If you haven’t already, now is the time to start getting those applications sent off to the colleges you are interested in attending. Before you send off your application, however, you might want to double-check it in order to make certain you haven’t made one of these common mistakes.

Putting the Wrong College Name on the Essay

Many college applicants choose to write a single essay to send to all of the colleges they are applying to attend. While there isn’t necessarily anything wrong with this practice, you need to make certain you change the name of the college throughout the essay. Don’t rely entirely on using the replacement feature on your word processing software. Rather, reread each application to make certain the right college or university is mentioned throughout the entire essay.

Applying without Telling Your High School Counselor

While the ability to apply to college online is certainly convenient, it doesn’t mean you can cut all of the corners involved in the application process. Before you press the “Send” button on your online college application, make sure you have notified your high school guidance counselor. Failure to notify your counselor can result in a delay in sending out your high school transcripts, which can delay the college admissions decision process because your application will bee incomplete.

Allowing Your Parents to Take Control

While your parents should certainly have some involvement with the college application process, you need to be sure to place limitations on the amount of involvement that they have. Remember, it is you and not your parents that needs to build a relationship with the college. College admissions officers want to see that students can manage their own affairs without their parents being continually involved. Therefore, you should be the one to make connections with the school and you should be the one completing any necessary paperwork and applications.

Getting Last Minute Letters of Recommendation

Waiting until the last minute to obtain letters of recommendation may result in missing the application deadline. Or, if the letters are completed in a timely manner, they may not be as thoughtful and thorough as they should be because the writer was rushed to complete the letter within a short window of time. In order to get a good letter of recommendation, you should speak with your teachers early and you should give them as much information as possible about the program you are applying to attend. This way, the teachers will be able to create letters that match your strengths with the college program.

Missing Deadlines

Finally, it is essential to make certain you meet all of the deadlines that are associated with the college application process. In addition to getting your application sent in on time, other deadlines you will need to meet include federal financial aid deadlines, state financial aid deadlines, institutional financial aid deadlines and scholarship deadlines. Although some colleges accept applications that are sent in after the deadline if their classes aren’t filled, you certainly don’t want to take this kind of a risk.