Applying for college 'like looking for a job'
COLUMBIA, S.C. — These are busy days for
The telephone in her small office rings constantly, and students and their parents show up with questions — lots of questions.
Applying to college, never a simple process, has evolved into a costly, confusing journey. There are application fees, standardized-test fees, travel costs to visit a school, application deadlines, essays to write, recommendations to get and federal aid and state residency forms to complete.
"Applying to college is like looking for a job," Loveday said. "It takes a lot, but it's worth it."
The deadline for students applying to
Applying early typically increases a student's chances of getting scholarship assistance and on-campus housing.
Deadlines to apply for regular admission vary widely.
The
The costs start adding up when high-school students apply to several colleges.
A quarter of students apply to only one or two colleges, according to a national survey by
Submitting multiple applications isn't cheap.
Application fees typically range from
Students just getting started now are getting started late, college admissions officials said.
"The process is not where the confusion is," Boyle said. "The students make the assumption that there is no process. They think you go to high school, graduate, go to college. They think it's automatic."
Those students couldn't be more wrong, Boyle said.
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