Last Updated: March 16, 2022
Application Deadlines of Colleges in the US
Students who aspire to enroll in prestigious universities and colleges for their program of choice will have to first enquire about the application deadlines of the universities they are applying to. The application deadlines are generally different for different universities though they will all be available in the same window. Candidates will be able to also find specific deadlines when it comes to graduate programs based on the department they are applying to. These deadlines can be different from the general application deadlines mentioned by the university.
Students can apply for programs during the Fall intake, Summer intake, and Spring intake out of which the Summer intake is the least popular. This is mainly because students who have enrolled for other programs will have their summer break during this period and also because universities offer very few programs for this session. The most popular intake session is the Fall intake which has a general regular deadline between January 1 and January 15.
General Application Deadlines
Colleges and Universities in the US generally offer three intakes during the year which are Fall, Spring, and Summer. Out of these three intakes, the Fall intake which takes place from August or September is the most popular one with the maximum number of domestic and international candidates applying for the same. The Spring intake is the next popular one which starts in January. Aspiring candidates will also be able to enroll for programs in the Summer intake though there will only be limited programs during this session.
For each intake, colleges will be offering candidates separate deadlines based on the conditions under which the student accepts admission. The deadlines that are offered include the early decision deadline and regular decision deadline after which there will be another deadline by which accepted candidates can submit all the necessary documents.
- Early Decision Deadline- This deadline is offered by colleges and universities for students who wish to enroll sooner than the regular deadline. But students who join using this deadline will not be able to apply for financial aid. Students who get admitted during this session will have to mandatorily enroll in the program without fail. The early decision deadline for universities and colleges most range between November 1 and 15.
- Regular Deadline- This deadline is the most commonly used deadline by candidates. It comes after the early decision deadline and candidates will be able to apply during the same after they have sought out financial aid. It is not compulsory for candidates who get admitted through this admission to enroll in the university.
Fall Application Deadlines for Universities-UG
The Fall application deadlines and the application fee details for undergraduate programs are as follows-
| University | Early Action Deadline | Regular Decision Deadline | Application Fee |
| Princeton University | November 1 | January 1 | $70 |
| Harvard University | November 1 | January 1 | $75 |
| Columbia University | November 1 | January 1 | $85 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | November 1 | January 5 | $75 |
| Stanford University | November 1 | January 2 | $90 |
| Yale University | November 1 | January 2 | $80 |
| California Institute of Technology | November 1 | January 3 | $75 |
| Duke University | November 1 | January 4 | $85 |
| John Hopkins University | November 1 | January 3 | $70 |
| University of Pennsylvania | November 1 | January 5 | $75 |
| University of Chicago | November 1 | January 4 | $75 |
| Northwestern University | November 1 | January 3 | $75 |
| Brown University | November 1 | January 5 | $75 |
| Cornell University | November 1 | January 2 | $80 |
| Rice University | November 1 | January 1 | $75 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | November 1 | January 3 | $75 |
Fall Application Deadlines for Universities-PG
The Fall application deadlines and application fee details for graduate programs are as follows-
| University | Application Deadline | Application Fee |
| Princeton University | November 15 -January 13 | $75 |
| Harvard University | - | $105 |
| Columbia University | December 15-February 15 | $120 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | November 20-February 15 | $75 |
| Stanford University | January 7 | $125 |
| Yale University | December 15 | $105 |
| California Institute of Technology | January 1 | $100 |
| Duke University | December 1-January 5 | $95 |
| John Hopkins University | - | $75-$125 |
| University of Pennsylvania | February 1 | $90 |
| University of Chicago | - | $75 |
| Northwestern University | - | $95 |
| Brown University | - | $75 |
| Cornell University | January 15 | $105 |
| Rice University | December 31 | $85 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | January 5 | $75 |
Spring Application Deadlines for Universities
| University | Application Deadline |
| Columbia University | November 15 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | November 15 |
| Duke University | December 1 |
| Yale University | May 8/June 8 |
| Northwestern University | January 15 |
| Brown University | October 4 |
| Cornell University | October 15 |
| Rice University | November 1 |
| Carnegie Mellon University | September 15 |
Top Universities in the US
The application details and admission related information for the best universities are as follows-
Princeton University
Candidates who wish to apply for undergraduate programs will be able to either opt for the early decision deadline or the regular deadline. The application deadlines for graduate programs in the university are program and department-specific. Students will be able to receive information regarding their application by the 15th of March irrespective of which department or program they have applied to. Candidates will also submit the acceptance form by April 15.
The earliest deadlines for graduate programs are for classics, neuroscience, and psychology whereas the latest deadlines are for architecture, finance, geosciences, musicology, etc.
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Harvard University
Candidates who wish to apply to Harvard University will be able to apply only for the Fall semester since there is only one intake throughout the year in this university. Candidates must apply for their program of interest as early as possible without waiting for the deadline mentioned. The deadline for undergraduate programs is November 1 for those seeking early admission and it is January 1 for candidates applying through regular admission.
The application deadlines for graduate programs differ from program to program and it is ideal for candidates to consult the official website of the department or the program in question before applying for the program. They will also be able to contact the department directly to know details for the same.
Columbia University
Columbia University has an application process for admission which is based on the program of study the candidate is applying to. But most programs require candidates to submit the documents required well before the deadline after which they will even have an interview. For undergraduate programs, students will be able to apply for the early decision session or regular decision session based on how many colleges they wish to apply to. The deadline to apply for financial aid is November 15 for the early decision session and February 15 for the regular decision session.
Graduate programs have program-specific application deadlines and hence students should consult the respective departments to find the exact deadlines. The general deadline for graduate programs falls between December 15 and February 15.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Candidates will be able to apply as first-year applicants or transfer students based on their academic status. First-year applicants will be able to apply through the early admission session or the regular decision session. The deadline for early action falls on November 1 whereas the deadline for regular admission falls on January 5. Transfer students will have to apply for the respective program before March 15.
Graduate programs have program-specific application deadlines. Candidates will have to enquire about the application deadlines from the department they are applying to. The general deadlines fall between November 20 and February 15.
Stanford University
Candidates who wish to apply to Stanford University will ideally have to apply as soon as possible without waiting for the deadline. The general deadline for undergraduate programs is November 1 for early action and January 2 for regular admission. Admission-related decisions will be released by December 15 for the early decision session and by April 1 for the regular admission session. Students will be able to reply by May 2 for all sessions.
The graduate-level programs offered by the university have deadlines set by the respective departments. The general application deadline set by most departments is January 7.
Yale University
Candidates will be able to apply for programs at Yale University by submitting either the Common Application, the Coalition Application, or the QuestBridge National College Match Application before the set deadline. The deadline for undergraduate programs is November 1 and January 2 for early decision admission and regular admission respectively.
Graduate programs have program-specific deadlines. The general deadline that most programs have is December 15. Students will have a separate deadline for document submission based on the program they are applying to. For some programs, candidates will be required to submit all the documents along with the admission application.
California Institute of Technology
Candidates will be able to apply for undergraduate programs using the early action session and the regular session. The application deadline for the former is November 1 and that of the latter is January 3. The admit reply deadline is scheduled to be on May 1 for all programs.
Graduate programs offered by the university have varying application deadlines based on the program and department the candidate is applying to. Candidates will be able to enquire about the application details by contacting their respective departments. The general deadline provided by most programs is January 1.
Duke University
The Fall semester deadlines for this university vary according to the department the candidate is applying to. Candidates who have crossed the deadline will be able to contact the department or program of their interest to confirm whether they can still send in applications. In case the seats have not been filled they will stand a chance to get admitted to the program of their choice. Most of the programs offer rolling admission at the graduate level in this university.
John Hopkins University
Most of the graduate programs in this university offer admission on a rolling basis which implies that candidates will be admitted to the program according to when they have applied. There will be no set deadline for programs but on the other hand, departments will keep admitting candidates as long as there is a position vacant in the program being offered.
A few programs offer set deadlines in this university. Domestic candidates will be able to apply for such programs either using the early decision deadline provided by the department or the regular deadline. International candidates will have to submit their applications according to the early decision deadline and not the regular deadline.
University of Pennsylvania
The university provides two windows for undergraduate admission. Candidates will be able to either apply during the early action session or the regular decision session. The deadline for the former is November 1 and for the latter is January 5. Candidates will receive the notification regarding their admission decision by mid-December for the early action session and by April for the regular admission session.
Like most universities, the application deadline for graduate programs varies from program to program. The general deadline for graduate programs is February 1.
University of Chicago
The application deadlines for graduate programs in this university are program-specific. Most programs also offer rolling admission which implies that candidates should apply at the earliest preferably as soon as the admissions are open to increasing their chances. Unlike other universities, there will be no separate deadline for document submission and hence candidates must ensure that they have uploaded every document necessary before applying.
Northwestern University
The application deadlines for graduate programs are program-specific. Candidates will have to submit all necessary documents as part of the application since there will be no second deadline for document submission. The deadlines for undergraduate programs are similar to the general trend that other universities follow. Candidates will be able to apply for an early decision session before November 1 and they will be able to apply for the regular intake whose deadline is on January 3rd.
Brown University
Candidates who wish to apply for graduate programs in this university will have to visit the web pages of their respective departments to get the deadline for the program they seek. This is because the deadlines for applications are program-specific and sometimes department-specific in the university. Candidates will be able to directly contact the Director of Graduate study assigned to the program they have opted for to receive more information regarding the same.
Cornell University
While the general deadline for most master’s programs in this university is January 15, students will have to cross-check the same with the department of their choice. This is because the application deadlines vary from program to program and can even be extended based on the number of seats that are vacant for the program. One of the exceptions includes MEng programs whose deadline falls between January 15 and April 1.
Rice University
Graduate programs in this university have their program specifications and application deadlines which are set by their respective departments. The general deadline for graduate programs is December 31. Candidates who are applying for undergraduate programs will be able to apply through the early decision session or the regular decision session.
Carnegie Mellon University
Candidates will be able to apply to this university only using the Common Application which has to be submitted online along with other necessary documents. They will receive a notification regarding the submission of the application within 5 days of applying. Candidates will be able to track their application status by using the same portal.
