<p>If most applications are due 1/1, would it be most beneficial to submit them 1-2 days before just in-case I think of a way to improve my application?</p>
<p>1-2 days? no.</p>
<p>1-2 weeks? probably.</p>
<p>Does it matter if you’re early? Don’t they consider everything at once after the deadline?</p>
<p>It doesn’t matter if you’re early, but if you are early, you don’t risk the last-minute technical problems that give some poor schlemiel a panic attack every single year on College Confidential.</p>
<p>Submit them now if they’re ready. If you’ve worked hard on them, more work won’t make them better–just maybe different. But don’t wait until the last minute–or even the last couple of days. Don’t be that schlemiel.</p>
<p>Someone, somewhere, is going to be working on their apps, waiting until the last minute, and there will be an ice storm that severs their Internet connection, causes them to lose power, and makes it impossible to get out and to the Post Office.</p>
<p>If everything’s done, send it now, or as soon as everything’s complete on your end (you don’t have to wait for your teachers and guidance counselors to upload everything).</p>
<p>Sometimes I think HS students confuse deadlines with due dates. Since homework assignments and projects are rarely handed in early, it seems natural to submit college applications the same way.</p>
<p>If you need reasons for doing it early here are some previous, actual disasters suffered by those who waited until the end to do the application:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Electricity went out in place where applicant lived making it impossible to submit application on line. Similar disasters abound: internet service went out, computer died and would not work, college server overloaded and applicant could not submit in time. </p></li>
<li><p>Applicant rushed his essays and put Harvard in the one he was sending to Yale.</p></li>
<li><p>The application had a form at the end that had to be filled out, signed and sent by the applicant’s counselor by January 1. School was closed, counselor was gone.</p></li>
<li><p>The applicant overlooked the fact that the teachers he wanted recommendations from would not be around during Christmas time to be asked to provide and send them by Jan 1.</p></li>
<li><p>The applicant overlooked the fact that his high school had to send a transcript by Jan 1 and that he had needed to make the request to send the transcript before Christmas time.</p></li>
<li><p>College was actually one that required official test scores to be in its hands by the Jan 1 application deadline (there are some colleges that have that rule) and applicant, as of Dec 31, had not yet ordered them sent.</p></li>
<li><p>College strongly recommended an interview but applicant failed to discover until doing the application that the last date to call and arrange a future interview was three weeks before the application deadline.</p></li>
<li><p>Applicant thought he might qualify for a merit scholarship and learned when doing application in late December that his application had to be submitted a month before the application deadline to be considered for a scholarship.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>There are undoubtedly other disasters that can occur if you wait until the last minute.</p>
<p>This year alone screams submit early, plan for all eventualities. With all the problems in the CApp I have no idea why a student should leave an app that they could send unsent. You want to know all your credentials have matched up BEFORE the deadline! (Ie LORs, properly received app and supplement, GC report, transcript, scores…everything is there ready to be read!).</p>
<p>If my school reports / teacher recommendations are checked on Common App - Downloaded XX/XX/XX and Submitted XX/XX/XX (cause they’re through Naviance) does that mean I’m good to go?</p>
<p>yes indeed it means you are :)</p>