Deadline Drama: Early, Regular, and Everything In Between — Part 3: Regular Decision

Lynn Hofstad
May 11
5 min read

The myriad of application deadline options can be dizzying and confusing. Many colleges have up to five different application dates. For students and families encountering the many options for the first time, it can be hard to know which application deadline to choose. This series of blogs describes the different types of application deadlines and the advantages, drawbacks, and important things to note for each type.

This blog is the third in a series describing the different types of application deadlines.

Part 3: Regular Decision

Regular decision has been the main (and historically only) method of applying up until a few decades ago (think your parents and grandparents applying to college). Regular decision typically has a deadline in January or February, with decisions being released in the spring (usually in March). Most students still apply regular decision, but this is often in addition to having applied early decision or early action. The combination of regular decision with early decision or early action is often used strategically as a means to gain statistical application advantage from applying early, while still applying to a sufficient number schools to maintain a balanced list of colleges. (If you are interested in the boom in the number of applications submitted per student, check out this blog.)

Where Do You Actually Apply? A Look at College Application Portals

Since most people know about the process for regular decision, I want to briefly explore the different application portals.

The Common Application

The Common Application (or Common App) is the primary application portal. While it has existed since the 1970s, in the 50 years since it began with 15 schools, it has become the most widely used application portal. Nearly 1.5 million unique students used the Common App during 2024-2025 application season.

There are a number of factors that contributed to the rise of the Common App, but the internet is by far the biggest factor. As colleges started moving away from paper applications (I won't bore you with the story of my tears shed over one paper application that required a written essay with no lines provided on the paper. It's surprisingly difficult to write in straight lines when under pressure), many adopted the Common App as the electronic means for application. Currently, there are over 1,000 colleges that use the Common App for their application portal.

There are a number of advantages to the Common App, including having to enter demographic information just once and submitting one personal statement that goes to all of the colleges to which you are applying. (Keep in mind most colleges still require supplemental essays unique to their institution.)

While the majority of colleges, both public and private, have adopted the Common App, there are a few notable hold-outs.

California Universities

Both the University of California system and the California State University system have their own application portals. While every university within the system uses the same portal, it is entirely separate from the Common App. There are 22 campuses that use the CSU portal and 9 using the UC portal. The California system is one of the last holdouts to not convert to the Common App portal, since the recent adoption of the Common App by the University of Washington and the University of Texas.

Georgetown

Georgetown has been a historic holdout from the Common App, arguing that having its own application portal ensures that students who apply are genuinely interested in Georgetown, rather than just clicking another button on the Common App. However, rejoice Common App lovers, because Georgetown just announced that it will accept the Common App for the coming 2026-27 application season.

That leaves just one prominent holdout...

MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

MIT doesn't explicitly state why it uses its own portal, but it is reasonable to guess that it offers the advantage of adding an extra layer to the application process. As application numbers continue to grow, applications that require extra work often lead people to opt out of applying if they aren't really committed. Regardless of the reason, MIT continues to use its own portal and offers both early action and regular decision.

Coalition for College

The Coalition for College application portal is similar to the Common App, but has a more limited number of institutions that accept the application. There are only 150 colleges who accept the Coalition for College App, compared to the over 1,000 colleges who accept the Common App. However, those who do accept the Coalition App are part of a coalition that pledges to make college affordable for accepted students and ensure assistance to help students successfully complete their college education. They also partner with Scoir, a college planning and preparation tool used by many high schools, making it easy to transfer your information into your application if your school already uses Scoir.

Important things to note:

Even though many college use the Common App for regular decision, it doesn't mean that all applications are the same. Ensure that you are aware of all of the different components that are required for each unique application.
Optional doesn't always mean useless. Many colleges are test optional these days, but that doesn't mean that they won't consider your scores if you submit them. Consider the average test score for accepted students at each university to determine whether your score will be helpful...or whether it is better to withhold your score. If it's helpful, absolutely submit it.

Supplemental essays aren't less important. Students often spend a lot of time carefully crafting their personal statement, only to leave the supplemental essays to the last minute. Colleges, particularly more selective ones, place considerable emphasis on supplemental essays to gauge your interest in their community, as well as what you will bring the student body. Don't treat these like afterthoughts.

Some colleges still have only one application deadline—regular decision. Make sure you know what deadline options are available and be ready to submit when the deadline arrives. (And please don't wait until the last minute when computer systems can crash or get overloaded.)

The Bottom Line: Navigating Regular Decision Like a Pro

While early action and early decision require weighing the benefits and drawbacks about whether that type of deadline is right for you, regular decision is a no-brainer. This is particularly true for college with only one deadline (the University of Washington for example). The key to regular decision is working through the components methodically. While applications aren't accepted until fall, juniors can register for a Common App account and get to work filling in demographic information. For this upcoming application season, Common App has announced that the personal statement prompts will remain the same, so it's easy to start thinking about and crafting your personal statement the summer before your senior year. Working ahead of schedule helps you be ready for regular decision and gives you more time to think through where to apply.