As I have said before, the UGA Admissions office will be going paperless for the 2010 admissions cycle (and all the people cheered!). What this means is that any data sent to our office will be placed into an electronic file for each applicant. If any paper document is sent to our office, it will be scanned into the imaging system, then matched with the applicant’s file. But in our forward thinking office, we have a suggestion for all applicants; When possible, go paperless!
If you apply, do it online through our website. We will still accept paper applications, but here is where reality hits. An online application’s data goes into our system overnight, the data enterred is controlled by you, the applicant, and you can view the status check within the next few days to verify the application. For a paper application, it has to go through the mail, be opened and scanned by our system, shifted to another individual, and then keyed into our system by that person (who may or may not be able to read your handwriting). This is not an overnight process, and may take up to three weeks. Life is much easier with an online application, trust me!
The next steps are to get us your supplemental materials, from test scores (must be sent electronically by the testing agency), a school evaluation, a teacher recommendation (if not admitted Early Action), and a transcript. Of the last three items, the first two can be submitted electronically through the UGA website! Direct your counselor and teacher to our High School Counselor page for access to these online options. If your school officials complete these items online, they are generally posted to your application in 2-3 business days. If sent by mail, especially near a deadline, it could take 2-3 weeks. As you can see, it is mutually beneficial to use the online options, and can save both you and admissions headaches and worries.
And for students in GA, we suggest you send your transcript through GA College 411, as it will be sent electronically, and we can link it to your file much easier.
Overall, online submission is the way to go for UGA, and it will make everyone’s life a great deal easier. Of course, we can always turn this into an environmentally concious slogan; “Send it online, save a tree (or at least a small branch)”.