US

US admission Procedure  and Deadlines 

First are early decision deadlines, usually in November. Students who apply via early decision, or ED, will hear back from a college sooner than their peers who turn in applications later. ED admissions decisions often come out by December.

However, students should be aware that ED acceptances are binding, meaning an applicant must enroll if offered admission.

Some schools also have a second early decision deadline, ED II, which is also binding. The difference is in the timelines. ED II deadlines are usually in January, Chu says. ED II admissions decisions often come out in February. Early action is another type of application deadline that tends to be in November or December. Similar to early decision, students who apply via early action will hear back from schools sooner. The difference is EA acceptances aren't binding.

Students can also choose to apply by a school's regular decision deadline, which can be as early as Nov. 30 at certain colleges but is typically Jan. 1. Students who apply regular decision generally hear back from schools in mid-to-late March or early April.

One other admissions policy to be aware of is rolling admissions. Schools with rolling admissions evaluate applications as they receive them and release admissions decisions on an ongoing basis. These schools may have a priority filing date, but they generally don't have a hard cutoff date for applications. The institutions continue accepting them until all spots in the incoming class are filled.

In deciding when to apply, as well as how many colleges to apply to, students should consider financial aid implications. Experts say if money is a concern, as it is for many families of college-bound students, applicants should choose nonbinding deadlines – EA and regular decision. This will enable families to compare financial aid offers from multiple schools.

For regular decision deadlines, students typically have until May 1 to decide which school they will attend and pay an enrollment deposit.

Which College Application Platform Should I Use?

Students have several options when it comes to college application platforms.

One popular choice is The Common Application, which is accepted by more than 900 colleges, including some located outside the U.S. Students fill out the Common App once and can then submit it to multiple colleges.

However, in addition to the main application, Common App schools often have a supplemental section, Chu says. The supplement sometimes includes additional essay questions, so students may need to budget time for more writing.

Other application options include the Coalition Application , a newer platform accepted by more than 150 schools

Additionally, some colleges have school-specific or university system-specific applications. For example, the University of California system has its own application – the only platform used by UC schools – and students can apply to multiple campuses with one application.

Courtesy- Usnews.com