College Application Deadlines for the Top 50: Every Date That You Need to Know
As college application deadlines draw closer, here’s an essential question: do you know when all of the applications for your schools are actually due? If you’re extra enthusiastic about one or two colleges and feel like you’re ready to submit, you might be wondering what your options are when it comes to planning around early decision and early action. If you’re not ready yet, you’re probably looking ahead toward regular decision deadlines. It can certainly help to look at all of the dates side-by-side so that you can weigh your options, plan where you hope to apply in the early or regular rounds, and start gathering all the components for submission.
Each school has its own policies when it comes to implementation of early action, early decision, and regular decision policies. As a result, while many institutions have a November 1 ED deadline or January 1 RD deadline, not all colleges follow the path. You might find that a few of your schools have ED applications due on November 15, while some even accept RD applications up to February. We’ve seen many students assume that schools have applications due on January 1, only to find out they’re actually due on November 30. You don’t want these revelations to come too late. So, to make sure you’re organized and know which applications to prioritize and when to submit them, we’ve provided you with a table of college application deadlines at the top national universities and liberal arts schools, and some final tips as you embark on this defining journey.
College Application Deadlines
In order to understand all of the deadlines, here are definitions for terms you’ll see throughout the table:
Table Key
Early action (EA) – Nonbinding admissions process for students to apply to college earlier than the regular deadline, usually in November of senior year. Students receive admissions notifications in December, and if accepted, are not required to commit.Early decision I (ED I) – Binding admissions process for students to apply to college earlier than the regular deadline, usually in November of senior year. Students receive admissions notifications in December, and if accepted, are required to commit.Early decision II (ED II) – Binding admissions process for students to apply to college closer to the regular deadline in January. Students receive admissions notifications in mid-February, and if accepted, are required to commit.Restrictive early action (REA) – Nonbinding process for students to apply earlier than the regular deadline. Students choosing the REA route can’t apply to any ED school, but can pick other EA schools.Single choice early action (SCEA) – Nonbinding process for students to apply to their top institution ahead of the regular deadline. Students doing SCEA cannot apply to any other EA or ED schools.Regular Decision – Vast majority of students apply regular decision, usually in January, and are notified in late March or early April. Students have no obligation to commit if accepted.
Now that you’ve familiarized yourself with the terms, let’s look at the college application deadlines enforced by the top schools around the country.
College Application Deadlines for the Top 50 National Universities
Ranking
School Name
EA Deadline
ED I Deadline
ED II Deadline
RD Deadline
1
Princeton University
November 1 (SCEA) – Removed for 2020-21 academic year due to COVID-19
January 1
2
Harvard University
November 1 (SCEA)
January 1
3
Columbia University
November 1
January 1
4
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
November 1
January 1
4
Yale University
November 1
January 2
6
Stanford University
November 1 (SCEA)
January 2
6
University of Chicago
November 1
November 1
January 4
January 2
8
University of Pennsylvania
November 1
January 5
9
California Institute of Technology
November 1
January 3
9
Johns Hopkins University
November 1
Early Decision II added for 2020-2021 cycle; due January 4
January 2
9
Northwestern University
November 1
January 2
12
Duke University
November 1
January 2
13
Dartmouth College
November 1
January 2
14
Brown University
November 1
January 2
14
Vanderbilt University
November 1
January 1
January
16
Rice University
November 1
January 1
16
Washington University in St. Louis
November 1
January 2
January 2
18
Cornell University
November 1
January 2
19
University of Notre Dame
November 1 (REA)
January 1
20
University of California – Los Angeles
November 30
21
Emory University
November 1
January 1
January 1
22
University of California – Berkeley
November 30
23
Georgetown University
EA1 (for in-state) deadline: Oct 15 EA2 (for out-of-state) deadline: Nov 2
January 10
24
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor
November 15
February 1
24
University of Southern California
No early decision but students wishing to apply for Merit Scholarship must submit applications by December 1
January 15
26
Carnegie Mellon University
November 1
January 1
26
University of Virginia
November 1
Early decision due November 1 due to COVID-19 (prev. October 15)
January 1
28
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
October 15
January 15 to get decision by end of March, February 15 to get your decision by mid-April
28
Wake Forest University
November 15
January 1
January 1
30
New York University
November 1
January 1
January 1
30
Tufts University
November 1
January 1
January 1
30
University of California – Santa Barbara
November 30
30
University of Florida
November 1;
Applications after November 2 considered on a space-availability basis until March 1
34
University of Rochester
November 1
January 5
35
Boston College
November 1
January 1
January 1
35
Georgia Institute of Technology
October 15
January 1
35
University of California – Irvine
November 30
39
College of William and Mary
November 1
January 1
January 1
35
University of California — San Diego
November 30
39
University of California – Davis
November 30
41
Tulane Unviersity
November 15
November 1
January 15
42
Boston University
November 1
January 1
January 1
42
Brandeis University
November 1
January 1
January 1
42
Case Western Reserve
November 1
November 1
January 15
January 15
42
University of Texas – Austin
December
42
University of Wisconsin – Madison
November 1
February 1
47
University of Georgia
October 15
January 1
47
University of Illinois – Urbana Champaign
November 1
October 1 for Spring, March 1 for Fall
46
Pepperdine University
November 1
January 15
49
Northeastern University
November 1
January 1
January 1
49
Lehigh University
November 1
January 1
February 1
College Application Deadlines for the Top 50 Liberal Arts Colleges
Ranking
School
EA Deadline
ED I Deadline
ED II Deadline
RD Deadline
1
Williams College
November 15
January 1
2
Amherst College
November 1
January 1
4
Pomona College
November 1
January 8
January 1
4
Wellesley College
November 1
January 1
January 15
6
Bowdoin College
November 15
January 1
January 1
6
Claremont McKenna College
November 1
January 5
January 5
3
Swarthmore College
November 15
January 1
6
US Naval Academy
January 31
9
Carleton College
November 15
January 15
January 15
9
Hamilton College
November 15
January 1
January 1
9
Middlebury College
November 1
January 1
January 1
9
Washington and Lee University
December 1
January 15
January 1
13
Grinnell College
November 15
January 1
January 15
13
Vassar College
November 15
January 1
January 1
15
Colby College
November 15
January 1
January 1
15
Davidson College
November 15
January 2
January 6
15
Haverford College
November 15
January 1
January 15
15
Smith College
November 15
January 1
January 15
15
US Military Academy (West Point)
February 28
20
Colgate University
November 15
January 15
January 15
20
Wesleyan University
November 15
January 1
January 1
22
Barnard College
November 1
January 1
22
Bates College
November 15
January 1
January 1
22
University of Richmond
November 1
January 1
January 15
25
Colorado College
November 10
November 10
January 15
January 15
28
Bryn Mawr College
November 15
January 1
January 15
28
Kenyon College
November 15
January 15
January 15
28
US Air Force Academy
December 31
28
Scripps College
November 15
January 3
January 3
28
Soka University of America
November 1
January 15
27
Macalester College
November 15
January 1
January 15
15
Harvey Mudd College
November 15
January 15
January 5
33
Berea College
Rolling Admissions. Important dates: October 31 (Priority #1), February 28 (Priority #2), and April 30 (Final Deadline)
34
Mount Holyoke College
November 15
January 1
January 15
34
Bucknell University
November 15
January 15
January 15
36
College of the Holy Cross
December 15
January 15
36
Oberlin College
November 15
January 2
January 15
36
Pitzer College
November 15
January 1
January 1
36
Skidmore College
November 15
January 15
January 15
40
Lafayette College
November 15
January 15
January 15
40
Occidental College
November 15
February 1
January 10
43
Thomas Aquinas College
Rolling
43
Franklin and Marshall College
November 15
January 15
January 15
44
Denison University
November 15
January 15
January 15
44
Trinity College
November 15
January 15
January 15
44
Union College
November 15
January 15
January 15
47
DePauw University
November 1
November 15
January 15
February 1
47
Dickinson College
November 15
January 15
January 15
47
Sewanee – University of the South
December 1
November 15
January 15
February 1
47
Whitman College
November 15
January 15
January 15
46
Connecticut College
November 15
January 1
January 1 for Fall, November 1 for Spring
46
Centre College
December 1
November 15
January 15
49
Gettysburg College
November 15
January 15
January 15
Navigating College Application Deadlines
Early action and early decision deadlines provide certain advantages for applicants, most notably higher acceptance rates. Since colleges receive fewer applications in the ED or EA round, even just statistically, your chances increase. If you get into your dream school early decision or early action, you can be done with college applications! That said, your decision should be a calculated one. Students who apply in the early rounds have their act together. Take a careful look at the early action and early decision sections of the college application deadlines and decide whether you’ll be ready to hit submit when November rolls around, considering that you’ll be going up against some very strong and organized candidates.
Early decision II policies come in handy in case you need more time. Since you get more time but are still able to demonstrate a high level of commitment by applying ED II, you can always apply in January if November isn’t the best time. However, early decision is a big commitment. You’re going to sign an agreement confirming that you’ll attend the institution if accepted. So you need to make your decision very carefully.
You’re not required to commit to your early action school – you might want to see which schools you’re accepted to regular decision and explore your financial and academic options. But you still have to bring your A-game to early action schools, especially because colleges know that you may or may not commit. Applying to an institution which only offers early action while you have a mediocre profile isn’t the best idea. Since admissions officers know you’re not bound to say yes, they’ll be less inclined to accept you if you don’t impress them right off the bat.
While regular decision acceptance rates tend to be lower than ED or EA rates, if you believe applying RD is the way to present the strongest profile you possibly can, it may be best to wait. But remember that for any of the rounds you’ll be competing against thousands of applicants from all over the world for a spot. Even if at this point you can’t control your grades or test scores, you have to work carefully on polishing your personal statement, writing strong supplemental essays, and ensuring your teachers have sent in their recommendation letters on time. While the odds are statistically stacked against you, RD admission is very much a possibility.
Tips to Follow When Looking at College Application Deadlines
Don’t Submit Your Application Too Early – When looking through these college application deadlines, you might be wondering whether admissions officers evaluate your commitment towards the school based on how long before the deadline you submit your application. The answer is no. You don’t get any type of advantage if you submit on October 1st instead of October 31st for a November 1st deadline. While you need to make the deadline, you also need to make sure your work is clean and absolutely spotless. Admissions officers will notice typos, so don’t sacrifice the quality of your work to be early.Watch Out for Portal Glitches – While you shouldn’t rush to finish up too far in advance, you shouldn’t risk submitting too close to college application deadlines The application systems aren’t glitch-free and technical difficulties are always a possibility. In order to avoid any last-minute emergencies that can potentially jeopardize all of your hard work, prepare yourself to finish everything at least a day or two early so that you can avoid any unforeseen scenarios. Think About Your Schedule – When it comes to planning around college application deadlines, you also have to remember that you are a teenager and you need to have fun once in a while. The early application deadlines are right after Halloween and the regular application deadlines closely follow Christmas. If you wish to participate in the festivities, make a long-term schedule that ensures that you wrap up the final touches on all your requirements before college application deadlines come knocking on your door.
College application deadlines are crucial in helping you understand the college application timeline. Keeping them in the back of your head as you work through your personal statement, standardized tests, and supplemental essays can help set things into motion. They can act as the driving force to motivate you to not only complete all your requirements on time, but to perfect them. By jotting down when your applications are due, you can make sure you’ve got all you need and take one step closer to impressing your dream college. Good luck!
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