With the passing of Bothell High’s Homecoming and December almost here, the back-to-school rush has finally died down and students seem to have settled into a routine. However, for many seniors, the pressure is still on.

The college-application season has kicked into high gear and many Bothell seniors are beginning to feel the stress of the process. With college research, standardized tests, applications, references and essays, it is hard to keep track of it all. After finishing my application early, I was curious to find out who else had completed the process.

Bothell High senior Jackie Moyer has already started the application process, and has applied to several private schools in Washington.

“I used the Common App,” she says. “I really recommend it because it saves a lot of time.” The Common Application is a free online undergraduate application used at more than 400 colleges across the country. Moyer especially likes the Web-site feature that searches and finds colleges and deadlines.

After looking at colleges last year and over the summer, Moyer is tackling the application and essay portion this semester, leaving the scholarship search for second semester.

However, unlike me, I found many students have not dedicated as much time to the process. I took a survey of about 90 seniors at Bothell, and 97 percent polled responded “yes” to planning on attending additional schooling after high school. Of these students, approximately 90 percent have started some part of the application process. Most seniors have conducted college searches (86 percent) and have taken standardized tests (77 percent).  However, only about 6 percent of the seniors polled have actually started their applications. I was surprised at how few students had actually sent in applications since early admission deadlines are usually in November.

Peace of mind is one of the greatest benefits of early admission; the earlier the acceptance, the less stress involved. For some colleges, other benefits include earlier housing requests.

One of the most daunting aspects of the application process is the essay. Bothell High English teacher Elizabeth Whitfield’s senior classes have written personal statement essays in preparation for the college essay.

“The essays need to be authentic and have a genuine voice,” she explains. “Don’t write what you think they want to read.” So far, she has not visited with many individual students about their essays, but she expects to speak with more of them this month, nearing the common January deadline for applications.

Good luck to all seniors tackling their applications!

Alexandra Graff is a Bothell High senior.