Procrastination is no longer an option. The countdown to submit college applications has begun for the class of 2014 and the graduating class is in a race to receive acceptance.

Senior Raven Glenn said that she feels stressed about submitting her application on time.

“I definitely feel as though I’m in a race,” Glenn said. “If anything stresses me out, it’s the pressure of thinking that if I don’t submit my application first, I won’t get in.”

Other seniors feel stressed for different reasons. Senior Daelen Patterson said that the amount of time it takes to complete the application process in combination with the various required expenses are problems she has faced this year.

“Applying to college has taken time away from my school life because it can take up to four hours to apply to one college and scholarships for that college,” Patterson said. “Because the applications sometimes cost up to $70.00, I have to work more hours to pay for them and then I don’t have time for homework. I also have to worry about my SAT scores being high because I’m in the top 50 percent. The competition is really stressful.”

Patterson is not the only senior who says stress has been added to her school year. Leah Piper said that she also feels the added stress due to the many college applications she has to fill out.

“The applications are fairly simple,” Piper said. “The waiting and anticipation of acceptance is what makes me nervous.”

There are steps students can take to get organized in advance such as signing up for SAT study questions or researching different colleges. It is also helpful for students to have back-up plans in case they do not get into the college of their choice. English IV teacher Lisa Fletcher said that getting an early start is a good way to prevent future stress.

“Thinking about colleges should start long before a student’s senior year,” Fletcher said. “The vocabulary of the SAT alone requires a student to be familiar with hundreds of difficult words. One tip is to sign up for College Board’s question of the day. If students start this practice when they are freshman they will not be so overwhelmed later.”

To sign up for College Board’s question of the day visit http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/sat-question-of-the-day.