🗓 US application timeline
Applying to US colleges, year by year.
Most of an application is done long before senior year: the courses you take, the tests you sit and the list you build. Here is what to do in each year of high school, and the official dates for the 2026–27 cycle — test dates, the PSAT windows and the 2027–28 FAFSA — each with its source.
Freshman year (9th grade)
In 2026–27: the Class of 2030
All year
Take the hardest courses you can do well in
Colleges read your whole high-school record, starting with 9th grade. Ask your counselor which courses lead to the classes colleges expect by senior year (usually four years of English and math, and several years of science, social studies and a language).
All year
Find one or two activities you care about
Depth counts for more than a long list. Keep a simple note of what you do and roughly how many hours — it makes the activities section easy to fill in later.
Fall or spring, at school
PSAT 8/9, if your school offers it
A practice test taken at school on a day your school chooses, inside College Board's in-school windows (October 2026 and March–April 2027). It doesn't go to colleges.
Sophomore year (10th grade)
In 2026–27: the Class of 2029
All year
Keep your grades steady and start looking around
Browse colleges by size, setting, cost and the subjects they're known for. Use the matcher on this site with a rough idea of your grades and budget — nothing is final yet.
Spring, at school
PSAT 10, if your school offers it
Taken at school in College Board's spring window (1 March–30 April 2027). A practice run for the PSAT/NMSQT and the SAT.
Summer
Do something you'll be glad to write about
A job, volunteering, a summer programme, caring for family, a project of your own — all of it counts.
Junior year (11th grade)
In 2026–27: the Class of 2028
October, at school
PSAT/NMSQT
Taken at school in College Board's fall window (1–30 October 2026), usually in 10th or 11th grade. Ask your counselor when your school gives it.
Winter to spring
Take the SAT or the ACT, if your colleges use scores
Many colleges are test-optional, but some require scores. Each college page on this site shows its testing policy. Register before the deadline for the test date you want — the 2027 dates and deadlines are in the table below.
Spring
Build a first list and visit if you can
Aim for a balanced list: a few reaches, several targets and a few likely admits you'd be happy to attend. Use each college's net price calculator — the price after grants often differs a lot from the sticker price.
Spring
Ask two teachers for recommendations
Ask teachers from junior year who know your work, and give them plenty of notice before fall deadlines.
Summer
Draft your personal essay
Common App opens each new application season on the first day of August — in 2026 it opened on Saturday 1 August; the 2027 date isn't announced yet. Drafting your personal essay over the summer leaves the fall for everything else.
Source: Common App — launch of the 2026–2027 application season
Senior year (12th grade)
In 2026–27: the Class of 2027
August–September
Open your Common App and finish your list
The 2026–2027 Common App opened on 1 August 2026. Note each college's deadlines, essays and testing policy — they differ from college to college.
Source: Common App — launch of the 2026–2027 application season
From 1 October
File the FAFSA — and the CSS Profile where a college asks for it
The 2027–28 FAFSA has been live since 23 September 2026; the form says to submit no earlier than 1 October 2026. Many states and colleges set deadlines far earlier than the federal one, some first-come, first-served. Some colleges also ask for the CSS Profile; submit it by the earliest priority date of the colleges you apply to.
Typically 1 or 15 November
Early decision and early action deadlines
Where a college offers early decision or early action, the deadline is typically in November. Read each college's rules before you apply early — early decision usually commits you to attend if admitted. Each college sets its own dates.
Source: EducationUSA — complete your application (undergraduate)
Typically 1 January to early February
Regular decision deadlines
Most regular-decision deadlines fall between 1 January and early February; some colleges admit on a rolling basis. Each college sets its own.
Source: EducationUSA — complete your application (undergraduate)
March–April
Compare offers, not just admissions
Put each financial aid offer side by side — what you'd pay after grants, and how much is loans. The aid-offer comparer on this site does the arithmetic.
Spring
Decide and accept one offer
Each college tells you its reply date in your offer; many ask for your decision by early May. Accept one offer and let the others know.
Official dates, 2026–27
Read on each official page on 13 November 2026. Dates that have passed stay listed for the whole cycle. Application deadlines aren't here: each college sets its own.
Financial aid for students starting college in 2027–28
Federal dates only. Many states and colleges set earlier deadlines, some first-come, first-served — check each one.
| Date | What | Source | Calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 October 2026 – 30 June 2028 | 2027–28 FAFSA — federal deadlineStudents applying for federal aid for July 2027–June 2028 (the form went live on 23 September 2026 and says to submit no earlier than 1 October 2026) | Federal Student Aid — 2027–28 FAFSA form |
SAT weekend test dates, 2026–27
Registration deadlines expire at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time. College Board also lists anticipated 2027–28 dates (from 28 August 2027) on the same page.
| Date | What | Source | Calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 October 2026 | SAT — test date (register by 18 Sept 2026)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 7 November 2026 | SAT — test date (register by 23 Oct 2026)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 5 December 2026 | SAT — test date (register by 20 Nov 2026)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 6 March 2027 | SAT — test date (register by 19 Feb 2027)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 1 May 2027 | SAT — test date (register by 16 Apr 2027)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 5 June 2027 | SAT — test date (register by 21 May 2027)Students taking the SAT on a weekend test date, in the U.S. and abroad | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines |
ACT national test dates, 2026–27
Late registration costs extra. ACT also lists projected 2027–28 dates (from 11 September 2027), subject to change.
| Date | What | Source | Calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 September 2026 | ACT — test date (register by 14 Aug 2026)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 17 October 2026 | ACT — test date (register by 11 Sept 2026)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 12 December 2026 | ACT — test date (register by 9 Nov 2026)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 27 February 2027 | ACT — test date (register by 22 Jan 2027)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 10 April 2027 | ACT — test date (register by 5 Mar 2027)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 12 June 2027 | ACT — test date (register by 7 May 2027)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 | |
| 10 July 2027 | ACT — test date (register by 4 Jun 2027)Students taking the ACT on a national test date (U.S., U.S. territories and Puerto Rico) | ACT — national test dates schedule 2026–2027 |
In-school testing windows (your school picks the day)
| Date | What | Source | Calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 October 2026 – 30 October 2026 | PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 8/9 and SAT School Day — fall windowStudents testing at school, on a day the school sets | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines | |
| 1 March 2027 – 30 April 2027 | PSAT 10, PSAT 8/9 and SAT School Day — spring windowStudents testing at school, on a day the school sets | College Board — SAT Suite test dates and deadlines |
Dates change every year: check the official page before you rely on one. The CSS Profile for fall 2027 is open on College Board's site; submit it by the earliest priority date of the colleges that ask for it. Applying from outside the US? See the international guide to applying to US colleges.