Hey seniors, this is for you!
There’s a lot going on this fall. You’re still in high school, with all the classes and out-of-class activities that entails. You’re also in a crucial phase of your college admission season, the phase where you have to do a lot of things and send out applications. In case you’re feeling lost or unsure, here’s a checklist of things for the fall.
Do you have your recommendation letters taken care of? It’s getting late for this. If you haven’t got these taken care of yet, do this first! You’re probably going to need one or two teacher recommendations, plus a counselor recommendation. You may also want, but probably won’t need, a letter from someone outside your school.
How do I ask a teacher for a recommendation letter?
Do you want or need a resume? Most colleges don’t require one for their applications, so you may not need one. The important thing right now is to know if you need one or not. Do any of the schools your applying to ask for—or allow for—you to submit a resume? Do any of the people writing recommendations for you want to see a resume? If so, get that done soon. If not, that’s something that can easily wait until the spring or even summer.
How do I put together a resume?
Is you college list final? You’re probably going to apply to anywhere from four to 10 colleges. Have you decided which ones you’ll apply to? I’d like you to choose four right away: two with acceptance rates over 50%, one with an acceptance rate under 20%, and one with an acceptance rate in between. Then, once those are ready, add on as many more as you’d like. But stick with those initial four. If your current list doesn’t include any with high acceptance rates, find a few that would be good for you, and find them quickly. Schools you’re likely to be accepted to should always be a priority over schools you’re not confident you’ll be accepted at. For all the schools on your list, look up some key financial facts: average net price, average percent need met, and average debt on graduation. You never know for sure what a school will cost until you apply, but do a gut check using these key stats.
Creating a balanced college list, for everyone.
Will you apply early anywhere? Most Early Decision and Early Action deadlines are coming up in about a week. There’s still time to submit, but you need to decide soon. Really soon.
Are you building relationships with the schools on your list? Have you joined their mailing list to get information sent to you? Are you spending time looking at their websites—not just to look up a deadline or fact, but just to browse and get a feel for them? If possible, have you introduced yourself to your admissions representative for the school? Have you put their application deadline in your calendar? Are they already on your Common Application list (and Naviance list if your school uses it)? Do you know if and how they conduct interviews? Have you attended any in-person and/or online tours? These are places where you’re considering a relationship of at least a few years. Make sure you’re doing the things necessary to understand, as best as possible, who the other side of that relationship is.
How is your writing coming along? While some of the shorter, school-specific prompts won’t get addressed until you’re sure you’ll apply, you will probably end up writing a Common Application essay. Get this done as soon as possible. If you’re not done with the “finishing touches” until a day before you’re going to send it out, that’s fine. But you should have a good, almost-ready-to-send draft at least a week before that. The essay is definitely not something to procrastinate with. Get it finished!
Have you filed you FAFSA? This is your first step to getting financial aid. You’ll need cooperation from your parents or guardians, and you’ll probably have questions. So begin soon. Your goal is to have this submitted by the time you apply. Make the deadlines the same.
How to fill out the FAFSA form.
Do you know your target budget? There is a dollar amount above which a school is absolutely unaffordable for your family and below which a college is affordable. You need to know what that amount is.
Three things parents should stop saying to their children about financial aid.
When should you send the application? As soon as you’re sure your application is ready, send it on in. Every year, more of the students I work with have everything sent out by November 15—even applications with January 5 deadlines. Once they have everything done for early November deadlines, they go ahead and send out the rest. If you can do that, great! But of you’re a person who doesn’t really work like that and tends to finish things right before the deadline, then plan on sending it three to five days before the deadline. Do not wait until the last minute. Do not put it off until the last minute. Do not hope everything goes right in the last minute. There are lots of things that can go wrong in the last minute, and you don’t want to give those things too much power over your future choices. Plan on sending it in three to five days early. If something goes wrong, you have days to get it fixed instead of minutes.
Wherever you are in this checklist, from just beginning to already finished, just remember to be deliberate, thoughtful, and thorough. Remember that this is a process to open up future possibilities, not to judge your past actions. This is a great time to be optimistic and proud. You’re going to be fine.
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