You can always tell when college application deadlines are near. Students seem a bit more stressed out than usual, there a huge lines in the consoler’s office, and, like clockwork, Montgomery College holds its ever-popular Transfer Day event in the Rockville campus main gym. On Wednesday, Feb. 27, the PE building was packed with students eyeing prospective colleges and representatives from said colleges looking to recruit for the fall.
From UMBC to Morgan State to American University, the colleges represented were as diverse as the students at MC. Regardless of preferred class size or field of study, there was a high likelihood that at least one of the colleges on-hand would fit the bill.
Advice from each representative was equally diverse, ranging from keeping a close eye on your GPA to building a strong report with each of the college’s admissions office.
One seemingly obvious tip from a lot of representatives was to not delay the application process. “Apply early,” Towson University representative Brian Leak, whose deadline was Feb. 1, said. “You definitely want to be on top of things, and do your research early so that you don’t fall behind and don’t miss any important deadlines.”
Sounds simple enough, right? Fill out a form, send a transcript, and voila! You’re accepted.
But not so fast. There are a myriad of details involved that a lot of first-time applicants don’t always consider. From housing and transportation to scholarships to credit transfers, there are a ton of smaller steps necessary to the application process, a lot of which must be taken care of as early as a year in advance.
A large percentage of attendees shared this sentiment. A good chunk of the students knew what or where they wanted to study, but not necessarily how to make it happen. “I’m mostly interested in doing agricultural engineering, so I’m probably just going to be looking around [University of Maryland],” Eduardo Martinelli said. “I really don’t know [about applying], but I’m going to keep on looking around and get some more information.”
Some schools, like the Universities at Shady Grove (which include UMBC, Towson, and University of Maryland, among others), make the credit transfer process easier than transferring out-of-state. “We have articulation agreements with Montgomery College, so it’s pretty straight-forward in terms for students to transfer from MC,” UMCP Criminal Justice rep. Diann Sanderson said. “Generally, any course that students can take here at MC for credit is transferable in some way. It may not meet the requirement that it met here at MC in terms of courses specific to the major, but if nothing else it will come in as elective credit.”
While application deadlines vary by college, according to “University Language,” the earlier you apply, the better your odds are of being accepted. Whether you have a few colleges in mind or are currently in the process of applying, University Language strongly recommends getting your applications in by Friday, Mar. 1. “Some [colleges] may continue to accept applications even later [than May 1], depending on how many open slots remain. However, virtually all rolling admissions schools recommend that you get your application in by March 1 or earlier to have the best chance at being accepted.”
