Free 90-day planning resource

College application deadlines, SAT & ACT dates

A practical calendar for September 7 through December 7, 2026—with official testing dates, financial-aid openings, application guidance, and room for every college-specific deadline.

24 verified dates90-day windowPrintable + digitalUpdated Sept. 7, 2026
Download printable PDFAdd dates to your calendar (.ics)
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There is no universal college application deadline.

Common App confirms that each college chooses its own plans and deadlines. Dates marked as application checkpoints below are reminders—not promises that a particular school is due that day. Verify the application, financial-aid, portfolio, audition, scholarship, and testing requirements for every college directly.

Calendar view

The next three months at a glance

Blue and red dates come from College Board and ACT. Green dates cover financial aid. Purple and gold dates are application guidance and planning checkpoints.

SATACTFinancial aidApplicationsPlanning checkpoint

September 2026

  10. Build college deadline tracker
  11. ACT Oct. registration
  12. SAT test day
  14. ACT Sept. final deadline
  15. Request school materials
  18. SAT Oct. registration
  19. ACT test day
  22. SAT Oct. late deadline
  29. ACT Oct. late deadline

October 2026

  1. 2027-28 FAFSA opensCSS Profile opens
  3. SAT test day
  6. ACT Sept. initial scores
  12. ACT Oct. final deadline
  15. Earliest Common App deadline
  17. ACT test day
  20. Audit November applications
  23. SAT Nov. registration
  27. SAT Nov. late deadlineACT Oct. initial scores

November 2026

  1. Early-application checkpoint
  6. ACT Dec. registration
  7. SAT test day
  15. Second early checkpoint
  20. SAT Dec. registration
  24. SAT Dec. late deadline
  29. ACT Dec. late deadline

December 1-7, 2026

  1. Priority-aid checkpoint
  5. SAT test day
  7. ACT Dec. final deadline
Detailed timeline

What each date means

Official dates link back to the organization that publishes them. Recommended checkpoints are intentionally labeled.

Planning checkpointRecommended checkpoint

Build a college-by-college deadline tracker

Record each college's application plan, application deadline, financial-aid deadline, portfolio or audition requirement, and testing policy.

ACTOfficial date

Regular registration deadline for the October 17 ACT

The late-registration period follows and requires an additional fee.

Verify with ACT
SATOfficial date

SAT test day

The registration and late-registration deadlines for this administration have passed.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

Photo-upload and standby deadline for the September 19 ACT

ACT lists this as the final photo-upload and standby deadline for the September administration.

Verify with ACT
Planning checkpointRecommended checkpoint

Request recommendations and transcripts

Give counselors and teachers time to meet the earliest deadline on your college list.

SATOfficial date

Regular registration deadline for the October 3 SAT

College Board lists September 22 as the late-registration, change, and regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

ACT test day

National Saturday ACT administration in the United States, U.S. territories, and Puerto Rico.

Verify with ACT
SATOfficial date

Late-registration and change deadline for the October 3 SAT

Additional fees may apply. This is also the regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

Late-registration deadline for the October 17 ACT

ACT charges a late fee after the regular registration deadline.

Verify with ACT
Financial aidOfficial date

2027-28 FAFSA available to everyone by this date

Federal Student Aid says the 2027-28 form will be available to everyone by October 1, 2026. State and college priority deadlines may be much earlier than the federal deadline.

Verify with Federal Student Aid
Financial aidOfficial date

CSS Profile application season begins

CSS Profile opens each year on October 1. Only some colleges require it, and each participating institution sets its own deadline.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

Initial score release for the September 19 ACT

ACT says scores are generally released over approximately two to four weeks; this is the listed initial release date.

Verify with ACT
ACTOfficial date

Photo-upload and standby deadline for the October 17 ACT

Final listed photo-upload and standby deadline for this administration.

Verify with ACT
ApplicationsOfficial date

Earliest supported first-year fall deadline for a Common App member

This is not a universal college deadline. Common App states that it will not support a first-year fall admission deadline earlier than October 15; verify every college in your dashboard.

Verify with Common App
ACTOfficial date

ACT test day

National Saturday ACT administration in the United States, U.S. territories, and Puerto Rico.

Verify with ACT
Planning checkpointRecommended checkpoint

Audit every November application

Confirm supplements, recommendations, transcripts, test-score preferences, portfolios, and financial-aid requirements for every school with a November deadline.

SATOfficial date

Regular registration deadline for the November 7 SAT

College Board lists October 27 as the late-registration, change, and regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
SATOfficial date

Late-registration and change deadline for the November 7 SAT

Additional fees may apply. This is also the regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

Initial score release for the October 17 ACT

ACT says scores are generally released over approximately two to four weeks; this is the listed initial release date.

Verify with ACT
ApplicationsRecommended checkpoint

Common early-application checkpoint

November 1 is common, not universal. Submit only when your college lists this deadline, and verify the exact local-time cutoff and required materials in your application portal.

ACTOfficial date

Regular registration deadline for the December 12 ACT

The December ACT test day falls just outside this calendar's three-month window.

Verify with ACT
ApplicationsRecommended checkpoint

Second early-application checkpoint

Some colleges use mid-November deadlines. Check each institution directly; this date is a planning checkpoint, not a universal deadline.

SATOfficial date

Regular registration deadline for the December 5 SAT

College Board lists November 24 as the late-registration, change, and regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
SATOfficial date

Late-registration and change deadline for the December 5 SAT

Additional fees may apply. This is also the regular-cancellation deadline.

Verify with College Board
ACTOfficial date

Late-registration deadline for the December 12 ACT

ACT charges a late fee after the regular registration deadline.

Verify with ACT
ApplicationsRecommended checkpoint

Priority and merit-aid deadline checkpoint

Some colleges attach scholarships, honors programs, or priority consideration to December deadlines. Verify each school; this is not a universal deadline.

ACTOfficial date

Photo-upload and standby deadline for the December 12 ACT

ACT also lists December 7 as the online device-readiness deadline for students testing on their own approved device.

Verify with ACT
Beyond the date

Track the materials that make an application complete.

A submitted form is only one part of the process. Use the blank tracker in the PDF to record each institution’s exact requirements.

  • Application: personal statement, college supplements, activities, honors, and additional information.
  • School documents: transcript, school report, counselor recommendation, teacher recommendations, and later the midyear report.
  • Testing: test-optional policy, self-reported scores, official score reports, and English-proficiency requirements where applicable.
  • Financial aid: FAFSA, CSS Profile when required, state forms, institutional forms, and scholarship applications.
  • Program requirements: portfolios, auditions, interviews, resumes, prerequisite courses, or honors-college essays.
Primary sources

Official pages used for this calendar

Testing and aid dates can change. Recheck the linked source before acting on a deadline.

College BoardSAT Dates and DeadlinesOpen official source ↗ACTACT National Test Dates and DeadlinesOpen official source ↗Federal Student AidFilling Out the FAFSA FormOpen official source ↗College BoardAbout CSS ProfileOpen official source ↗Common AppFirst-year application deadline guideOpen official source ↗Common AppCollege admission guiding principlesOpen official source ↗