It’s rare that the college application process ever gets easier, but this year, at least, it seems like that might just be the case at several competitive, popular schools. Colleges like Tulane, University of Georgia, University of Virginia, University of Miami, UNC-Chapel Hill, Washington University in St. Louis, Case Western, Bates, Colby, Middlebury, and others have either dropped their supplemental essay requirements or reduced them considerably.

Citing AI concerns, the workload of current admissions teams, and student stress, these schools have signaled they will no longer ask students to detail why they’ve chosen to apply to that college, or how they’ll contribute to/engage with the student body. Since these short-answer essays tended toward name-dropping about facilities on campus, popular professors, or generic “It’s a great school, the campus feels like home, and I know I’ll thrive there” responses, it makes sense.

With that in mind, here are the three main components you should still be focused on as your teenager prepares to submit applications – either Early Action in October, or Regular Decision towards the end of the calendar year:

That still leaves three main components to focus on as your teenager prepares to submit applications: the Personal Statement, Activity Writeups for the Common App, and “everything else” on the Common App itself. If you’ve already registered at commonapp.org and started filling in the general information, you’ve seen it’s mostly fill-ins and drop-down menus. Get these out of the way now, and you can start populating their list of target schools as well. All with enough time for either the Regular Decision deadlines at the end of the year, or even for Early Action deadlines in mid to late October.

Finally, a quick word on Early Action. There are plenty of benefits to applying early – not the least of which is potentially more generous offers of Financial Aid when that time comes – but it comes with a caveat. Record numbers of students apply early every year and unfortunately receive record numbers of deferrals in return. This is NOT a rejection – it’s simply a delay in the process for the Regular Decision period. Think of it this way: if a college gets twice as many early applications now as they might have pre-COVID, but haven’t hired twice as many admissions staff to review them, a deferral is the easiest way to move past an application that’s “Not “No,” just not Right Now.” If you get deferred, don’t  worry. A simple Letter of Continuing Interest will let the Admissions team know you’re a serious applicant, you appreciate the consideration, and you’re happy to submit any additional materials or information that might make their decision easier.

I’m a huge believer that every student ends up at the college that was meant for them; I’ve been doing this for 25 years, and now that my own daughter is in the process, I believe it now more than ever. When the process gets overwhelming, or when a referral (or even rejections) comes in, I’d encourage you to help your teen see the bigger picture. Something amazing is waiting for them at the college they ultimately choose to attend. The acceptances are what will define this process for them, not the rejections. And it’s our job as parents to try to keep them encouraged and help them stay the course.

Best of luck to you and your kids throughout this process!