The Ideal College Application Timeline (2024–2025)

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What to focus on each month of your application year to produce high-quality materials ahead of time and boost your odds of getting into your dream schools

College students sitting under a tree on campus.

Approaching the college application timeline strategically will help your child maximize their odds of getting into their dream school

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Introduction to the college application timeline

There’s no denying how busy your child’s junior and senior years can get. In addition to being two of their toughest academic years, your child will be tasked with maximizing their standardized test scores, continuing to pursue high-impact extracurricular activities, securing recommendation letters, and working on their college applications by writing essay upon essay.

Given their various responsibilities, your child should follow a timeline for what to complete and when. Otherwise, they may have to play catch-up at a later time, which can lead not only to unnecessary stress, but also weaker applications. With all the hard work they’ve put into setting themselves up for successful college admissions, it’s important that your child not fall behind during this critical period.

We developed a recommended college application timeline to help ensure that your child completes all their junior- and senior-year to-dos ahead of time and with little anxiety. Rather than include general advice (e.g., “Put aside time for your applications”) or things they have to do as part of their schooling (e.g., “Take your final exams”), our timeline exclusively focuses on when your child should complete various tasks associated with their applications.

Our timeline can be applied flexibly to accommodate your child if they decide to take their standardized tests or begin working on their applications sooner or later than we recommend. If your child is an early bird, they can spread out their work further. On the other hand, if your child is running a bit behind, they’ll have to speed up their work. At the end of the day, whether your child begins working on their applications early or late, the key is to always prioritize application quality over speed.

In addition, some of the timeline’s bullets may not apply to your child. For instance, if they’re not looking to apply to any University of California (UC) schools, feel free to disregard those bullets.

Regardless of the dates we’ve listed below, we recommend you visit each test company (i.e., ACT or the College Board for the SATs) and university website for up-to-date offerings and application deadlines.

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College application timeline (2024–2025)

January–April of junior year

May of junior year

When is the absolute last date I can take the ACT or SAT and it still be considered on my application?

Schools typically accept standardized test scores from administrations taken up to a month prior their application deadline. For instance, a school with a November 1 early application deadline will accept scores from tests taken through October. However, we strongly recommend that you consult each school’s website for specific details on such dates.

COVID-19 Update: Many colleges (including all of the UC schools) decided to adopt a test-optional policy as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. In January 2021, the CollegeBoard announced their decision to eliminate the SAT essay and all SAT subject tests.

And most recently, in 2024, Dartmouth and Yale have announced updates to their standardized testing policy. Starting with applicants who intend to begin college in fall of 2025, Dartmouth applicants must submit either ACT or SAT scores. Also starting with the freshman class of 2025, Yale applicants are now required to submit at least one set of standardized test scores from among four options: ACT, SAT, AP, and/or IB.

(Essential reading: Test-Optional Colleges and Admissions Strategies)

June after junior year — September of senior year

September of senior year

When are college applications due?

College application deadlines are in the fall or winter and vary from school to school. They also vary with regard to early action, early decision, and regular decision. Early action and early decision deadlines are often the same. However, keep in mind the crucial difference between the two. Schools that offer early action options consider an offer of admission non-binding, but may state that students can’t apply to other early action or early decision programs. Early decision is binding, meaning that if offered admission, your child is obligated to accept the offer and withdraw applications from every other school to which they have applied. At the end of this guide is a list of application deadlines for a number of well-known colleges and universities.

October of senior year

November of senior year

  • Finalize and submit the UC application.

  • Complete supplemental essays for regular decision schools.

    • (Recommendation: Submit your UC application and complete your remaining supplemental essays before Thanksgiving so you can enjoy the holiday stress-free. Applying before Thanksgiving will also allow you to avoid any technical difficulties with the application site during heavy traffic periods as the November 30 deadline draws nearer).

December of senior year

  • Finalize and submit applications to regular decision schools.

  • Consider early action or early decision school acceptances.

    • (Note: While early decision acceptances are considered binding, you can request that the admissions committee release you from your obligation to attend there if they do not meet enough of your financial need. However, this method is not recommended in most cases, as it requires you to provide sufficient evidence of your financial need, which can be a very tedious and involved process).

January–March of senior year

March–April of senior year

May of senior year

  • Notify your recommenders about the outcomes of your applications and thank them for their support!

Dr. Shirag Shemmassian headshot

About the Author

Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is the Founder of Shemmassian Academic Consulting and one of the world's foremost experts on college admissions. For nearly 20 years, he and his team have helped thousands of students get into top programs like Harvard, Stanford, and MIT using his exclusive approach.

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College application deadlines 2024–2025

Below we’ve listed dates reflecting 2024–2025 early action, early decision, regular decision, and transfer application deadlines at various high-ranking institutions.

(Note: While these dates rarely change from year to year and we update them annually, we always recommend that you double-check application deadlines on the websites of all colleges that interest you).

UC Application deadlines & dates 2024–2025

College
Early Action Deadline
Early Decision Deadline
Regular Decision Deadline
Transfer Deadline
Recommended Reading
Amherst College
November 1
January 3
Fall: March 1
Spring: November 1
Boston College
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 2
January 2
Fall: March 15
Spring: November 1
Boston University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 4
January 4
Fall: March 15
Spring: November 1
How to Get Into Boston University
Bowdoin College
ED I: November 15
ED II: January 5
January 5
March 1
Brown University
November 1
January 3
Fall: March 1
Spring: October 2
How to Get Into Brown
Caltech
November 1
January 3
February 15
How to Get Into Caltech
Columbia University
November 1
January 1
March 1
How to Get Into Columbia
Cornell University
November 1
January 2
March 15
How to Get Into Cornell
Dartmouth College
November 1
January 2
March 1
How to Get Into Dartmouth
Duke University
November 1
January 2
March 15
How to Get Into Duke
Emory University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 1
January 1
March 15
Georgetown University
November 1
January 10
March 1
Harvard University
November 1
January 1
March 1
How to Get Into Harvard
Johns Hopkins University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 2
January 2
March 1
How to Get Into Johns Hopkins
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
November 1
January 4
Fall: March 15
Spring: October 15
How to Get Into MIT
New York University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 1
January 5
Fall: April 1
Spring: November 1
How to Get Into NYU
Northwestern University
November 1
January 3
March 15 - April 10
Pomona College
ED I: November 15
ED II: January 8
January 8
February 15
Princeton University
November 1
January 1
March 1
How to Get Into Princeton
Smith College
ED I: November 15
ED II: January 1
January 15
Fall: March 1
Spring: November 15
Stanford University
November 1
January 5
March 15
How to Get Into Stanford
Swarthmore College
ED I: November 15
ED II: January 4
January 4
April 1
Tufts University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 4
January 4
March 18
University of Chicago
November 1
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 2
January 2
Early Decision for Transfers:
March 1
Rolling decision for transfers:
March 1 - May 31
How to Get Into the University of Chicago
University of Michigan
November 1
February 1
Fall: February 1
Winter: October 1
Spring: February 1
Summer: February 1
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
October 15
January 15
February 15
University of Notre Dame
November 1
January 1
Fall: March 15
Spring: October 1
University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)
November 1
January 5
March 15
How to Get Into UPenn
University of Southern California
November 1
For majors requiring a portfolio or audition:
December 1
For all other majors:
January 15
For majors requiring a portfolio or audition:
December 1
For all other majors:
February 15
How to Get Into USC
University of Virginia
November 1
November 1
January 5
Fall: March 1
Spring: October 1
Vanderbilt University
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 1
January 1
March 15
Priority deadline, but will still consider applications on a rolling basis through late April
Wellesley College
ED I: November 1
ED II: January 1
January 8
March 1
Williams College
November 15
January 8
March 1
Yale University
November 1
January 2
March 1
How to Get Into Yale