While most colleges have Early Action (EA) deadlines in November, some such as Georgia Tech have October deadlines. Early Action is non-binding; you are not required to attend the college or university if you are accepted.
Meeting the October deadline involves completing the application, whether it’s the school’s own application, the Common Application, or the Coalition application, writing compelling essays, and crafting your list of activities. You’ll need to supply supplemental materials that might include additional essays, teacher references, a transcript, SAT or ACT scores (most colleges are test optional for Fall 2021 applicants, but if you scored well, it can be to your advantage to submit them,) and possibly more.
If you are applying for financial aid, the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) becomes available on October 1. Don’t delay too long in filling it out to have the best chance to receive aid.
Here is a list of colleges and universities with Early Action October deadlines. There may be other colleges not included in this list. Be sure to check with the colleges you are applying to for their deadlines.
Georgia College-Deadline: Oct. 15
Georgia Tech (Georgia students only)-Deadline: Oct. 17; Early Action 2 (Non-Georgia students only)-November 1
Texas A&M-Deadline: Oct. 15 for Engineering majors only
Transylvania University-Deadline: Oct. 31
University of Georgia-Deadline: Oct. 15.
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill-Deadline:Oct 15
University of South Carolina-Deadline: Oct. 15
Westmont College-Early Action I: Deadline: Oct. 15
If you are applying EA to one of these schools, do not wait until the last minute to submit your application. You do not want to encounter computer problems, or find an error in your application that you need time to fix.
If you are overwhelmed, stressed, or confused about the college application process, contact us for expert help from a college counselor with years of experience who knows how to make your application stand out from the competition.