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2022-23 College Application Timeline

Another application season has come and gone. If you’re applying to college this year, you’ve got quite the challenge ahead. With schoolwork, extracurriculars, tests, and college applications, there’s a lot to keep track of. So, it’s important to start planning early. Use our 2022-23 college application timeline starting your junior spring to get different components out of the way so that you can have a smooth sailing college application process.

Before You Begin Applying — Spring 2022

• Tour colleges — if you live in the US, and/or have access to means of traveling, make sure you plan a trip that takes you across different colleges that you’ve got your eye on. Spring break of junior year is a great time to do this! Attending information sessions and campus tours can help you gain an idea of whether you can picture yourselves in these institutions for the next four years. You can also participate in virtual college tours.
• The spring of the 2022-23 college application timeline is also important because you should be gearing up to take the SAT or the ACT. Students often need to sit for these exams multiple times so it’s crucial that you start preparing early. You can find 2022 SAT dates here. 
• It’s time to conduct college research. Even though you may have heard of schools such as Harvard and MIT, there are thousands of universities across the US. You might not yet have even heard of schools that may be perfect for you. So, it’s crucial that you sit down with books, brochures, and your laptop to dive deeper into which institutes offer appealing classes and programs in your choice of major.
• Attend any college fairs in your school or local area. These provide you with the chance to get to meet admissions representatives and understand what makes a school unique.
• Meet with your college counselor and ask for assistance with college research. They will also know which colleges are popular among your classmates as well as alums from your high school. Take advantage of this valuable resource.

The Summer Before Senior Year — June-August 2022

• The summer before senior year is an important part of the 2022-23 college application timeline. Take the SAT if you haven’t already. Make sure that you’ve gone over problem areas during your practice and rested enough the day before the exam.
• Start drafting your personal statement. Since you have time off from school, this is the perfect opportunity to come up with a topic and write a story that is unique to you and can set you apart from the competition.
• The ApplyTexas application usually opens in the first week of July. If you have your eyes on a Texas college such as Texas A&M or UT Austin, this is the application system you must fill out in order to apply to colleges in the Lone Star State.
• The 2022-23 Common Application, University of California Application, and Coalition Application open in the summer as well — in early August. Create an account and start entering the biographical, family, and high school information for these application systems as well. This process takes longer than you think, so get going early! Fill out this section very carefully — you don’t want to be that applicant that mixes up your first name and last name, or your home address and your school address. All of this information can help provide admissions officers with more context about you and your background, so do not forget to verify and proofread. You can also add schools to your Common App and check out if the ones you are interested in applying to require supplemental essays to make that part of your application plans.

Senior Fall — September-October 2022

• As soon as school opens, it’s time to get the ball rolling. As part of the 2022-23 college application timeline, start talking to potential recommenders so that they can prepare to write letters for you in the upcoming months. Choose recommenders who actually know you well.
• It’s time to finalize your college list. Make sure you don’t just plan to apply to reach schools. Keep some target and safety colleges on your radar as well. While it’s definitely great to aim for your dream college, the process is very competitive and you need to keep your options open.
• Finalize your personal statement. Make sure you’ve edited it — most students go through at least ten drafts.
• By late September you should know whether you plan to apply early action or early decision to any college. If you’ve got a top-choice school, this is the time to let them know that you’re willing to commit. Don’t make this decision lightly. 
• Start writing supplemental essays for your early decision and/or early action college. Make sure you’ve emphasized why you’d be a strong fit and how you can uniquely contribute to campus.
• If you’re applying for financial aid, both the FAFSA and the CSS Profile open in October. October 1st is the first day that you can file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA. You will need to complete the FAFSA forms to apply for most financial aid, including federal and state grants, work-study, and loans. The CSS is used by about 250 colleges and programs to determine whether you qualify for institutional grants and scholarships. While the FAFSA is used for federal grants, the CSS Profile is used by certain schools to determine your eligibility for grants and scholarships.

November 2022-January 2023

• These are the actual months in the 2022-23 college application timeline for applying to schools! Most early decision and early action deadlines are in the beginning of November. In order to apply early, you must submit all of your application materials, including essays, recommendation letters, transcripts, and test scores by the deadline. Be ready to take the plunge on November 1st!
• The time between early and regular decision deadlines is very short, so get started on your remaining supplements.
• There are a few schools that have Regular Decision deadlines that are earlier than most other colleges. Applications to the University of California school system are due on November 30th and applications to the Apply Texas schools are due on December 1st. Also, beware that these colleges do not use the Common App! Be sure to check all of the college application dates and deadlines for the schools on your list.
• December is also the last session for which most colleges accept SAT scores. Ideally, you should plan on finishing your standardized testing by October or November of your senior year. But if you do want to retake the SAT one last time in December, you will need to register for the test by early November.
• If you’ve applied ED or EA to a school, you will hear back sometime around December 15. If you’ve been accepted, congratulations! Remember that if you’ve applied early decision and your acceptance is binding, you must accept the offer and submit your deposit soon. If you’ve been deferred, or denied, don’t give up! Take the necessary next steps, and keep working on your regular decision applications as well.
• Most regular decision and early decision II deadlines fall between January 1st and January 15th. All of your application materials should be submitted to the schools on your list! Check and double-check that you have everything. Proofread your essays, and get a second set of eyes to read through them as well. Make sure your teachers and guidance counselor have submitted their recommendation letters. Verify that your activities and courses are up to date, and that you have completed all of the questions and essays required for each of your colleges.

February-May 2023

• Keep checking your portal for updates from the colleges you’ve applied to If you’re invited to interview for colleges, make sure you respond in time and attend the interviews. 
• If you’ve applied ED II to a school, you should hear back sometime between early and mid-February. Hearing back from your top-choice school early can take the pressure off the rest of your applications.
• After years of hard work, April 15th is time for the moment of truth! Most schools release Regular Decision results by this date. If you’ve been waitlisted at a school you really want to attend, make sure to write a letter of continued interest and consider sending additional letters of recommendation.
• Most schools ask that you submit a deposit by May 15th. If you’ve been accepted by multiple colleges, consider different factors before the decision.
• Congrats — you’ve made it!

Many students are often overwhelmed by the stress of the application season. Blocking out time starting in the 11th grade and creating a 2022-23 college application timeline can really help you stay ahead of the game so that you can get everything done on time, and still be able to do well in school. Good luck!