For many students, last-minute college applications can be filled with stress, adrenaline, and a keyboard pounding frenzy; even the most strong students can find themselves in peculiar situations which will hinder them, at this more hectic moment, from being considered for admission. Recognizing the top last-minute mistakes – and how to avoid them – can mean that you are submitting your college application in an organized and effective manner. Below is a 10-item list of common errors and ways to prevent them all from occurring in the final hours, and a thorough walk-through to make sure, in all aspects, you present and submit the best application possible.
1. Submitting Without Thorough Proofreading
Students make lots of common mistakes as they make the last push to finish their applications. One of the most frequent errors made by students who have proofread their later applications carefully, and initially finish their applications previous to the deadline, is that they forget to proofread all applications. It doesn't matter how mind-blowingly amazing your accomplishments are; if there are spelling errors, grammatical errors, and awkward phrasing within your application, they can negatively impact even the best accomplishments. Decision committees read thousands of applications, so if you don't take care when you are writing your application, do you think an admission officer might assume that you were not very careful or very interested in the institution? So please definitely proofread.
You should read your essay(s) or short answers many times! Don't just do a spell check; it won't catch context mistakes. Read the essay out loud to help identify awkward wording. Also, community support is essential, so share your multiples with a trusted friend, teacher, or family member and allow them to help you read your application. If they are not seeing just as many mistakes as you had, don't worry! You are probably doing fine.
2. Ignoring Application Instructions
Each college tells you what it wants in terms of essay prompts, maximum word length, document format, and supplement material. When students are in a rush to get their applications finished, they inevitably ignore some important details, resulting in an abhorrent display of leaving items incomplete, or even worse, not following the format or instructions. Missing the instructions can make it seem like you are not interested in the process or, worse yet, that, to some level, you cannot follow basic instructions (and colleges do not like that quality).
Read the instructions provided by each college before you start and again before you submit your application. Make sure you have answered every question, that you are below the word limit, that you uploaded the correct documents, etc. You may also want to make a checklist for each institution based on the requirements laid out by each college so that you can be sure you didn't miss anything.
3. Missing or Misunderstanding Deadlines
Deadlines are absolute in the college admissions process. A college has no choice but to reject an applicant who submits their application even a minute late. It's easy to forget deadlines or miss them altogether by applying to multiple schools (Early Action, Early Decision, Regular Decision, Rolling Admissions).
Develop a master calendar or spreadsheet with the name of each school and the corresponding deadlines for each application type to help you avoid the disaster of missing a deadline. Consider setting personal reminders several weeks ahead of the formal deadline, and applying even earlier by a minimum of several days or weeks, whenever and wherever possible, again, just as above. This creates some buffer time for you to anticipate unexpected technical glitches or make last-minute modifications to your application, without the added stress of a deadline or the risk of losing the opportunity altogether.
4. Waiting Until the Last Minute to Submit
Procrastination is the common enemy of the application season. Most students plan on hitting "submit" on budgets or applications right before the deadline and run into technical issues, internet connectivity problems, or come across last-minute checks where they missed or had something incorrect. Rush jobs increase the likelihood of sloppy errors because you don't take the time to adequately think through your process.
Instead, create your commitment deadline (ideally, a couple of days before the official one!). Treat that deadline as non-negotiable and give yourself some margin because everyone invariably has some setbacks.
Submitting your budget or application early reduces your stress and proves your responsibility and organizational skills.
5. Reusing Essays Without Personalization
It is easy to give in to the temptation of repurposing essays for a few colleges, especially when you're running out of time. However, admissions officers can quickly identify generic essays that do not address what it means to be specific to their institution. Essays that are generic and not written to that specific college often miss the connection that admissions committees are seeking.
It is acceptable to use parts of your essays again, but make sure to rewrite and personalize them for each school. Make sure to include specific programs, professors, traditions, or values that motivate you to attend that institution. Doing this reveals that you have done your homework and are specifically interested in joining their community.
6. Overlooking Supplemental Materials
Amid all of the complexity involved with completing the main application, some students manage to forget about supplemental essays, parameters for a portfolio, or that they need to send documentation such as their transcripts or test scores. While their application may still be strong, any shortcomings in supplemental writings and documentation can render the application incomplete.
To help keep this from happening to you, learn the requirements for each school, and then break the requirements down into a checklist with tasks to accomplish. Ensure you have submitted all of the materials, and they were received. If the school gives you the ability to check the status of your materials, use it. If you think your recommenders or counselors haven't submitted their materials, it's fine to check in and follow up.
7. Weak or Last-Minute Recommendation Requests
Letters of recommendation can significantly support your application, but only if your recommenders have time to write a thoughtful, personal letter of support. If you ask someone for a recommendation at the last minute, you can expect a last-minute recommendation as well—one that is generic and thoughtless, or even a rushed recommendation that may consider some of your application by the author!
Ask for your recommendations as early as possible, including at the beginning of your senior year. Give authors plenty of time for writing (along with relevant information about deadlines if they are to submit it directly, the type of recommendation required, and information about academics, outside school community, and volunteering). Then, you should remind them to get your recommendation no least than a week before the deadline.
8. Being Dishonest or Exaggerating Achievements
Under pressure to look good, some students embellish memberships in clubs, enhance the number of volunteer hours, and fabricate accomplishments. Colleges have the means to verify application information, and inconsistent information raises doubts about the entire application. Even a little white lie can have consequences in a college admissions decision, including the implementation of rescinded offers of admission.
Be honest – it is the best policy. The focus should be on emphasizing true achievements or experiences. Admissions officers are looking for authenticity, not perfection, and would prefer to see a well-rounded application with well-expressed truths than a collection of accomplishments that are only half-true.
9. Not Demonstrating Genuine Interest
Some colleges consider demonstrated interest as part of their admissions process. If you submit your application and that’s it, assuming you didn't go to any info sessions, open any emails, and/or visit the campus, they might think you're not interested after all. That can only negatively impact your chances and is especially significant for colleges that consider yield rate (the percentage of students they admit who enroll).
You can distinguish your enthusiasm through meaningful engagement with admission offices. You can attend virtual or in-person events, respond to emails, and send a quick thank you after interviews or campus visits. Again, these are simple gestures that could separate you from other applicants.
10. Failing to Review the Entire Application Before Submitting
In the final rush, it can be easy to miss entire sections, upload the wrong draft, or fail to fix auto-correct errors. Lots of students skip the “preview” option on application platforms and can't find a couple of last-minute mistakes.
Before submitting your application, make sure to read through EVERY part of your application–essays, the activities list, supporting documents, everything. Take this step just as seriously as you would take a final exam, having someone else look at your application wouldn't hurt either.
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