Building Your College List
Jeanette Wright
The competitive state of college admissions has made it more important than ever to build a balanced list of colleges. Start by knowing what you want to pay for college. This can be different than what you can afford. Do you want to stay in state or travel far from home? If you want to stay closer to home, look at state colleges as these will be most affordable. Be sure you can get the courses you need to graduate in four years as going a 5th year will add to your debt. Look at private colleges that will give local students merit aid. Consider colleges that you may not have heard of. Most students apply to same top schools because these are the names they hear.
If you want to go out of state, look at the average merit aid awarded to out of state students. Collegedata.com is a good place to start. If you know what you want to major in, you can start by doing a simple Google search. Know that these searches often show only the most competitive colleges so refine your search criteria by adding "Affordable colleges for B students" or "Best in-state colleges for biology". CollegeXpress.com can help refine your search.
Most importantly, take rigorous courses and work hard to keep your grades up as colleges know that these are two things that help determine how well you will do in college.
Prompts remain unchanged. https://www.commonapp.org/blog/announcing-2026-2027-common-app-essay-prompts
Keep Those Grades Up And Communicate Changes Senior grades still matter. Colleges review final transcripts and can rescind offers if grades drop significantly. If you've added or dropped a class since submitting your applications, reach out to each college's admissions office and let them know. Honesty goes a long way, and surprises at transcript time can create real problems. Be proactive! SAT Test Dates Are Coming Up Three big opportunities are on the horizon — register now before your preferred test center fills up: March 2026 May 2026 June 2026 The single most effective way to prepare? Take full-length, timed practice tests. Simulating real test conditions builds stamina, sharpens time management, and reveals exactly where to focus your studying. College Board and Khan Academy both offer free, personalized prep. Summer Plans: Go Deep, Not Wide Here's one of the most important pieces of advice we can give you: admissions officers are not impressed by a mile-long activity list. What actually moves the needle is depth, passion, and leadership. Financial Aid & FAFSA Both UC and Cal State schools use your FAFSA to determine federal aid, state Cal Grants, and campus-based awards. The deadline for both UC and Cal State is March 2 — and aid is often first-come, first-served, so don't wait. Log in to each campus's financial aid portal to check your award status and make sure no documents are missing. Keep Searching for Scholarships While you're waiting to hear from colleges, your scholarship search should be in full swing. Local organizations, community foundations, and national programs all have open applications right now. Smaller awards add up fast — don't overlook them! Ask your school counselor, check reputable scholarship databases, and set calendar reminders for deadlines. May 1, 2026 National College Decision Day You must commit to a college and submit your enrollment deposit by May 1. If you're still waiting on a waitlist decision, you still need to commit somewhere by the deadline — you can withdraw later if you get good news, but you'll most likely lose your deposit. Better to lose a deposit than lose your spot entirely!
Meaningful summer activities
The rock band Foreigner performed at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, San Diego in July, and I was happy to learn of their 15-year support of the arts. Toward the end of the show, the San Diego High School Symphonic Choir came on stage and sang "I Want to Know What Love Is" with the band. Before the show, while eating greasy potato chips, we randomly met one of the choir members' uncles, who proudly told us his nephew was in the choir. It was a reminder to me of how important our school music and art programs are, and we should support them.
I was in Denver for a family wedding in July and took a detour to Aspen to hike. It was fun to see young musicians from the Aspen Music Festival and School playing their instruments on street corners and in various venues throughout Aspen. Every year, approximately 650 talented students from all over the world are invited to spend eight weeks in Aspen for lessons, coaching, and to play with fellow musicians and known artists. Most are in college. It’s an incredible opportunity to better their skills, and it can help launch their careers. The two I spoke with are attending Peabody Conservatory and the Cleveland Institute for Music. One plays the trombone and the other the violin. Both realize the opportunity, and we’re very grateful for it.
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College outcomes have been increasingly hard to predict for at least the past 10 years. Most of the popular colleges have received more applications with each subsequent year, much of the increase due to the ease of applying with online applications. UCLA for example, receive 145,910 undergraduate applications for the incoming class of 2023 and 146,276 for the class of 2024*. Many students have a few favorites and are disappointed when they don't get in. Despite student's and counselor's best efforts, admissions are unpredictable and students should plan for 'Option B' if they aren't offered a spot at their first choice college. After the period of disappointment passes, students should focus on the schools where they got in. Make a spreadsheet with pros/cons of each. Visit as many as your time and budget allow. Tour the department your major is in and ask well thought-out questions. Make an appointment with the financial aid office to ensure you fully understand what the school is offering you. See as much of the campus as possible and the surrounding area. While these steps might not take away all of the disappointment, it will help you make the best decision for you and your family and ultimately result in a positive experience in college. *https://apb.ucla.edu/campus-statistics/admissions
In the past few years, colleges have been using waitlists to manage their enrollment. Determining who will accept their offer for admission is often times unpredictable, so they rely heavily on the waitlist to help. Many of my students contact me asking what they should do. I tell them they should first see what the college requires. Opt-in to remain on the waitlist and if they allow it, send a letter of continued interest. Express that the colleges remains one of their top choices and why. Consider your major and and related club. If they allow for an additional recommendation letter from a teacher, coach or mentor, include it. Contact the admissions office and your specific admissions representative to ask questions. Be respectful of their time. If the colleges considers demonstrated interest, visit the campus when possible. There are no guarantees you will be offered a spot from the waitlist, so you should commit to another school. Sometimes the wait can be well-after the May 1 National College Signing Day, so sit back and wait and hope you will be offered a spot.
The Common App announced that the prompts for the 2025-2026 application cycle will remain the same and there will be changes to the two additional information questions. The "Community disruption" question will now be a "Challenges and circumstances" question. This is to allow students to included many different experiences. The "Additional information" question maximum word limit for undergraduate students will be 250 words, down from 650. Here is the personal essay questions for the 2025-2026 season. Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story. The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome? Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you? Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others. Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more? Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design. Details can be found here.