During these past few weeks, many seniors have begun the most challenging part of their last year in high school: college applications. College applications can be tricky, so if you have any questions then please arrange a meeting with your counselor, they will be more than happy to help. Today, I am going to help you decide which application deadline is right for you!

Typically, a college will have 4 types of deadlines: early action, early decision, regular decision, and rolling admission. Most schools do not offer all four of these types of deadlines, early action and regular decision are generally the most common. Finding out the deadline that you need for your dream school can be crucial when it comes to admissions, scholarships, and housing.

The first thing that you need to look at when deciding an admission plan is the acceptance rate of your desired school. If the school has a lower acceptance (University of Chicago, Vanderbilt, Harvard, etc.) then I would recommend applying early action if applicable. The deadline for early action is usually October 25^th, November 1^st, or November 15^th. Applying early action betters your chances of being accepted because your application is reviewed before the thousands of regular decision applicates. Applying early action gives you priority for admission, scholarships, and housing. Usually, these applicants get their results back in mid to late December.

Make sure not to get early action and early decision mixed up when filling out your application. Early decision applications are binding. This means that if you are accepted into the school then you must attend. However, for some students this is the way to go. Prestigious schools give priority to early decision applicants because it shows them how badly you want to go to their school by binding yourself to it. For example, stats show that the 13% acceptance rate of NYU is raised to 30% for early decision applications. If you have your heart set on a prestigious university and you have the financial means to cover the cost, then this might be the admission plan for you.

Regular decision is the most general application deadline that usually falls somewhere in January or February. You can still have a good shot at getting into the school you’re applying to with regular decision but in my opinion early action will better your chances. Rolling admission means that you will receive your admission decision based on when you submit the application rather than all applicants getting it at the same time. For example, if I submit a Mississippi State application on September 3^rd then I will most likely get my results back a week or two later. If my friend submits her application October 1^st, then she will also get her decision a week or two later.

To all seniors, I wish you good luck on your applications and college decisions!