types of College apps
For seniors, the months of October to December aren’t the fun, relaxing holiday season. They’re the stressful gauntlet of college apps. As a senior myself, I’m here to offer my advice on college applications.
Many students apply early, if they can shake off their tendency to procrastinate soon enough. However, applying early can be confusing because it is more specialized—there are a couple different types of applications as opposed to a single generalized one. Here’s a quick breakdown of each.
Early Decision (ED) means that if you get into that college, you have to go there. It’s a binding contract, you must attend that college if you get in. It may sound like you’re forced to go if you’re accepted. But there is one exception—your financial aid package. So if you don’t have the money to go to the college you applied ED to, you can still get out of the contract.
So, it’s not that scary. Early Decision is a great way of improving your chances to get into your #1 college. Many colleges, especially the more prestigious ones, take demonstrated interest into account when reviewing applications, and applying ED is pretty much the strongest indicator of demonstrated interest you can giv
Early Action (EA) is much less strict than Early Decision. It just means that you apply earlier, and therefore receive your results earlier than regular admission. If you get in, you can still choose to attend another college you like better.
Restrictive Early Action is like Early Action, but you’re only applying early to that one college. However, even if you get into that college, you’re not contractually bound to attend and can go to another college instead.
General Advice:
What to Do
➢ Make spreadsheet with college, due dates, supplements
➢ Try to visit the colleges you want to go
What Not to Do
➢ Procrastinate
➢ Don’t be shy to ask for recommendation letters
➢ Don’t sell yourself short.
➢ Lie on your application