Everything You Need to Know After Submitting College Applications
Everything You Need to Know After Submitting College Applications
Congratulations! After months of slaving over your computer to craft brilliant applications for colleges, you are now done with most of them and can give yourself time to rest as you wait for the results.So, what’s next? You can expect to hear back from most colleges in March and, by April, you’ll have all your results in hand to decide where you want to spend your next four years. Besides acceptances and rejections, some colleges may decide to put you on the waitlist.From now until March, there are several things you can do to set yourself up for success. Let’s go through the list to make sure you check off all your boxes.
College Portals
You should have received emails from each college to which you applied about creating an applicant portal. Get those set up immediately.These portals will show you what additional materials you may have to submit. Don’t worry if you don’t have a green checkmark next to “Mid-year Report” because that is for your counselor to handle.Double check with your recommenders that they have submitted your letters, and if you have not sent in your test scores, send those as soon as possible. Be sure to check the policy of each school for their score requirements. Some ask you to share your entire test history whereas others will allow students the option of sending only their highest scores.
Supplemental Materials
Sometimes colleges allow students to submit additional material for their application—such as an art portfolio, introductory video, or another supplemental essay.These invitations may be open to all applicants or sent to only promising candidates. We recommend taking up these opportunities, because it will convey your interest in the school and could help distinguish you from other applicants.Take your time putting together your supplemental materials. If you submit something haphazard, it can actually hurt your admissions chances. Apply the same effort you put in your college applications to how you approach an additional essay or video and aim to highlight characteristics about yourself that aren’t already covered in your application.If you are unsure of when the deadline for the supplemental materials is, give the school a ring to find out. Submission procedures for these can be more open ended.
Interviews
Sign up for college interviews if possible, especially for your top-choice schools. Some colleges only offer them in the fall, before students submit, so interviews may no longer be an option.If this is the case, then you could email the admissions office during late February to inquire about speaking to a current student or an admissions officer. It’ll show initiative and possibly give you an alternative chance to make contact with your college of interest.Colleges that do offer interviews during spring semester may send you an email with instructions for how to sign up. However, don’t assume that interviews are not available if you’re not notified about them. Sometimes you have to figure out the sign-up procedure yourself.Read more about how you can ace your interviews here.
Extracurricular Activities and Grades
Finish strong with your extracurriculars and grades. Carry on with projects to impact your community or creative works that demonstrate your artistic inclinations. Now that applications are done with, you should have more time to focus on class assignments and perhaps even pick up on things that were paused during the fall.Beyond the general benefits of putting your best efforts into your endeavors, it will also be helpful for when you write update letters to colleges. In lieu of interviews, some colleges allow students to submit an email about the information they would have shared with an interviewer. And if you were deferred, you can email your admissions officer in late February an update on your activities and academic performance. Finally, if you get waitlisted at a college you’re excited about, you could send them a letter to show why you’re the best candidate for them. When you pour yourself back into your extracurriculars and academics, you will set yourself up to have fruitful updates to share with admissions.
Scholarships
Now is the time to begin the scholarship application process. The colleges you applied to may have merit-based aid opportunities, and you can search for organizations that provide funding to students like you. Check in with your parents about whether their employers offer any special grants, since companies like Intel give away scholarships specifically to the children of their workers.Because you now have a plethora of supplemental essays in your arsenal, applying to scholarships can sometimes be as easy as copy and paste, with some tweaking here and there to make sure your essay fits the prompt.
Be Present and Enjoy
The few months between when you submit your applications and when you hear back can feel like forever. We understand. The uncertainty of the whole process makes students nervous and takes away from their ability to fully be present for the rest of their senior year. If this is you, then give these mindfulness techniques a try to calm any anxiety. Other than that, find things to do that you enjoy. Close your laptop, spend time with loved ones, and bask in the great accomplishment that all your apps are submitted!The expert admissions consultants at Wise World Prep have helped hundreds of students maximize their potential of being admitted to their top choice colleges and universities. Over 20 years, we have successfully guided students through each stage of the application process – from choosing competitive high school courses to building an appropriate college list to drafting winning essays to writing persuasive update and appeals letters. We would be happy to answer your questions and partner with you to create a successful admissions roadmap.Ready to get started? Schedule a complimentary 20-minute conversation today!Want to stay informed? Subscribe to our newsletter.See what others are saying about us