January through March, Junior Year
- PSAT scores released
- Post-Secondary Planning Meeting with your counselor
- Research and develop a prospective list of colleges
- Post-Secondary Planning Meeting with your counselor
- Research and develop a prospective list of colleges
- SAT/ACT prep
- Participate in virtual or in-person college tours and information sessions
February, Junior Year
- Post-Secondary Planning Meeting with your counselor
- February ACT (if needed)
- Course Selection Meetings
- Visit colleges over February break (if possible)
- SAT/ACT Test Prep
- Participate in virtual college tours and information sessions
March, Junior Year
- Post-Secondary Planning Meeting with your counselor
- March SAT (if needed)
- In-school SAT, March 23
- Weekend college visits (if possible)
- Participate in virtual college tours and information sessions
April, Junior Year
- April ACT (if needed)
- Continue to research and/or visit colleges over April break
May, Junior Year
- AP Exams
- May SAT (if needed)
- Draft college essay
- Continue to research and/or visit colleges
- Ask teachers to write letters of recommendation
- Work on junior questionnaire and parent brag sheets
June, Junior Year
- June SAT (if needed)
- June ACT (if needed)
- Continue to research and/or visit colleges
- Submit junior questionnaire and parent brag sheets
- Continue to work on college essay
- Ask teachers to write letters of recommendation
July-August, Junior Year
- Work on college essay
- Continue to research and/or visit colleges
- July ACT (if needed)
- Create account and work on Common Application Aug. 1
- Continue to work on essay and begin supplemental essays
- Attend Camp College in mid-August
- August SAT (if needed)
September, Senior Year
- Submit completed student and parent questionnaires for your counselor letter of recommendation, if you have not already done so
- Meet with your counselor to review your college application plans, link your Naviance/Scoir/Maia Learning and Common App accounts, and invite teachers to submit their letters of recommendation
- Make appointments with your college counselor to go over college list, applications, essays, interviewing, resumes etc…
- Register to attend college rep visits at your school in Naviance at least 24 hours in advance.
- September ACT (if needed)
- Request transcripts and counselor report in Naviance/Scoir/Maia Learning at least 4 weeks before your first application deadline.
- Finalize college applications and begin working on scholarship applications, if you haven’t already.
- Apply to scholarships reserved for seniors. Many have deadlines between August-November
- Research school-specific, national, and state scholarship opportunities – many are advertised in the winter. Apply by the deadline for any you are interested in.
- Visit colleges if you still need to
October, Senior Year
- Continue working on applications and scholarships
- Continue to register for and attend college rep visits
- Begin applying for financial aid on Oct. 1 by completing the FAFSA and in some cases the CSS Profile.
- Send standardized test scores to early action, early decision and rolling decision colleges that require official score reports
- Invite teachers to submit letters to any additional colleges you add to your list in Naviance/Scoir
- Request transcripts at least 4 weeks before your first application deadline
- October SAT (if needed)
- October ACT (if needed)
- Observe October 15 early action application deadline at some colleges
November, Senior Year
- Nov. 1 and Nov. 15 are common Early Action/Early Decision deadlines
- November SAT (if needed)
- Request transcripts at least 4 weeks before your first application deadline
- Send standardized test scores to regular decision schools and those with December deadlines that require them
- Work on regular decision applications and essays after you submit early applications
- Q1 grades sent to colleges. Students must opt-out if you do not want those reported
- Meet with your counselor as needed
- After applying, follow instructions to join application portals to ensure everything has been received. (Keep in mind that it takes a minimum of 2-3 weeks for colleges to upload files!) Maintain the usernames and passwords to your college application portals in 1 document.
- Complete Self-Reported Academic Record (for the colleges that require this step) after applying
- Keep up senior year grades
December, Senior Year
- Early action/early decision notifications typically begin to come out the second week in December
- Withdraw any EA or regular decision applications from other colleges if you are admitted to your ED school
- Dec. SAT (if needed)
- Dec. ACT (if needed)
- Submit transcript requests and counselor reports for Regular Decision schools
- Keep up senior year grades
- Notify your counselor of acceptances, deferrals, and rejections
January, Senior Year
- Most regular decision application deadlines
- Observe ED II deadlines
- Notification from some early action colleges
- Apply for scholarships
- Keep up your senior year grades
February, Senior Year
- ED II notifications
- Mid-year grades sent to colleges
- Sit tight and wait on regular decision notifications
- Apply for scholarships
- Notify your counselor of acceptances, deferrals, and rejections
March, Senior Year
- Regular decision notifications and financial aid awards begin to come in
- Meet with your counselor to help you interpret your financial aid awards
- Notify your counselor of acceptances, waitlists, and rejections
April, Senior Year
- All regular decision notifications should be delivered by early April
- Notify your counselor of acceptances, waitlists, and rejections
- Revisit colleges as needed
- Attend accepted students days
- Deposit if you have decided on your school
- Confirm your interest in remaining on any waitlists and send a follow-up letter of interest in in the college in late April
- Notify colleges you know you will NOT be attending. This can open up waitlist seats for others.
May, Senior Year
- May 1 is National Deposit Day. All students must send in a deposit to the ONE school they plan to attend
- Notify your counselor of the school you plan to attend or other future plans
- Colleges begin to take students off the waitlist in early May
- Send thank-you notes to teachers who wrote letters of recommendation for you
June, Senior Year
- Counselor sends final transcript to your college after graduation
