As October comes to a close, so does another chapter of senior year. As most seniors know, October is Michigan’s college month, where most application fees are waived for schools instate. This means, most of our seniors have already applied to colleges.
Over the course of the last week, we’ve been checking in with students and have identified three general groups within the class of 2026:
- “Ahead of the game” seniors: people who have been preparing for at least three months;
- “Right on time” seniors: people who put together their applications this fall and have submitted most, if not all, of them; and
- “Submitting at 11:59” seniors: people who find their stride in what must be chaos.
Group one is represented by Janiya Powell. Powell is ahead of the game. She was working on her essay all the way back in sophomore year, gathering information on the colleges she was applying to, and was ready to press submit pretty much as soon as October 1st hit.
In reference to this, Powell said, “I think I put too much pressure on myself early on when I should’ve been focused on my grades and resume.”
Group two is represented by Jaidyn Wallace. Wallace is a senior right on time. She wrote her essay in her senior English class, filled out her applications in mid-October, and is generally right on track for senior year.
“Since I used Common App, the process was pretty easy,” Wallace said. “Doing my essay in October definitely had me a bit stressed, especially with the FAFSA, but overall it wasn’t too stressful.”
Group three is represented by Payton Heystek. Heystek is a senior behind. She wrote her essay in her senior English class, created her Common App account in the third week of October, and is self-proclaimed behind. She admits her tardiness, however also proclaims that her applications will be turned in by 11:59 on October 31st.
“So actually, I still haven’t looked at it,” Heystek said. “I know I should, and I will soon enough, but for right now that’s a later me problem. That being said, I’m still pretty stressed because it’s not done.”
Now, all in all, I’m not recommending one path or another, all of them have their merits and their faults. Maybe for some, the very prepared style of group one is preferred, whereas someone else may prefer the laid back style of group three. I believe that most seniors fall into group two, at least that’s where I’m sitting. The point is, it doesn’t matter how they got there, getting their applications in and moving onward into senior year is an accomplishment to be celebrated. Happy college month, seniors! Good luck!
