As this year’s seniors are in the midst of working on their college applications, they have shared their experiences to create a list of the top 10 need-to-know tips for surviving the college application process:

1. “Start writing college apps in the summer because school, homework, college applications, essays, extracurriculars, and trying to get sleep do not go well together.” – Shania Santana
2. “Include lots of personal details in your essays, because the whole point of the essays are to show the colleges something that they can’t learn from your transcripts.” – Manyin Zhou
3. Do research on your schools. This will help you identify which schools you are most compatible with and which colleges you want to apply to. It will also make writing “Why [college name]?” essays much easier!
4. “Ask all the questions you have even if you think they are dumb or you should already know the answer.” – Maira Lara There is nothing more important when doing your college application than being informed. Whether you have a question for your counselor, a college representative, or some other person who you think could help you out, never be afraid to inquire when you’re confused on or need help.
5. Take your essays to Ms. Pasulka in the Writing Center! Ms. Pasulka is one of the greatest resources that our school has to offer seniors during the college application process, so make sure to take advantage of her. Just be sure to sign up for a meeting at the beginning of your lunch period or study hall, because she has always got a list of people waiting to see her!
6. “Every underclassman has heard the advice ‘Don’t send your essays to too many editors.’ That’s only half true. I found it really helpful to send my essay to many editors at first so I could figure out who was actually good at editing. Good editors usually had overlapping suggestions; the same applied for bad editors. That helped me pick a few strong editors whose judgement I knew I could trust.” – Augustine Barry
7. “Students applying to college should have a soul cleaning item. Camping, watching TV, doing yoga, whatever it takes to completely rejuvenate after such a stressful period.” – Gloria Oladipo Filling out college applications can be draining both mentally and physically, so it is especially important to make sure you are allowing yourself to recuperate. Remember, if you push yourself too hard you will inevitably get sick, and that will only throw you more behind schedule. Spending time to take care of yourself will save you time in the long run.
8. “Don’t apply for more colleges than you think you can handle at once.” – Vince Miller While this is a simple piece of advice, it is one that students would do best to keep in mind. Making a list, chart, etc. to identify why you are applying to each college can help you narrow down your choices and give you a more focused idea of what you want out of a school.
9. “Send your ACT scores from the official website at least 2 weeks prior to your deadline. It takes time for ACT to process and send your scores to your schools.” – Lamont Wallace
10. Check to see if you qualify for fee waivers! If you think that your family will have a problem paying for your college applications you should talk to your counselor and ask them if you can qualify for a college application fee waiver. These can be extremely helpful, especially if you plan on applying to multiple colleges – remember though, these should be reserved for students who really need them. If your counselor doesn’t approve the waiver, don’t be afraid to reach out to each college individually and see if they can waive their school’s fee for you.