4 Things to Do Before the Common App Opens on August 1
written by Sy Kim
Every August, two kinds of seniors open the Common App. The first group has a college list, a personal-statement draft, and an organized activities list ready to go. The second group is staring at a blank screen in October, trying to do three months of work in three weeks.
The difference between them isn't talent. It's what they did over the summer.
The Common App opens August 1, which means you have a short, quiet window right now to get ahead before senior-year classes, activities, and deadlines all hit at once. Here are the four things worth doing before that date.
1. Finalize your college list
A strong application starts with a smart list. Aim for 8–13 schools (we hard cap our students at 15), balanced across three tiers:
Reach — admit rates and stats make these a stretch, but they're worth a shot.
Target — your profile lines up with the typical admitted student.
Likely — schools where you're comfortably above the middle and would still be happy to attend.
Use the summer to tour two or three campuses (in person or virtually), and write down what you actually liked and didn't. Those specifics become the raw material for "Why us?" supplemental essays in the fall. Parents: this is a great one to work through together — it keeps everyone aligned on fit and finances before deposits are due.
2. Start your personal statement
The Common App essay prompts are already public, and they don’t change year to year. That means there's no reason to wait.
You don't need a polished draft in July. You need a bad first draft (or maybe second or third) — because a rough draft you can revise beats a blank page you're panicking over in September. Start with a simple brainstorm: list the moments, people, and turning points that shaped how you see the world. The best essays almost always come from one small, specific story rather than a résumé in paragraph form.
Even 30 minutes of brainstorming now can save you a lot of agony later.
3. Build your activities list
Students consistently underestimate the activities list, but admissions officers read it closely — and you only get a few words per entry to make each one count.
Do it now, while the details are fresh:
List every role, club, job, sport, and volunteer commitment.
For each, note your position, hours per week, weeks per year, and then write a description that includes your roles and responsibilities, lessons learned/skills gained, and your impact
Don't forget this summer — job/internships, summer programs, volunteering, research, even hobbies you commit a lot of time to all belong on the list.
When you sit down with the Common App in August, you'll be copying from a finished document instead of straining to remember sophomore year.
4. Lock in your summer and fall testing plan
If standardized tests are part of your strategy, map them out before registration deadlines sneak past:
SAT — August 22 (registration closes August 7)
Additional fall SAT and ACT dates run September through December, giving you room for a retake if needed.
Decide now how many times you'll test and which dates you're targeting, so scores arrive in time for any early deadlines in November.
The bottom line
None of these four things is hard. What's hard is doing them in October while you're also writing supplements, asking for recommendation letters, and keeping your grades up. Summer is a stretch of time when you can do this work calmly — and it's the single biggest predictor of a low-stress fall.
If you'd like a second set of eyes on your college list or a plan to get your essay started, book a summer planning session with LVL Prep. We'll help you walk into August 1 already ahead.