Deadlines & Requirements in Comparative Reports

The Deadlines & Requirements tab, and the pre-loaded “Admissions Requirements Comparative Report” are designed to help you make clear comparisons between the application and admissions requirements at multiple colleges and universities at one time. 

We provide multiple sources for admissions policies and considerations because each source includes some unique data, and updates on different schedules. We want to provide you with the most comprehensive options. Please note that these sources are not all updated on the same schedule, which can lead to conflicting data depending on the source. It is always worthwhile to check the admission's website for the current policy for the application year for your student.

Application Requirements

Application Requirements data hand-sourced from college admissions departments by our team for 250 of the top colleges and universities are available in the Deadlines & Requirements tab in Comparative Reports.

• Application Type(s) Accepted
  • A comma-delimited list of application types accepted including the Common App, Coalition App, and/or any other application type accepted by the school.
• Transcript Required
  • This is for the Official School Transcript. The "Other Requirements Category may include details on other transcripts that are accepted.
• Test Score Policy
  • This is the Test Score Policy for the 2025-26 admissions cycle.
• Essay(s)
  • The number of essays required (if any)
• Letter(s) of Recommendation
  • The number of letters of recommendation required (if any) as well as the acceptable sources.

• Other Requirements

  • Other noteworthy requirements found during data collection. This field often shows other transcript types accepted.

   

Admissions Considerations 

The Common Data Set (CDS) provides survey answers on an importance scale with the following values: 

• Not considered
• Considered
• Important
• Very Important

These are the fields included in this data set:

• Alumni Relation

• Application Essay

• Character/Personal Qualities

• Class Rank

• Demonstrated Interest

• Extracurricular Activities

• First Generation

• Geographical Residence

• GPA

• Interview

• Racial/Ethnic Status

• Recommendation(s)

• Religious Affiliation

• Rigor of School Record

• Standardized Test Scores

• Talent/Ability

• Volunteer Work

• Work Experience

Admissions Policies

The Admissions Policies data is sourced from the IPEDS (US Department of Education) survey and can have the the following values: 

• Yes/No (select fields)
• Not considered for admission, even if submitted
• Not required for admission, but considered if submitted
• Required to be considered for admission

These are the fields included in this data set:

• College-preparatory program

• Formal demonstration of competencies

• Full-time, first-time students required to live on campus

• High School GPA

• High School Rank

• High School Record

• Open Admission Policy

• Recommendations

• Admissions test scores

• TOEFL

• Other Test

Admissions Requirements Comparative Report

This template has data sourced from CollegePlannerPro users to determine which fields are most important when comparing colleges on application requirements and deadlines. This template provides a great starting place for users who are uncertain which fields to include, or who would like a starting point to build a more customized template. Once you load the template, you can click "Manage Data Columns" to add or remove columns that fit your needs.

Limitations

Updates to the fields can be made in the Comparative Reports, but these updates will not be reflected elsewhere in the data. For example, deadline updates here will not reflect in the Application Outlines, and vice-versa. This should be used more for a side-by-side comparison of requirements for schools under consideration, or as a tool to replace the Application Outline. Comparing these two areas side by side will not show the same information.