Seniors! Early Application Deadlines

Shelly Humbach • August 21, 2019

Although senior year may be just getting started, college application season is already here! Many colleges are accepting applications even now, and some have deadlines as early as mid-October. Should you apply now? Well, it’s important to know the different types of college deadlines so you can map out a timeline for your applications.

Here are some definitions:

Early Decision (ED): This is the most restrictive type of early deadline. You may only apply to ONE college under an early decision deadline. If you are accepted, you guarantee to the college that you will enroll at their school. Once admitted as an ED applicant, you are required to withdraw your other college applications. ED can give you a significant advantage in the admissions process, but it also means you commit to enrolling before you’ve been able to compare financial aid and scholarship offers from other schools. Use an ED application ONLY if the school is absolutely your first choice and financial aid/scholarships are not a deciding factor for enrollment.

Early Action (EA): Somewhat similar to ED, Early Action deadlines give you an admission advantage (colleges admit a higher percentage of EA students compared to Regular Decision) but without the commitment required by ED. If you are accepted as an EA student, you will still have until May 1 to decide if you want to enroll giving you plenty of time to compare scholarships and financial aid from all the colleges that have admitted you.

Restrictive Early Action (REA): (also known as single-choice early action) In this case, you can apply to only ONE school as a REA candidate (no other ED or EA applications) but if admitted, you are not required to enroll. Just like with ED and EA, you get an admission advantage by applying early. Using a REA deadline also indicates to the college that they are your first choice (because this is the only school that you’ve applied to as an early candidate).

Priority Deadline: This term is used by many state colleges and public universities. It’s very similar to Early Action – advantage in the admissions process but a non-binding admission decision.

Rolling Admission: With Rolling Admission, you can apply anytime through a designated time period and the colleges review applications roughly in the order in which they are received. Therefore, the earlier you apply in Rolling Admission the better chance you have of being admitted.

Regular Decision: This could also be considered the final application deadline. Generally speaking, the Regular Decision deadline is your last chance to apply to the college.

As the saying goes – the early bird gets the worm! Applying early can give you a definite advantage in the admission process and it’s great idea to get those applications checked off your list early in senior year!

Take Action

For each college you are looking at, select which deadline you plan to apply by and add these dates to your calendar.

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College Application Season

By Shelly Humbach • October 18, 2025

College Application Season, a/k/a Application Hell, is upon us. Every year, my Colorado kids are pushed to meet the Colorado Free Application Days, which typically are in early October. This early deadline is both a blessing and a curse. Let me explain. The curse is that it’s early, and the pressure to complete applications and essays is intense. The blessing is that it’s early, which requires students to get their act together and finish their applications and essays. This dichotomy mirrors my experience working with teens. It is, you guessed it, both a blessing and a curse. Now, I realize I am being over-generalistic, but bear with me. The blessings are innumerable: they are bright, funny, kind, compassionate, and very, very aware. Of all kinds of stuff. Gen Z is fascinating in that they have the emotional intelligence of, say, a 45-year-old mother of three. They are informed and driven to act to impact injustices, locally and globally. And bonus! They can handle any of your persnickety tech issues without blinking an eye. Gen Z restores my faith in humanity, and for that, I am deeply grateful. And the curse? They cannot write. By the grace of God, each year, I have a handful of students who can write brilliantly, beautifully. But every year, that handful gets smaller, and along with that so does my faith in humanity. I firmly believe and bear witness to the fact that readers make writers. This is true for me. It is true for my children, and it’s just true. The rant? Devices and social media (I know, I am a broken record) are the culprit. Gen Z is growing up in a world of clickbait communication and constant distraction, fueled by addictive algorithms. The result - many have the attention span of a gnat. NO ONE IS READING ANYMORE. I don’t mean a headline. I mean a full article, let alone a book. Remember those? As a mother of three adults, functioning children, and a professional who has worked with hundreds of teens, please take heed. Read to your kids. Invite your kids to read to you. Their future depends on it.

No Phone, Ditch the Shoes, Let’s Connect

By Shelly Humbach • September 11, 2025

In June, I hosted my annual Senior Essay Writing Workshop. This was the first in-person workshop since 2019. I bet you can guess why. I was elated to meet my students face-to-face after months, even years, of connecting through the screen. Imagine my surprise at their height, super-smiles, and warm laughter. Dang, it was wonderful. So, essentially, all my in-state seniors gather at my house for a three-hour intensive workshop on crafting a killer college essay. As I was preparing for the event, it occurred to me that I might be in competition with their PHONE. Classic directness (this is probably a character flaw) led me to inform my students and their parents, in advance, that this would be a no-phone gathering. My messaging went something like this, Important: Phones are placed in a basket at the door and retrieved at noon. No exceptions. Parents: If you need to reach your student during the workshop, text me directly at **********. Now, I am fully on board with the phone-free movement. I support it, advocate for it, and live it (I brilliantly quit all personal media last November). And I thought: my event, my rules. I was a little concerned about how this announcement would land. Turns out my concern was mainly about the parents. The kids? Not so much. In fact, research indicates that students crave phone-free learning environments. Suffice to say, the workshop was a smashing success. Not a single student pushed back against the policy. One poor soul forgot to retrieve her phone and left it sitting all alone in the basket. Not to worry, though. She didn’t get far before turning back to grab it. Here’s the truth: We don’t have to bow down to every technological whim or societal pressure. As adults, we know the phone is a problem, and it’s our job to foster healthy, happy individuals. So let's keep this momentum going. As Maya Angelou wisely said, “When you know better, do better.”

Big J Educational Consulting College Admissions Charts

By Shelly Humbach • August 11, 2025

I work with incredible colleagues; collaborative, smart and supportive. They make me better and I am deeply grateful. Every year, Jennie Kent and Jeff Levy of Big J Educational Consulting share invaluable information regarding college admissions. Their research is impeccable and accurate and provides crucial data to help students and families make informed college decisions. Read on, share broadly and give a shout out to these generous professionals! Early Decision and Regular Decision Acceptance Rates Class of 2028 Domestic Undergraduate Need-Based and Merit Aid Class of 2028 In-State and Out-of-State Acceptance Rates Class of 2028 Financial Aid for International Noncitizens Class of 2028 International Noncitizens Acceptance Rate and Yield Class of 2028 Percentage of Students Submitting SAT and ACT Scores Class of 2028 Athletic Divisions and Conferences (partial list) Class of 2028 - NEW! These charts are visual, interactive, and easy to use. They make it possible to instantly sort using any column's metrics and to easily compare subsets of colleges. They are free and can be accessed at www.bigjeducationalconsulting.com/resources . From Jennie and Jeff: We hope you find these resources helpful in your work guiding students. Please feel free to share them broadly as long as they remain in their original unedited form. Permission is not granted to those charging a fee for their distribution. If you find an error after cross-referencing with an institution's Common Data Set, please contact us at info@bigjconsult.com . Thank you!

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