When Should You Start Looking at Colleges

Many students typically start their college process in their senior year thinking that they do not have all the tools to start this process until their senior year. How true is this? When should you start looking at colleges?

Mindset

There are many different ways to answer this question of when to start, but a simple answer is based on the mindset of the student. In the end, it is you, the student, who is aiming to go to college. Depending on your mindset of how much you want to find and pursue your dream college, will determine when you should start researching colleges. 

Even if students start early or late, they often do not know where to start, so here are a couple of steps that walk you through the ideal process of looking for colleges.

Step 1: Brainstorming

There are thousands of colleges in the United States, and there are many more across the entire world. Narrowing down colleges can be overwhelming, and a common misconception that students should wait until their senior year because, in reality, students can choose to start this process as soon as they enter high school (ninth grade). According to the College Board, ideally, students should start searching for colleges and their intended majors so that they can plan and take courses that center around what those colleges or majors require. 

Beginning to brainstorm what colleges you are interested in will give you a great insight into where you want to go from an early stage. Not to mention, you will be ahead of other students who wait to start researching. However, this does not mean that starting at a later time puts you at a disadvantage. Starting in your sophomore or junior year can have the same results. The important objective is to NOT wait until the last minute to start researching colleges because starting later would mean more pressure (mental health is very important in the college process).

To create your college list, try using Kollegio, as it has information about 1400 universities across the United States. These new statistics and details can help you take your first step toward finding your dream college.

Step 2: Narrowing The List

The brainstorming is just a rough draft. As students continue to go through and finish ninth and tenth grade, this college list will get smaller and smaller as students develop new interests or abandon old ones. Although this college list can be changed, students should ideally have their top colleges decided towards the end of their sophomore year. That way, students know what requirements and criteria they must meet in order to get into their desired college.

Step 3: Research

For most, if not all students, junior year can be very chaotic due to SAT/ACT testing, several AP courses, extracurriculars, and other activities. However, just as these activities are important, it is also important to begin researching your top colleges. Oftentimes, correct research can help cross out or add colleges to your list based on the qualities of the colleges (cost, acceptance rate, best majors…). 

This is also a perfect time for college research, as this new information can influence your course selection and the effort you make in school in order to reach your dream college(s). Certain colleges have SAT/ACT scores that need to be achieved, and this research process will allow students to gauge their necessary (or their best) SAT scores.

Kollegio is a perfect tool to use in this process because of its planning feature, giving the user free reign to edit their college list and showing the requirements and aspects of the college (tuition/admissions).

Step 4: Personal Statements and Common App

There are several ways to submit college applications to colleges, but a portal that is widely used in this process is the Common App (UC schools have a different portal). In the Common App portal, there are several sections for inputting personal information, activities, honors, courses, and other information. Even though these may seem simple, it is still important for juniors to start filling out their application during the summer of their junior year.

The Common App is also a place to write a personal statement essay that will be submitted to colleges. The purpose of this essay is to showcase the student’s talents and/or character to the college admission officers. Since this is an opportunity to stand out to admission officers, it is recommended that students start brainstorming their essay topics during the summer of their junior year. Students should try to write at least one draft before summer ends. This draft can be changed whenever the student wishes to, but starting on this essay is important.

Step 5: Supplemental Essays

The personal statement essay is not the only essay that students have to submit to colleges because, on August 1st, college supplemental essays are released. These essays are unique to each college, but most questions are generally centered around the same idea. Depending on how many colleges the students are applying to, starting as early as possible is key to finishing and submitting the best college application and essays. All of the research the students have done on these colleges can be used to answer these supplemental questions.

Step 6: Submission

After completing the Common App, students have the choice to either submit for early action, early decision, or regular decision. Most colleges have the same submission dates for college applications, but a few select universities have different submission dates, so it is important to research the submission format well beforehand. 

**Note that there are some colleges that have different submission processes and may not follow this timeline

Conclusion

Students who typically wait to start looking into colleges are students who are often behind other students in the process, and they are rushed to meet college submission deadlines. By rushing, students are more likely to not produce their best essays or answers to the supplemental questions, which are key in helping students reach their dream university. 

By starting as early as possible, students are setting themselves up for success. This is because starting early gives the students more insight into appealing colleges. Students will also have more time to research and plan, allowing them to adapt and work hard in order to reach their dream college.

Rather than waiting, students should take advantage of tools like Kollegio to start looking at potential colleges from an early stage and focus on the prerequisites. Starting early is key to students’ success in the college process. 

So, to give a short answer, start the process as EARLY as you can!!

By Vedik Ranabothu