January 1: Deadline for Early Decision II and Regular Decision

Posted by David Lazo on Wednesday, December 17, 2014 in Application Process, College Application Guides, Early Decision.

Take a Break!

January 1^st is quickly approaching! As I typed those dreadful words of warning, I am reminded of those pesky written exams in high school where the proctor would state the time remaining. Pencils would begin to scribble more quickly and with more ferocity and a cloud of uneasiness would descend upon the room.

My intention is not contribute to your stress. On the other hand, it is to challenge you to take control of the process and make it as stress-free as possible. Rather than writing about breathing exercises to encourage you to slow down, I challenge you to wrap up your applications with January 1 deadlines before you begin Winter Break. You might be asking me (through your monitor, fists in the air), “David, just how do you expect me to wrap up my applications by then?” The short answer is that you already have been working slowly and steadily towards creating a better application. The late nights working for those strong grades, the sweat of your dedication poured into your activities outside the classroom, the deliberations put behind who to ask to compose letters of recommendations, and the list goes on. I liken this process to playing with Legos. Remember when you finally received one of those packaged sets where you could build a castle? If you were like me, I laid out all the pieces around me, placed the directions for constructing the castle in front of me, and began assembling the castle. Slowly but surely, it came together and in the end, I was always proud at how cool my castle was. We know your application is coming together nicely. There is so much to tell us, and we hope you have judiciously selected excerpts that will help us make our choices.

Imagine completing and submitting your applications before winter break. Remember that one book you’ve been putting off that you can now finally read? Or perhaps you have earned yourself a binge-watching marathon of your favorite show and can now enjoy watching without the application deadline looming overhead. Or better yet, enjoying the winter break and holidays surrounded by friends and family. It is these moments that you will begin to cherish as you prepare to leave home.

You owe it to yourself to make this process as stress-free as possible. Once you apply to Vanderbilt, we will confirm receipt of your application within two business days. We will also invite you to create a MyAppVU account. Please remember to complete this step – if we are missing anything that is required for your application, this is the portal where you can be proactive (read: keeping the process stress-free) and see what we need to complete your application file. If you have questions about any missing documents, do not be afraid to reach out to your admissions counselor for guidance.

And lastly as I have ended all my fall school visits this year I have reminded seniors to “enjoy your senior year!” I can certainly understand just how busy your senior year can be, but it is also the time to enjoy the camaraderie of a community that you have been with for some time.

Happy winter break and happy holidays!

Tags: College Application Deadlines, January 1st, legos, MyAppVU, stress, Submit applications, winter break