<p>i know how colleges keep telling you to apply early. so i'm wondering. how much does it hurt your chance if you apply to a selective school last minute?</p>
<p>I don't think they see the date you applied. If they do, it shouldn't sway their decision (Unless you actually applied EA/ED).</p>
<p>but i've heard of how schools like WashU put you on the waiting list if you apply relatively late (b/c they already have tons of applications to look at)</p>
<p>It shouldn't matter... I sent my application to the post office on the postmark date, and I got in.</p>
<p>^ya, ditto</p>
<p>Same as lackadaisy and negru</p>
<p>Just makes it more difficult for the adcom to process the paperwork, but it usually does not impact your chances, unless they are missing something.</p>
<p>Effect of applying later rather than earlier depends on college. For rolling admissions colleges (those that make decisions as apps are recieved) submitting earlier is generally an advantage over later. For those colleges that start to make decisions only after the last application deadline, e.g., most of those that send decisions in March/April, it generally makes no difference, except that a number of those colleges may have earlier dates designated if you want to be considered for merit money. The real disadvantage for those colleges in waiting until the last day is that something may go wrong with your application-- examples: (a) your computer crashes at 11 p.m. while you are finishing up an on-line app due by midnight; (b) your electricity goes out; (c) you get to the end of an app and discover there is a form that you have to have signed by your counselor and sent by the deadline date; (d) in a rush, you fail to edit the school name on that "Yale" essay that you have just sent to Harvard. In other words, safety dictates trying to finish those apps before that last day.</p>
<p>I say don't wait until the last minute; it will hurt your chances of getting in for the majority of colleges unless you're applying for a shoot-in community college where there's no competition. With a thing as important as applying for entrance into colleges, it's definitely not smart to wait until the last day. Also, some competitive majors fill up fast. Discipline yourself and get that application in today. It's better early than sorry.</p>