision plans are binding commitments; students who apply through early decision agree to attend the college if accepted. In contrast, early action plans are non-binding, allowing students to apply early while keeping their options open to other institutions.
Students who apply for early action or early decision usually hear back from their prospective schools in December or January, rather than waiting for results in April or May.
While early decision plans benefit applicants who know exactly where they want to attend, some feel that they are too limiting and pose financial risks if scholarships and aid aren’t offered with admission.
“That was just too much of a risk for me because I needed to think more about it before I have a top set choice.” Sundar said.
Schools normally require applicants to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid before they apply to determine their eligibility for financial aid.
This year, the FAFSA form has yet to be made available for students. Although its release is postponed, deadlines for applications are not.
“Because I’m applying early application, I know that [FAFSA] will open more money opportunities for me,” Sundar said, “but there’s obviously some struggles because I don’t know what I’m going to be offered from that yet.”
Over 1 million students, including Sundar, use Common App to apply to schools.
According to its website, Common App provides checklists of college requirements and essay prompts to streamline the application process.
Using Common App, students can apply to multiple schools from a single website, but Sundar said the process can be lengthy and overwhelming.
“The whole Common App is a lot more work than I thought, and all the schools have supplemental essays.” Sundar said. “It takes a lot of time, and I don’t have a lot of time.”