What’s Next After You Apply: Scholarships, Portals, and More
It is such a relief to hit that submit button on the Common App, get a little celebration confetti, and know that you have done all you can up to this point to ensure your application was the best that it can be.
Here are the next steps you should take after submitting to each school.
Search for scholarships: The majority of scholarships for college come from the college itself. You will be considered for many scholarships automatically when you submit your applications. These are usually merit-based scholarships, meaning they are tied in with your academic performance (GPA, test scores, grades, coursework). There are some scholarships that require extra steps (yes, more essays and applications). To ensure you aren’t leaving any money on the table, be sure to check the Financial Aid page of each of your colleges to see what other financial aid may be available.
Join online portals: Usually within 48 hours of submitting your application you will receive an email from the college asking you to join their online portal. Make sure you keep tabs on each school to ensure you are joining them all. This is where you can track the status of your application and ensure there are not any missing items you still need to submit.
Complete “Optional” Post-Application Items: There are sometimes “Easter Egg” assignments after you complete your application. These are additional steps you can take to strengthen your application even after you submit, and from what we have seen, these can make an impact. Brown University, for example, includes an optional video or alumni interview that is due several days after the application due date.
Send Official Test Scores and Transcripts: Some schools do not require you send official test scores until after you have officially been accepted. You can save money by double-checking your online portal for each school to see if you need to submit official scores at this time, or if you can hold off. The same goes for official transcripts, so make sure you have all the green checkmarks on the items on your online portal.
College Visits: continue to visit colleges, especially the ones to which you’ve applied, but even other schools you may consider applying to. By November 1, most Regular Decision deadlines haven’t even passed yet, so you still have plenty of time to consider other colleges that might be of interest to you.
