Your College Applications Timeline for Senior Year

Last Updated on March 1, 2024 by Jill Schwitzgebel

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Senior year – the culmination of all the hard work your student has been doing to prepare for college. Application time is when all that they have been doing to prepare comes together. Ideally, you and your student have followed all of the advice about starting the college admissions process early. But if you haven’t, the good news is that you can follow the college applications timeline below to get back on track! Senioritis is real, and kicks in much too early for some students, so it’s important to be prepared this year.

I recommend that you make it a goal to have the list of schools where your student plans to apply completed by the first day of their senior year. It may mean a busy summer of college visits. And it’s possible that they will add a school or two to that list, or maybe even subtract one or two, but hopefully, there is a list of schools which they will be happy with, ready to go.

Advice for the Year

Besides starting early, my most important advice for this year is to be sure that your student is staying on top of their email. Colleges will send them information about their application that way – from notifying them about missing pieces of their application to their admissions decisions! They will also receive emails about financial aid, including any additional documentation needed – you do NOT want to miss those.

Additionally, many colleges are tracking students’ interest and using email as a way to do so. Showing interest will increase your student’s chance at an acceptance letter, so it is important that they are opening those emails and clicking on the links in them, as that data will get back to the college.

June – August (after the Junior year)

Use this summer wisely to avoid added stress in the fall! Getting some of the prep work out of the way over this summer will make the difference between a calm start to this last year of high school, and a frantic fall.

• Finish any college research and remaining college visits
• Finish all college testing, if not finished previously
• Write the essay for college applications
• Create or update a college resume
• Continue with work or volunteer activities

For a more in-depth look at tasks to complete over the summer, see the Summer Before Senior Year To-Do List!

Related:  Let’s Talk About Application Lists

August – October

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There are a variety of tasks that students should complete now. The first priority will be completing applications for any colleges that they are applying to for early admissions or rolling admissions. Pay attention because often the deadline to be considered for institutional scholarships is also early.

Students will likely be in frequent contact with their high school counselors during this time.

• Create a spreadsheet with all of the college application deadlines and requirements. Be diligent in referring to it throughout the process to make sure that no deadlines for sending materials or completing interviews gets missed.

• The Common and Coalition applications will open up for most colleges on August 1st. Motivated students could get the applications completed even before school starts!

• Students that are planning to major or minor in any of the performing arts should be prepared to sign up for auditions as soon as dates are released.

• Students should check in with the teachers, counselors and any outside recommenders that they requested write letters of recommendation for them – or if they did not make the request at the end of junior year, students need to make it a priority to go and ask for those recommendations as soon as school starts! Sometimes, this is the step that can be most uncomfortable, as the student may need to occasionally nag their teachers.

• Students should find out the process for having transcripts sent to the schools where they are applying and then follow the process to have their transcripts sent to the colleges on their application list.

• If a student is applying to a college in which interviews are recommended, or even considered, they should sign up for an interview if they have not had one yet. Many colleges will have students do interviews with alumni in their local area if distance prevents the student from being able to make it to campus.

October

Both the FAFSA and the CSS Profile financial aid documents open on October 1st. Be ready! The CSS Profile in particular, can be tricky and often requires many supporting financial documents.

• File the FAFSA and CSS Profile financial aid documents

November – December

These are what I refer to as housekeeping months. Early applications have likely already been sent off to colleges. In many cases, students are now just waiting to hear decisions. But usually, this is the time other tasks pop up , which often catch families by surprise.

• Finish up any applications with later deadlines.

• After they have received a student’s application, some colleges will invite students to apply to their honors programs or for an institutional scholarship. Deadlines seem to range from December to March for these programs. So now, it’s time to begin completing those applications. (Just when students thought they were finished!)

• Some schools that participate in Early Decision or Early Action will request a copy of the student’s first quarter or trimester grades. Make sure that the high school sends them.

• After all college applications are finished, including any honors or institutional scholarship applications, it is time to look around for outside scholarship opportunities.

January – February

At this point, applications are usually all complete, unless a student has decided to make a last-minute addition to their list. If your student did not yet receive a decision from their Early Admissions schools prior to their winter break, then those decisions will be coming out during these months.

• Send transcripts with fall semester grades to any colleges that request a copy of midyear grades.

• Continue searching for outside scholarship opportunities and applying.

• Encourage your student to resist Senioritis! Remind them that colleges do reserve the right to rescind offers of admission after seeing students’ final grades.

February – April

Students will receive admissions decisions from all of their regular decision colleges by April 1st. Often, students’ first choice college has shifted at some point during the school year. Or, a student who applied to eight schools, uncertain about which one they liked best, finally has some clarity about which one is right for them.

• Sign up to attend an “Accepted Students Program” this spring, if you’re able to make one of them. This is especially important to do if your student is still undecided about which school to choose.

• When your child is certain that they will not be attending a particular college, notify the school. Usually, there is a link in their application portal to do so. If not, you can always send an email to the admissions office. This opens up spots for students who are on the wait list!

• Once your student has made a decision about which school they want to attend, let that school know by May 1st! Sign up for your orientation days.

For a more in-depth look at what to do after making your college decision, see Things to Do After Receiving Your College Acceptances.

April – June

The college decision deadline for students is May 1st. After students accept an admission offer, all that’s left is picking out dorm room decor, and maybe planning a graduation celebration. There is nothing else college-related that you must do during these months. Relax and enjoy this time with your soon-to-be graduate!

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