Published December 02, 2023
What’s the Hold Up? The Real Application Processing Timeline
We all love instant gratification. However, the processing applications takes time and involves a lot of waiting around. Here is a peek at the real timeline for how long it takes from the moment you click submit on the Common Application to when NYU receives and processes your application.
Before Submitting Application
Before you submit your application to NYU you will first create your Common Application account. Next, you’ll begin working on the different sections of the Common Application. You will add NYU as a college you plan to apply to via the Common Application. The following day, we will receive some basic information about you (if you choose to allow colleges to get your information when you create your account). We will send you information about applying to NYU and many opportunities we offer.
The Day You Click Submit
You submit your NYU application and application fee on the Common Application website. Then, you receive a confirmation email from Common Application within one business day.
Day 1 After Submitting
The Common Application will send your application information to NYU. Once we receive your information we begin processing your application. We load your application into our databases. Within one business day, we send you an NYU application acknowledgment email. That’s technically Day 2 after submitting, for those that are keeping track.
Day 2 - 10 After Submitting
Our NYU database with generate your unique NYU IDs (net ID and University ID). We share these IDs with you along with instructions for how to set up your NYU account and access your applicant portal. This email is different from the applicant acknowledgment email I referenced above.
Additionally, the Common Application starts to send any school forms submitted on your behalf so far (up to the day before). There is always a delay of one day. Therefore, every day following, Common Application will send NYU any school forms submitted the prior day on your behalf. We will process these and other supporting materials you send as we receive them.
Prior to Decision Release
You will be able to access your applicant portal to view whether or not your application is complete and provide us with additional information. Learn more about your applicant portal in another of my articles. Additionally, you will apply for Financial Aid.
For the remainder of the application processing period leading up to decision release our operations team will continue to work to complete application files. We will continually process documents received via the Common Application, email, postal mail, through our online portals, and directly from testing agencies. As applications complete, our staff will review and begin to make decisions.
Decision Release
Finally, we will send you an email when your decision is ready to view.
You will log in to your applicant portal to view your decision. If you are admitted, you will reply to our admission offer and take the next steps on your NYU journey.
This timeline is in business days (so weekends don’t count) and represents an ideal situation.
You will experience a longer timeline if you submit on the application deadline because our systems take longer to process the high volume. Roughly, about half of our applications are submitted within a day or two of the deadline, so you can imagine the backlog that can create. Additionally, sometimes technical issues arise and this increases the processing time.
The processing time for each application is part of why it is so important for applicants to our artistic programs to apply early. One month before the deadline is what we recommend, but don’t panic if you’ve already “missed” the window. By submitting early, you’ll be able to submit portfolios and schedule auditions by the deadline using your NYU IDs sent in the application acknowledgment email.
Related
How to Approach the Common Application
There’s no wrong way to approach the Common Application, but here’s two different strategies you might want to choose from when you apply to NYU.
Got Questions? The NYU Applicant Portal Has Answers
You submitted your application. Now what? Jasmine has some advice on how to check the status of your application and provide important updates.
Submitting a Transfer Application to NYU
Everything you need and everything you need to know about the transfer process.