CollegeVine College Essay Team November 17, 2025 5 11th Grade,12th Grade,Applying to College

When Do College Decisions Come Out? 2026 Dates

What’s Covered:

• When Do College Decisions Usually Come Out?
• Decision Notification Dates at Top Colleges
• When Do Financial Aid Awards Come Out?
• Can Colleges Rescind Acceptances?
• What if You’re Rejected From Your Dream School?

Whether you’re waiting for your decision or wondering about the general college applications timeline, this post will let you know what to expect. We also include the decision notification dates in 2026 at the top research universities and liberal arts colleges.

When Do College Decisions Usually Come Out?

Your decision notification date depends on the application timeline you chose.

If you applied Early Decision or Early Action, with deadlines typically in October or November, you should receive an admissions decision around mid-December.

 If you applied Early Decision II or Early Action II, with deadlines typically at the beginning of January, you should get an admissions decision by mid-February.

If you applied Regular Decision, with deadlines usually at the beginning of January, you should get an admissions decision from mid-March through early April. There are also a handful of top schools that send likely letters to especially strong applicants from the Regular Decision round. These letters come around mid-February and let students know that they are very likely to be accepted.

Finally, if your school has Rolling Admissions, you may get your decision as early as a few weeks after submitting your application. These colleges review applications as they come in and release decisions in waves.

To gain a better understanding of the different admission cycles, check out our article: EA, ED, REA, RD: What’s the Difference?

Decision Notification Dates at Top Colleges

Now that you have a better sense of the general deadlines and notification dates, here are the specific dates at top schools.

Research Universities

Liberal Arts Colleges

When Do Financial Aid Awards Come Out?

Your financial aid award should arrive with your acceptance or a few days afterward. If you’ve been accepted but haven’t received your financial aid package, check your acceptance packet or the school’s portal to make sure you didn’t overlook an offer.

If you can’t find any financial aid information after a few days of being accepted, call the financial aid office. If you applied Regular Decision, the decision notification date is usually around one month before deposit day, so you want to ensure you have all the information you need to make your decision as soon as possible.

If you’re unhappy with your financial aid package when you get it, remember that you can negotiate. Read our guide to negotiating financial aid for more information.

Can Colleges Rescind Applications?

Yes, colleges can rescind acceptances in certain circumstances. Colleges reserve the right to deny a student admission if the student’s academic performance significantly decreases or if the student engages in behavior that violates the school’s code of conduct.

In addition, a student’s acceptance may be rescinded by a college if it is discovered that they submitted false information on their application, such as a fake transcript or SAT scores.

Colleges usually don’t rescind acceptances, however, unless something has gone significantly wrong. If your grades dropped a little (for example, you had all A’s and got a B or two), you don’t need to sweat it.

What if You’re Rejected From Your Dream School?

If you applied to super-selective colleges, remember that the vast majority of applicants will be rejected. While it may give you solace that others are in the same boat, it doesn’t take away the sting of not getting into the dream college you worked so hard to get into. 

College admissions decisions can feel really personal and make you wonder whether you just weren’t “good enough.” The truth is that applicants meet the standards at top schools, but there just aren’t enough spaces, so schools have to prioritize what they need in their community. For example, maybe they need more philosophy majors, tuba players in the orchestra, or students who will likely join the eco club. 

It’s okay to be upset and disappointed by your decision; take the time you need. But make sure you also take a good look at the schools that accepted you and start imagining what your college life could be like there.

If you’re looking for support or guidance as you get your decisions back, check out our Q&A forum, where you can ask questions and start discussions with peers.