Applications are live!

We Admit it!  We have been enjoying our summer in Williamsburg. From watching fireworks by the Governor’s Palace, to witnessing Coach Jill Ellis ’88 win her second consecutive World Cup, and facing off in the annual summer kickball championship against the senior interviewers: this has been a summer for the record books.

But speaking of kicking, today (August 1st) we will be officially kicking off the 2019-2020 admissions cycle! It’s time to close one chapter and open a new one. For those who have been asking, yes this is the moment you have been waiting for: you can officially start your applications today. Both the Common Application and the Coalition Application are now live. Transfer applicants must apply using the Common Application and that application is now also live.

Anytime between today, August 1, and our application deadlines (detailed below), you are welcome to apply for admission to William & Mary. We hope that all of you reading this decide to apply, so that we can learn more about you.

We want to make it as easy for you as possible. Once you create an account on either the Common Application or the Coalition Application, you will complete the necessary sections of the application, and will then be able to submit either application to all colleges and universities who currently accept their application for admission, William & Mary included.

William & Mary also has specific supplemental questions which you will need to complete in order to submit your application. You will gain access to these questions once you add William & Mary to your list of schools to which you are applying on either the Common Application or the Coalition Application.

In honor of applications going live, here are some tips/reminders:

• Whether you choose to use the Common Application or the Coalition Application your application will be read the same way. Feel free to use the one which is the most convenient for you, but be sure you only submit one application!
• William & Mary operates with a few important application deadlines. Again, you are welcome to apply at any point between today and the below deadlines, depending on what admission process you elect to pursue:

For Freshmen

Early Decision I (binding admission) – November 1, 2019

Early Decision II (binding admission) – January 1, 2020

Regular Decision – January 1, 2020

For Transfers

Spring 2020 Transfer Admission – November 1, 2020

Fall 2020 Transfer Admission – March 1, 2020

Notes:

• The date on which you officially submit your application has no bearing on whether or not you will be admitted, as long as you submit your application in advance of the above listed application deadlines. This is to say that whether you apply to W&M on August 1 or December 30 for Regular Decision admission, you will be given the same consideration for admission.
• We encourage you to complete your application sooner rather than later! Senior year can always be a bit hectic, so it is in your best interest to get as much of your college application(s) done before the school year gets increasingly busy.
• You can submit your application for any application deadline at any point. For example, just because you are a freshman applicant who applies by October 15, this does not mean that you are locking yourself into being considered as part of the Early Decision (binding) process. There is a specific form that you need to complete along with your Common Application in order to be reviewed during our Early Decision process. So if you want to apply as part of the Regular Decision process, but also want to submit your application early, you may do so at any point between now and January 1. If you are a transfer applicant and have questions about when to apply, we encourage you to reach out to Dean Whitney Pitschke.
• We begin processing submitted applications in the fall. In other words, if you apply to W&M sometime in August, you will likely not be hearing from us regarding the receipt of your application until the fall. Once we begin processing applications you will receive an email from us letting you know that we have downloaded your application. You will receive a second email once we have successfully “matched” your application with all required components – transcript, tests scores, etc. Should any required component of your application be missing, you will hear from us via email. As long as you have submitted your application by one of our application deadlines, we will work with you to make sure it is successfully completed.
• Regarding the W&M supplemental questions, we strongly encourage you to complete the final “Optional Essay.” Whether you apply to W&M or other great colleges and universities, these writing components of the application provide admission committees with a better opportunity to get to know you. So, in short, when completing your college applications, we would encourage you to complete all writing components of those applications.
• Should you ever have any questions about applying to W&M, you are welcome to contact our office. Similarly, should you experience technical difficulties while completing your application, you are welcome to contact the Common Application or the Coalition Application directly.

One last additional (related) update – most of our fall visit programs also “went live” today! Specifically, you are now able to register for Fall Focus Days, STEM Panels, Tribe Shadow Days, and fall information sessions and tours. Tribe Transfer Days, Class Visits, and fall Senior Interviews will go live on September 1.

We are ready for another exciting and rewarding admission season, and are very much looking forward to working with all of you in this upcoming year. Go Tribe.

Jack Zhang
Assistant Dean of Admission