Applying for College: Three Things to Keep in Mind

The application process for North American colleges is pretty straightforward: submit your grades, pay the associated fees, and wait to see if you’re accepted. Where you may be required to submit letters of recommendation or entrance essays to some universities, all but the most competitive colleges require little more than the application and a transcript that proves your academic capabilities (it is important to note that mature students, as defined by the particular college that you are applying to, probably won’t have to submit transcripts).

As simple as the process is, however, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t areas that may seem confusing or tedious. The top three things to keep in mind or watch out for when you are applying for a college program are:

1. Entrance availability – Many colleges do not clearly post the number of seats remaining in various programs on their website or, if they do, they can appear misleading or hard to read. This can lead to a myriad of complications down the road, especially if you’ve stopped applying to other colleges and are told that the program is full.

The best way to get around this is to call the college that you are applying to and ask how much space remains in a particular program (if the application website doesn’t clearly tell you). If the program is full you can move on to other colleges or other programs.

2. The application method ¬– The internet has completely changed the way that prospective students apply for college programs. Whereas it is still possible (in most instances) to apply using a traditional paper form and registrar session, most colleges prefer online applications. This process is much simpler and streamlined when compared to offline applications for both the applicant and the college.

Check to see how the online application process works. Some states/provinces, such as Ontario, Canada, use a proprietary system that is government sponsored and handles everything. Most regions leave the onus on the college to develop and maintain an online application method, and most colleges have successfully done so.

3. Transcript delivery – Many online application methods allow you to have your transcripts ordered and sent from your high school without ever leaving the application website. If this is not the case you may have to arrange with your school division to have your transcripts sent over or, if the college will allow it, you can hand-deliver transcripts to the office of the registrar.

The process can take several weeks from start to finish, with the actual application taking under an hour and the waiting period for the college taking up the bulk of the time. Don’t reapply for the same program either, as colleges receive thousands of applications every semester and reapplying will only add to their overall workload and hence slow the rate in which they are able to respond.