When do colleges start reading applications?

Hey, I'm just wondering about the application review process. When do colleges usually start reading applications and how long does it take for them to make a decision? Do they start right as deadlines close or do they wait until a certain date? Any insight would help a lot, thanks!

Hey there! The application review process varies from college to college, but I can give you a general idea of how it works. Typically, colleges start reading applications shortly after the deadline for a specific round (Early Decision, Early Action, or Regular Decision). Admissions officers have a lot of applications to get through, so they don't have time to waste once applications are in!

The process of reviewing applications and making decisions takes anywhere from a few weeks to a couple of months, depending on the size of the college, the number of applications, and the complexity of their review process. For Early Decision and Early Action, you can generally expect to hear back within four to eight weeks after the deadline. For Regular Decision, it usually takes a bit longer, as there are more application to read, so you can expect decisions to come out by late March or early April.

There are also some schools that offer rolling admissions, which means they will review your application shortly after they receive it, and let you know as soon as they can. With rolling admissions, there are no strict dates for submission or notification, but you do want to apply as early as you can, as the longer you wait, the more spots in the class have been filled.

Regardless of which system a particular school utilizes, throughout the review process, applications are read by multiple people in the admissions office, often starting with regional admissions officers who are familiar with the high schools in your area. They evaluate your entire application – including grades, test scores (if submitted), extracurricular activities, essays, and letters of recommendation – to get a comprehensive understanding of who you are as a student and individual.

After the preliminary review, your application might be discussed by a committee that will make the final decision on acceptance, waitlist/deferral, or denial. This whole process can be quite lengthy as they carefully consider every applicant in the context of the entire pool.

Remember that this is just a general overview of the college application review process, and it can vary among colleges. If you want a more detailed breakdown of how college applications reviews work, you can check out CollegeVine's blog post explaining how an admissions office works: https://blog.collegevine.com/how-does-a-college-admissions-office-work/.

I hope this helps provide you with some general insight into what happens after you hit "submit!" Good luck!