Senior Nina Hua sits at her desk working on her college applications. As the clock ticks, a second is lost while college application deadlines loom near. She reaches the end of her application and clicks send.

Though many students may be worrying about these applications, Hua is not one of them. Planning to apply to a total of seven universities, including the University of Notre Dame, Hua has been working on her college applications since the summer.

“[I] started during mid to late summer,” Hua said. “I did my Texas essays first so I could worry about my out-of-state ones for later. I started early because I knew I had a lot of AP classes and SAT chem to study for.”

Although she started in the summer, Hua said she did not begin the process early enough.

“I made the mistake of not looking into out-of-state colleges earlier,” she said. “There were some private schools such as Notre Dame that I would have never thought I would make it to, but after discussing with my cousin, I do have a chance just like everyone else.”

Mistakes are often made throughout the process of college applications.

Other students, such as senior Kelly Dang, feel confident when it comes to something as important as college applications.

“I’m not sure about mistakes,” Dang said. “I’m pretty positive I have most of my stuff right because these college applications are important to me, so I wouldn’t mess up on them.”

Dang feels content with her applications, explaining how she felt when she started them at the beginning of the school year.

“I feel pretty content with them,” Dang said. “I feel that college applications can sound very intimidating but when you get to it, it’s not so bad at all.”

Even though many students may seem secure with their applications, college counselor Sara Tones notes a common mistake she often sees with college applications.

“One mistake that happens is filling out your name, like if there’s a nickname you go by,” Tones said. “Using the same name that’s on your school documents is important. Sometimes they get lost if you use the wrong name.”

Even underclassmen have already been preparing for what is waiting for them in senior year.

“I’m not ready to go to college yet, it’s a world where you’ve got to begin to be independent,” junior Jolie Hong said. “Right now I’m looking into a couple college requirements that’s in the state. I’m more focused on achieving a high SAT score during my junior year.”

For junior Ana Espaderos, every item in the application is significant.

“I feel like it’s really long, I see how many seniors are stressed out about deadlines,” Espaderos said. “However, I feel like every part of the application is important because although it may be long there may be some part of the application that makes you stand out.”

College applications include a number of steps. All applications are different, some may include essays and supplements, while others may only require the application.

“College apps may seem freaking scary at first,” Hua said. “Do your essays early, edit them, talk to your counselor, maintain your academic and extracurricular stuff, and this process should be easy.”