<p>I just heard that most colleges won't read apps coming in after mid-December until new year holidays ends, that's why students should always submit their app earlier (before first week of Dec.) in order to get a good read (get more evaluating time than apps read after new year). Students submit apps earlier got better results. Is it true?
My DS is still writing his essays for his last app. :( I hope it's not true.
Could any experienced parents share some thoughts?</p>
<p>“Students submit apps earlier got better results. Is it true?”
No.
college adcoms are now ON VACATION. they dont read ANY applications until next year. So relax.</p>
<p>^Thanks menloparkmom. </p>
<p>DS wants to come out the best essays he can write, that’s why he is still doing the essays at this time. Personally not my style though, I’m a much more inpatient person than my son. :)</p>
<p>Menloparkmom is correct. They don’t start reading until packets are complete, which is after Jan 1. They also allow GCs a bit of leeway to send in school reports.</p>
<p>Actually, the heavy application reading time is in February. The adcoms are done for now, after completing ED and EA decisions. They’re on vacation and getting to gear up for an intense late Jan-early March crunch.</p>
<p>After the ED and EA rounds, they are all takking a break.</p>
<p>I think that this does depend on the schools. The answers above are certainly true for the schools that have an April decision date, which are also the schools with EA and ED pools. However, many, many schools have rolling admissions and for those schools, earlier may be better. My slightly above average son has five acceptance letters so far. I think applying early helped him. He does have a few that he will have to wait for, but they have been submitted.</p>
<p>The recommendation from local college coaches is to have apps submitted to GC by Halloween. </p>
<p>My kids weren’t able to do that. But they did get most apps to GC by mid-Nov… otherwise no guarantee that things would get mailed before Christmas break. I assume a few years later things are more electronic and faster (at that point, the school did common app by paper). </p>
<p>I think the advantage of earlier submission is that the student can concentrate on projects and finals to ensure good first semester grades. Plus it give time for last minute app additions if priorities evolve. I’m not sure it really matters much at the college.</p>
<p>Our high school is very big on not procrastinating. They set deadlines for the kids - they want one app done by the end of September, then tell you to shoot for having everything else submitted by the end of October. His big mantra is that deadlines are not due dates, that’s the last day to send. We hit every early date possible, which is often the deadline for merit.</p>
<p>They also want all lor done by the end of september as well. We had ds do one app/week, sometimes two if it was common app. He complained at the time, but he’s so happy he was done weeks before Thanksgiving.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, if UG application due on 12/31, that is when DS submitted. Pattern repeated for grad school and again for grants. NOT my style but he still got into schools. In the 2 days before the fellowship essays due, the trickiest one was completely reworked. It seems he does his best when under pressure.</p>
<p>If spending Christmas break results in better applications I wouldn’t worry. My son spent the first week of January polishing up an optional essay for Tufts, (it was an alternative history of the United States and not usable for any other application), it was likely one of the pieces that really made a difference in his application. My impression from following various admissions blogs is that most of January (at schools with a late December/early January deadline) is spent filling and sorting thousands of folders. MIT has great pictures of the process</p>
<p>My DS managed to turn in every application last year on the deadline date. He did very will with his results, so I don’t think it matters.</p>
<p>Now, I made sure he gave the school and his GC/teachers plenty of time to get their grades and letters into the schools on time. His colleges had his grades/SATs/Letters way before he ever applied.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone. After reading your posts, I feel much relieved! </p>
<p>My son has redone several versions of many essays, that’s why he is still working his last app at this time. He has already sent out his test scores/college transcripts much earlier (early Dec.) though.</p>
<p>BTW, last night a close friend told me this: when her cousin was a junior Harvard professor (about 10 years ago), she was assigned to read a lot of RD applicants’ personal statements during Christmas and New Year break. I think this is interesting, so just shared it with you here.</p>
<p>^ Really? I’ve never ever heard of faculty being asked to do undergraduate admissions before. Graduate school yes, or for a special program, but not general undergrad. </p>
<p>Talk about a total misplacement of funds. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to ask faculty to read high school essays when they are primarily paid their six figures to do research. And I can’t imagine faculty agreeing to do so during xmas break either. Not to mention, they likely not as well qualified as someone who does this for their actual job and thus has many more comparatives, experience, and will be sitting year over year at the decision table.</p>
<p>@starbright, sorry I don’t know the details of this story I heard. Basically that’s all my friend told me. I did ask my friends more details (my curiosity arose tremendously when my friend told me that), but the above statement is all she remembered. She promised me to ask her cousin if she has a chance. And I totally agree with your points.</p>
<p>I have a relative that worked part time years ago at a state school (I think as part of work-study). The school required essays, but it was not especially selective. Her job was to bring home sacks of essays… and then separate the ones that showed special circumstances (parent died etc) that should factor into the selection instead of just stats-based. At the time we discussed this DS was causing me angst by procrastinating on summer planning of essays. I had a hard time convincing the relative that at many competitive colleges the essays can be a critical factor for acceptance / scholarships. They are critical and shouldn’t be rushed - we have at least one case where I think the well-crafted, heartfelt essay really helped DS.</p>