What Rising Seniors Should Do in July Before Applications Open
The Common App officially opens for the 2026–2027 application cycle on August 1, and we promise that date will arrive MUCH faster than it seems.
For rising seniors, July is the last real stretch of breathing room before senior year begins, and classes, activities, college visits, and applications all start competing for the same hours. Students who use these next few weeks well do not have to spend every minute working on college applications. They just need to begin.
A little progress now can mean walking into the fall feeling calm, organized, and way ahead of schedule. Waiting until September often means trying to write a personal statement between homework, football games, rehearsals, college visits, and everything else senior year decides to throw at you. (We like to say “no trick or treat before you complete”)
Start Your College Essay Drafts
The Common App personal statement prompts are already available, so there is no reason to wait until August to begin.
July is actually one of the best times to work on the essay because there is no deadline breathing down your neck yet. Students have time to try a few different ideas, write something imperfect, step away from it, and come back with fresh eyes. You can also check out our Drop In podcast about essays here.
That is how strong essays are written. Not in one magical sitting. Not at midnight the night before the deadline. And usually not by immediately finding the “perfect” topic.
A good July goal is to explore two or three possible stories and write a rough draft of the one that feels most promising. The essay does not need to be finished by August 1. It just needs to exist somewhere other than inside the student’s head.
And students, please do not panic if the first draft is messy. It is supposed to be. The goal right now is not perfection. It is getting the story out of your head and onto the page so you have something real to work with.
The polishing can come later.
Update the Résumé or Activities List
Every application will ask students to report their activities, honors, jobs, volunteer work, leadership roles, and family responsibilities.
Most students think this section will be quick. Then they sit down to complete it and realize they cannot remember the name of an award, the dates of a summer program, how many hours they worked, or what they actually accomplished in the club they joined three years ago. And suddenly, the “easy section” is not so easy.
July is the perfect time to build or update an activities résumé while there is still room to slow down, gather the details, and think about which experiences actually matter most.
Start with everything from ninth grade forward: clubs, sports, jobs, volunteer work, internships, leadership roles, academic programs, family responsibilities, creative projects, and awards. For each one, write down the dates, time commitment, responsibilities, and what the student specifically contributed. And please do not worry yet about squeezing all of that into the Common App character limit. Start with the full story; it can always be cut down later.
This document will make the Activities section much easier to complete. And if a school asks for an extended résumé, guess what…they already have one finished. Proactivity for the win! Most importantly, remember that an activity does not need a fancy title to matter. A part-time job, caring for a younger sibling, helping with a family business, building something independently, or showing up consistently for a community can tell colleges just as much as a formal leadership position.
The title matters far less than what the student actually did.
Finalize or Rebuild the College List
By now, many students have what they call a college list. Sometimes it is a thoughtful, balanced list based on research and fit. Sometimes it is six famous schools, the university that their best friend loves, and one college a parent added because someone’s neighbor’s child had a wonderful experience there in 2018.
We do not want a panic list in October. Click here to listen to our podcast episode on building a college list with strategy, balance, and actual fit.
Does the list include a healthy mix of reach, target, and likely schools? And are those categories based on the student’s actual academic profile and the college’s current admission data, not just hope, reputation, or what someone heard three years ago?
Does the list reflect what the student actually wants academically, socially, geographically, and financially? Just as important, are there schools throughout the list, including the likely options, that the student would be genuinely happy to attend?
This is also the time to look beyond admission rates. Fit is the goal. Research the majors, curriculum, campus culture, housing, student support, internship opportunities, cost, financial aid, and what students actually do when they are not sitting in class.
Then check every application deadline and supplemental essay requirement. A list of ten colleges can quietly turn into twenty-five additional essays, and that is information we would much rather discover in July than during a full October spiral.
Plan the Remaining College Visits
Summer can be a great time for college visits, especially before fall weekends become completely packed.
Just remember that summer visits may feel a little different because fewer students are on campus. You may not get the full energy of a regular semester, but you can still learn a lot about the campus, the surrounding community, the facilities, and the overall feel of the place.
When you visit, try to go beyond the official tour. Walk through the student center. Read the bulletin boards. Explore the area around campus. Ask where students spend time, what they do on weekends, and where they go when they need help.
And students, please pay attention to how the campus makes you feel.
Can you picture yourself living there? Did anything make you excited? Did anything give you pause? What questions do you still have?
The goal is not to fall in love with every school. The goal is to gather HONEST information and figure out whether you can actually SEE yourself there.
Lock In a Testing Plan
Whether a student plans to submit scores or apply test-optional, July is the time to make a testing plan instead of leaving the question floating around indefinitely.
The first three fall SAT dates are August 22, September 12, and October 3. The first two fall ACT dates are September 19 and October 17. Students who plan to test or retest should register early. Test centers fill up, and nobody needs the added stress of driving an hour and a half before sunrise because every nearby location was already full.
Students should also check the testing policy for every college on their list. Test-optional, test-required, test-flexible, and test-blind are not interchangeable, and colleges may use scores differently.
And please remember: test-optional does not automatically mean “do not submit.”
This decision should be made school by school based on the student’s score, academic record, intended major, the college’s published data, and whether the score strengthens the overall application.
This is a strategy decision, not a group-chat decision or a “my friend’s kid did this” decision.
Follow Up on Recommendation Letters
Students who asked teachers for recommendation letters before school ended can use July to make sure those teachers have everything they need.
That might include a list of deadlines, possible areas of study, and a few specific memories or examples from the teacher’s class that could help them write something more personal.
A brief, warm follow-up is completely appropriate. A daily “just checking in” campaign is not. Teachers are allowed to have summers too.
If a student has not asked yet, now is the time to think carefully about which teachers would be the best fit and prepare to ask as soon as school begins.
And remember, the strongest recommender is not always the teacher who gave the student the highest grade. It is the teacher who knows them well and can speak specifically about how they think, participate, respond to challenges, and contribute to the classroom.
Give recommenders enough time AND context to write something that actually sounds like your student, not something generic they had to rush through in September.
Build an Application Organization System
Once the Common App officially opens on August 1, the number of moving pieces grows very quickly.
Suddenly, there are personal statement drafts, supplemental essays, activity descriptions, application portals, recommendation requests, testing decisions, financial aid forms, and deadlines that somehow all seem to fall on different days.
July is the time to build a system for managing all of it before the application process starts managing you.
That might be a shared spreadsheet, a digital calendar, a folder for each college, or some combination of the three. The perfect system does not matter nearly as much as choosing one the student will actually use.
At minimum, track:
Application deadlines
Application plans, such as Early Decision, Early Action, or Regular Decision
Supplemental essay requirements
Testing policies
Recommendation requirements
Financial aid deadlines
Scholarship deadlines
Portal login information
Application status
Students who build the structure now can spend the fall following a plan. Students who skip this step may spend the fall discovering deadlines approximately seven minutes before they are due.
That is a level of chaos we can absolutely avoid.
Remember, colleges publish their deadlines well in advance. Your kiddo’s procrastination does not suddenly become the college’s emergency.
Do Not Try to Finish Everything in July
Starting early does not mean turning July into one long college application boot camp.
Remember… Students still need rest. They need friends, family, jobs, summer programs, vacations, and at least a few conversations where nobody asks, “So, where are you applying?”
The goal is not to finish the entire application before August 1. The goal is to build a little momentum now so fall feels more manageable later.
A few focused hours each week can make a huge difference. Draft an essay. Update the résumé. Research a couple of colleges. Register for a test. Organize the deadlines.
Then close the laptop and go do something that has absolutely nothing to do with college.
The Bottom Line
July will not feel urgent in the way October will.
That is exactly WHY it matters.
A little thoughtful work now can make the fall feel much more manageable. Students do not need to have every answer, a perfectly polished essay, or their entire future mapped out. They simply need to begin, make a plan, and keep moving forward one step at a time.
Because the college process should be part of senior year. It should not become all of senior year. And it definitely should not take over the entire family.
If you have questions, want to learn more, or want to join our interest list, please click here to request a consultation and we will be in touch soon. We’d look forward to working with you.
