May 2026

May 1st is like New Year’s Eve for the college admission cycle. It’s the final day that most seniors have to make their decision on where to go to college. (There are still plenty of places that have late admission after May 1, though.) So Happy New Year to seniors! And juniors? Your cycle begins today.

Congrats to Texas A&M, Umass Amherst, and Northeastern University—you’ve got great students coming your way next year!

—Benjamin

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Here’s What I covered on the website in April:

Thinking about what college means to you. There’s been a lot of hand-wringing and pontificating about the purpose of college lately. The demographic cliff, rising prices, artificial intelligence, school closures, political wrangling, and a shifting economy have got a lot of people talking about the purpose of college and wondering if college is even worth it. So here are 10 other questions to help you think about what college means to you.

Here are some blog posts from the archive that are good for this May:

Common Data Sets. I wish more high school students knew about the Common Data Set. When you’re ready to do a “deep dive” to get to know a college, their CDS is one place where you look.

Four things that juniors should do now, before the end of the school year. Juniors have approximately 51 weeks to complete their own admissions process. An entire year from now may seem like a long time to get it all done. It may seem like a really short time. Wherever you are in the process, there are four things you should do before the end of this school year.

It’s not the choice you make, it’s how you explain it. Context matters, so explaining the context helps you out no matter which choice you make. Explaining your choice moves you away from a passive “tell me what to do” attitude and gives you more agency and control. It also highlights your critical thinking and illuminates your personality.

Here's more great admission news from around the internet:

*Some articles may be behind a paywall.

Ahead of the curve: How schools market to undecided students (US News)

College students weigh AI’s impact on majors and careers (Gallup)

I’m a college admissions counselor. I’ve changed my mind about students using ChatGPT (San Francisco Chronicle)

Do cumminty college baccalaureates pay off? (Inside Higher Ed)

Test-optional admits don’t feel under qualified (Inside Higher Ed)

Families across the U.S. are getting college acceptance rates—and tuition bills (NPR)

These colleges are free. Here’s the catch (Forbes)

The looming college-enrollment death spiral (Atlantic)

The college industry is becoming K-shaped as acceptance rates plummet. What’s happening to admissions? (Fast Company)

These numbers tell a story about the turbulence colleges and universities are facing (Boston Globe)

More than a quarter of private colleges are at risk of closing, new projection shows (Hechinger Report)

The real work before college admissions: Raising resilient teens (Forbes)

How much will that college cost you? Good luck figuring it out (Hechinger Report)

Student wellbeing crisis: What the schools get wrong (Challenge Success)

In college admission, trauma is shorthand for Blackness (NPR)

How college stopped rewarding curiosity (Chronicle of Higher Education)

College students are changing course in search of “AI-proof” majors. But no one knows what they are (Associated Press)