The final round of admission decisions are on the horizon for thousands of seniors around the world. As our students await a final acceptance, denial, or possible waitlist, it’s important to look back and learn from the trends we’ve seen in one of the most impactful admission rounds this year; early decision. Looking back on the past few years of admission cycles it’s clear that with the number of applications submitted still seeing steady growth at a number of institutions across the nation, the need for guidance in crafting a balanced, strategic, and realistic application process is even more pressing than in years past.
According to the common app, over the last decade the number of students applying to 10 or more colleges has doubled from roughly 8% of students in 2014 to 17% in 2025; just this year alone the number of applications submitted through the common app grew by 4% to reach just over 4 million total submissions. With this phenomenon occurring in stride with the consistent drops in acceptance rates over the same period, students across the nation are applying to more & more colleges in order to hedge their bets at as many universities as possible. Additionally, as more universities across the country are returning to test requirements students have in turn increased their propensity to submit testing in hopes that it will help them in the increasingly competitive application process. Just this year alone the world of admissions saw an 11% increase in the number of students choosing to submit testing, and with no signs of these trends slowing down the importance of the early decision round continues to grow as well.
So with this in mind, what should students focus on as they prepare for applications in such critical times?
1. Preparing a Balanced and Strategic College List
While there are many different factors, preferences, and needs that play into each student’s college list, the most important consideration should be the balance of competitiveness across all schools being considered. With acceptance levels dropping and applications rising, there needs to be strategic consideration given to the reach, target, and likely universities that ultimately end up on the college list. By crafting a balanced college list students are able to plan for an application process that results in a number of colleges to consider in the likely level of schools they apply to, while providing a bit of cushion for the more competitive target and reach level universities they’re also applying to.
2. Approach Testing Seriously
At Galin we know that standardized testing is often the least exciting part of a student’s application, it is a necessary component of the considerations taken during the application process. While some students may end up ultimately applying as a test optional student and finding success by doing so, at Galin we always say that testing is something you’d rather have and not need versus something you need and don’t have. That said, all students should make sure they are identifying supportive test prep services, planning out their testing timeline, and working with a counselor to identify the testing thresholds they’ll need to aim for in order to be competitive at their schools of choice.
3. Plan Out A Rigorous Courseload
Throughout a student’s high school career, the goal of the courses are to instill the foundational knowledge needed to succeed in life while also progressively challenging the student as they mature throughout their high school experience. Colleges and universities want to admit students who have continuously challenged themselves throughout high school in order to ensure confidence in the decision to accept students onto their campuses. Across the key areas of english, math, lab based sciences, history, and a secondary language, students should push themselves to take more challenging courses while also balancing this choice with a strong GPA throughout high school.
4. Find Your Niche in Extracurriculars
With academics serving as the bedrock of every student’s application, there needs to be thought and effort put forth towards the things students are pursuing outside of the classroom. Extracurricular activities present an amazing opportunity to showcase leadership, teamwork, alignment with a chosen major, and the ability to put theory into practice successfully before a student ever sets foot on campus. Additionally, in an ever increasingly competitive college landscape the things students accomplish outside of the classroom is now often looked at as the x factor to not only stand out from the rest of the pack but to also add a unique identity to the application.
Based on the past few admission cycles it doesn’t look like college acceptance rates will rise or that submitted applications will drop anytime soon. This is why it’s imperative for students to begin planning and preparing as early as they can for the application process. At Galin Education we have the knowledge, skillsets, and professionals to guide each student through their high school experience and help them prepare for the road ahead.
