Melissa Lucia Sarmiento graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor of Arts in history and minors in German and Latin American studies. She is a master admissions consultant.
Table of Contents
Introduction
As you begin navigating the college application process, you are very likely to encounter the term “rolling admissions.” While Ivy League institutions and other top schools do not offer this option as part of their application experience, many large state schools including Arizona State, Pennsylvania State University, and Michigan State do offer rolling admissions for undergraduate programs.
This is also the case for private institutions like the University in Miami in Miami, FL, which offers rolling applications for many programs—including those in the Miami Herbert School of Business—as well as for their undergraduate classes. That’s right: rolling admissions are not exclusive to undergraduate or graduate institutions, and regardless of which program you are applying to, you may benefit from submitting your application later on in the cycle.
As you prepare your graduate school or college list, consider including some rolling application deadlines, since these can relieve the stress of the application process by offering you extra time. However, the nature of rolling admissions means that many schools that have this as part of their application process may fill up specific programs faster than anticipated. Therefore, it is important to research the benefits and disadvantages of these kinds of applications so you can make the best decision for yourself.
Definition of Rolling Admission
While early decision, early action, and regular decision deadlines are clearly set very early on in the application process, rolling admissions are ongoing throughout the application season. In this model, applications are reviewed on a continuous basis as schools receive them. This ongoing factor is the key difference between rolling admissions and other deadlines, which require that schools wait until after the deadline to start reviewing all applications together.
Essentially, rolling admissions accept students as they read applications on a first-come, first-served basis, which, under certain circumstances, can be very beneficial to applicants.
How Rolling Admission Works
Through rolling admissions, schools review applications on an ongoing basis instead of waiting until a specific deadline by which all applications must be submitted. Because rolling admissions are continuous, schools with these kinds of deadlines will often allow applications for several months, and you can decide to apply to them even after many schools have released their own admissions decisions.
Schools will offer different target deadlines, including early action and priority deadline dates. However, they will also offer other ’round’ deadlines by which you must apply, as seen in the University of Miami’s business school’s application website.
Rest assured–rolling admissions are not binding, so regardless of when you submit your application, you do not have to commit to any given college unless you are sure that it is the best fit for you.
Advantages of Rolling Admission
There are many reasons why students might consider rolling applications, ranging from time to finish the application to the competitiveness of the school.
You will have more time to apply.
Schools that offer rolling admissions often have a window of several months during which they will accept and read your application. This flexibility can be a major benefit during an intense application season: since there is no imminent deadline for rolling admissions schools, students can complete these applications after they have finished all the regular decision ones.
The extra time can take away some of the pressure that applicants feel during these cycles, and it will allow them some more time to prepare their personal statement and supplements. Essentially, it will give you more time to wait on your letters of recommendation
Additionally, rolling applications may also alleviate the cost of applying to college: No application is considered complete without the application fee. Thus, applying later may represent a financial benefit from otherwise prohibitive application costs.
You Will Have a Decision Sooner
One of the most stressful parts of the admissions process is waiting for a decision. Rolling admissions schools tackle this problem by releasing their decisions much sooner. The rolling basis of these applications means that admissions officers are constantly receiving new applications, and they have to determine whether an applicant is qualified much sooner in order to review the next set. For applicants, this means that they will receive their admission decision within a few weeks—rather than a few months—after submitting their materials. Take Arizona State as an example, where applicants can expect their recision in about four weeks. This quick turnaround is common for schools that follow a similar model to AU’s.
You might increase your chances of acceptance.
Rolling admission colleges are not evaluating applications against the entire applicant pool. Instead, they are scoring it against the applications that were submitted at around the same time as each other. The rolling admissions process can represent a higher chance of being admitted if your application happens to be scored against noticeably less competitive ones. (Of course, the opposite can also be true!)
Disadvantages of Rolling Admission
The benefits of rolling applications are great, but they also have some drawbacks that should be considered.
Qualified Candidates Might Face Tougher Competition
The main disadvantage of waiting until the very end of the application cycle to apply is that you will face tougher competition. As the final deadline approaches, you will be competing for fewer available spots among equally qualified applicants. This increased competition means that, even if you have a strong application, the admissions committee may not be able to offer you a space in their incoming class.
You’ll Miss the Benefits of Priority Deadlines
It is true that rolling admission applications give you time throughout the process. However, if you wait too long, you may risk losing out on the many benefits of applying early and meeting priority deadlines.
Many schools that offer rolling admissions are also clear that they only offer exclusive scholarships and financial aid on a space-available basis. The same also applies to other benefits like on-campus housing. Just take a look at Kansas State University, which outlines the different deadlines for all incoming international and domestic students. And Kansas State isn’t alone—Michigan State‘s website clearly informs prospective undergraduate students that, while they will accept applications up until April 1, there are many talented applicants applying. In order to guarantee that your application will be considered, the school encourages you to apply by November 1st. That’s a five-month difference!
So, while the application window is technically very long, the advantages of applying early are also indisputable. If you are hoping to be considered for any of these benefits, you will likely have to apply much sooner than the final official deadline.
Tips for Applying through Rolling Admission
As you prepare for the rolling admission process, decide what is more beneficial for you for each individual school: are you prioritizing the open deadlines because you want some extra time to apply, or do you want to make sure you qualify for financial aid packages and other benefits?
Once you decide what matters most to you for each individual school, check all application requirements before submitting, and make sure that you have them all: personal statement, recommendation letters, and any supplements that the school might ask for. Proofread your materials before you submit them, and check over all your personal information, too. Use our last-minute checklist to help you ensure you have everything.
Comparing Rolling Admission with Other Admission Types
The biggest difference between rolling admissions and other types of admissions is the deadlines: early admission and regular admission will always have strict deadlines. If you miss them, you will not be part of the applicant pool. However, even if you apply right before the deadline, you will be considered for everything: financial aid, scholarships, or on-campus housing.
Meanwhile, the admissions cycle for rolling admissions schools is much longer, and there is no one deadline that you need to meet. This means that the members of the incoming class will not all find out whether they were admitted on the same day. Instead, admissions committees will be notifying applicants whether they were offered admission as they read their application. In this sense, rolling admissions colleges work on a first-come, first-served basis: applicants who submit their application materials first will find out quicker whether or not they were offered acceptance, and they will also have a higher chance of benefiting from additional resources, including financial aid packages and scholarships. They also won’t face as much competition for on-campus housing, which often fills up rather quickly. Given how crucial all these factors are when it comes to choosing a program, many students may be discouraged by this application format.
Conclusion
Rolling admission schools offer many advantages to applicants: by having an extended window of time to apply, students will not feel as much pressure to submit their application by a given deadline. This flexibility will benefit many students who will be juggling multiple applications at once. On the other hand, these admissions do benefit those who apply earlier, and you may face increased competition if you wait until the very last moment to submit your application for these programs.
Regardless, rolling applications may be a great option for you, and it is important to balance the benefits of applying on a rolling basis against the potential disadvantages. Regardless of whether or not you choose to apply to these programs, rest assured that H&C is here to help!
