Nobody tells you how to write a good college application.  They just tell you to get a good ACT score and to make good grades.  But what they don’t tell you is that you will get into college, even if you don’t have the best ACT score.  Something else they don’t tell you is that you probably won’t actually need to write an essay for your application. (Seriously, I have filled out four different applications and not one of them asked you to submit an essay).

Other things you may be interested to know about college applications are that they all cost money.  If you live in state, the fee to apply is probably around $50.  If you live out of state, the fee to apply ranges from $50-$75.  However, for some in-state colleges you can often get your application fee waived if you use the code given to you during Utah College Application Week (not all colleges give codes though).

Something called the Common Application is also an option.  According to The Common Application, you can apply to nearly 700 colleges around the country or some internationally, using just one application: the “Common App”.  It still costs money to apply, but you can use the same application for multiple schools.  The Common App does require you to write an essay though. The Common Application is basically a place, and a resource, for students to be able to apply to multiple colleges through one website.

The “priority” deadline for a lot of Utah schools is December 1st (some schools have later dates and some have rolling-admission, but this is generally the date).  This date comes around more quickly than you might think.  Get your applications in as early as you can, but spend enough time on you applications to make sure that all the information you entered is correct and relevant.  The priority deadline means that if you apply by this date you will be considered for admission and scholarships before the people who applied after December 1st , according to getmetocollege.com. However, you should consider this your only deadline because it looks better if you apply to the school by then.  It shows the school that you are responsible and are really interested in attending that college. It tells them that their school is one of your priorities, so you should be one of their priorities. Remember, you are essentially competing against other students around the country to get into the school you applied to.

Here are a few last tips to keep in mind as you start to think about college.  First, start early.  I started filling out my college applications the day they came out. I was able to spend a good amount of time making sure I put all the right information in it.  Because I started so early, I was able to spend two or three months perfecting each application and was still able to submit them in early November.  Second, only apply for schools that you are actually interested in attending.  Even to apply it costs money, so you should only apply to the schools that are worth your money.  Lastly, don’t apply to too many schools.  If you apply to many schools and get into all of them, you haven’t really narrowed your choices down.

People always tell you that the time comes quickly.  You don’t usually believe them because you may have a couple years before you apply.  However, when the time comes, you will realize how quickly the time came.  Your time to apply to college may seem far away but it will come and when it arrives, you need to be ready.