Applying to College: Know Your Deadlines

You cannot get into a college if you do not submit your application on time. Check the deadlines on the websites for the schools you are applying to. Application deadlines depend not just on the school, but also on the type of deadline. This article will explain each of the varying deadlines and what they mean: regular, rolling, open, early (decision, action, and evaluation), and deferred admissions.  

For all seniors, this is where you really need to download the Senior College Packet from this link. This packet gives you a simple step-by-step guide to set up your Common App account to apply to colleges, as well as how to set up your Newport Harbor Naviance account, which you will link together. The Common App is a single online application used by nearly 900 universities in the United States, as well as some international colleges. Rather than entering your general information for each school you apply to, the Common App allows you to enter it once in one place. Beware that not all schools use the Common Application, though, and may have their own application or use another platform, such as the Coalition Application. Take a couple of hours to set up your Common App account if you have not already, and start by entering your basic information. If you are not sure what exactly you’re being asked for, Common App has many available online resources to ask questions, plus a series of FAQs that are extremely helpful. Common App is also useful for finding information about a college, from each of their application deadlines to their requirements, including their updated test policy. After adding the colleges you are applying to through Common App, go to the “My Colleges” tab and tap on the individual college on the left to see their specific details, supplemental requirements and answers to your questions. 

The Senior College Packet will also describe how to use Naviance and why it is necessary. In addition, make sure to fill out the writing portion of your Senior College Packet and send it at least a month before your application deadline to those teachers or staff members who are going to write you a letter of recommendation. Remember, our teachers and counselors want to help, but they are also quite busy, so give them plenty of time. The Senior College Packet will give you the necessary procedures to follow in order to do this, such as formally submitting requests for recommendation letters through Naviance. It’s all laid out for you in an orderly fashion, so make sure you keep track of what you need to do before you can apply.