<p>I suddenly realized the following:
(1) Summer vacation is over!
(2) My application essay draft is not fully done; plus, it appears each college wants a different essay...
(3) Second week into the school year, I am barely finding time to sleep with all the AP and Honors courses I am taking to look good in the senior year
(4) Go to start preparing for the October SAT-IIs
(5) I am not sure I will be able to keep track of all the deadlines for college applications and be on time with the suff they are asking
(6) Getting more anxious and worried by the day about maintaining my GPA till the mid year report goes out
etc, etc.</p>
<p>It looks like the 24 hours in a day are not enough. The only time I have free is the this independent study period (right now!), I sit in the library and instead of researching for my project, I try to relax!</p>
<p>How is everyone else coping up? Any advice will be appreciated.</p>
<p>Calm down. After the first couple of applications, you'll be able to knock out an application in one day. I suggest getting a large calendar and writing down when colleges need things- FAFSA, SATs, recommendations, etc.</p>
<p><a href="5">quote</a> I am not sure I will be able to keep track of all the deadlines for college applications and be on time with the suff they are asking
[/quote]
</p>
<p>When my kids applied:
I got folders for each college they were applying to and set them up in one of those pronged desk organizer thingys that make them stand upright. In each folder went the appropriate application, and they made a list of what each school required, along with important deadlines, and put it in the folder, as a checklist. (SAT scores, 2 recommendations, 3 essays, etc.) There was also a general info folder, which housed their score reports, copies of transcripts, copies of essays they had finished, etc. They did this before they actually attacked any of the applications themselves. Once they had this little set-up, with all the information at their fingertips, it didn't seem so overwhelming.
The other important thing is to set aside time in your schedule to work on your applications. Actually block out time on your calendar at the beginning. Otherwise, something may always seem to trump working on them, and you'll always feel you should be working on them in whatever free time you have. ( If a paper deadline comes up, you can re-schedule, your app time, but do make a date to work on them.)
Like anything else, once you actually start, it gets easier.</p>
<p>Edit : Even though my son applied online everywhere, having the paper copy in the folder to refer to helped him organize his thoughts, and figure out which essays he could use again for which other schools.</p>
<p>Thanks ASAP, good advice.
I have now bought folders and arranged the application materials and my notes about each college I want to apply to. A little organization does help a lot.</p>