# College Application Master Tracker  

## Dashboard / How to use  
A one‑stop Notion workspace for high‑school seniors, college counselors, and families to track every moving part of the college‑application process—from school deadlines to scholarship awards. All data lives in seven linked databases, with ready‑made Table, Board, and Calendar views, plus Zapier reminders and a read‑only “Counselor View” you can share with advisors.  

**Quick start**  
1. Duplicate this template into your own workspace.  
2. In the **Colleges** page, add any schools you’re targeting (seed list already included).  
3. Open **Applications** → click “New” to create an application record; link it to a college, essays, recommendations, tests, scholarships, and financial‑aid rows.  
4. Review the auto‑generated roll‑ups (deadlines, status summaries) and adjust your timeline.  
5. Enable the Zapier calendar‑reminder automation (see “Setup” section) and share the “Counselor View” link with your counselor.  

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## Colleges (Master List)  
A master list of every institution you’re considering, with key admission data and deadline dates.  

| College (Title) | Type (Select) | Early Decision (Date) | Regular Decision (Date) | Acceptance Rate (Number) | Notes (Text) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford University | Private | 2024‑11‑01 | 2025‑01‑15 | 4.3% | Strong STEM focus |
| University of Michigan | Public | 2024‑11‑01 | 2025‑02‑01 | 22.0% | In‑state tuition waiver |
| Boston College | Private | 2024‑10‑15 | 2025‑01‑01 | 27.5% | Requires supplemental essay |

> 💡 **Tip:** Use the “Type” select to filter by Private, Public, or International.  

**Preset views** (create in Notion):  
- **Table – All Colleges** (default) – sortable by Acceptance Rate.  
- **Board – By Type** – grouped by Private / Public.  
- **Calendar – Decision Deadlines** – shows both Early and Regular dates.  

---  

## Applications (Your Submission Tracker)  
Each row represents a single application to a college. Relations pull in essays, recommendations, test scores, scholarships, and financial‑aid info. Roll‑ups summarize upcoming deadlines and overall status.  

| Application (Title) | College (Relation) | Status (Select) | Submitted (Checkbox) | Application Deadline (Date) | Essays (Rollup) | Recommendations (Rollup) | Test Scores (Rollup) | Scholarship Offers (Rollup) | Notes (Text) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford – 2025 | Stanford University | In Progress | ☐ | 2025‑01‑15 | 2 Essays (Completed) | 3 Rec (Pending) | SAT 1480 (Submitted) | 0 | Need to upload portfolio |
| UMich – 2025 | University of Michigan | Ready to Submit | ☐ | 2025‑02‑01 | 1 Essay (Completed) | 2 Rec (Completed) | ACT 33 (Submitted) | 1 (Pending) | Apply for merit scholarship |
| Boston College – 2025 | Boston College | Drafting | ☐ | 2025‑01‑01 | 2 Essays (Draft) | 2 Rec (Pending) | SAT 1450 (Pending) | 0 | Schedule interview |

> ✅ **Best practice:** Keep the **Status** select limited to “Drafting”, “In Progress”, “Ready to Submit”, “Submitted”, “Decision Received”.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Applications** (default) – filter by Status.  
- **Board – By Status** – Kanban view to move applications through the pipeline.  
- **Calendar – Application Deadlines** – shows each deadline as an event.  

---  

## Essays (Writing Hub)  
Store every essay prompt, draft version, and final file. Linked to Applications for automatic roll‑up of completed essays.  

| Essay (Title) | Application (Relation) | Prompt (Text) | Draft (File) | Final (File) | Word Count (Number) | Completed (Checkbox) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Statement | Stanford – 2025 | “Describe your intellectual curiosity.” | Draft_v1.docx | — | 650 | ☐ |
| Why Michigan? | UMich – 2025 | “Explain why you want to attend UMich.” | Draft_v2.docx | — | 500 | ☐ |
| Boston College Mission | Boston College – 2025 | “Connect your values to BC’s mission.” | Draft_v1.docx | — | 600 | ☐ |

> 💡 **Tip:** Attach the final PDF to the **Final** column; Notion will preview it directly in the row.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Essays** – sortable by Word Count.  
- **Board – By Completion** – groups Draft vs. Completed.  

---  

## Recommendations (Reference Tracker)  
Track each recommender, contact status, and the letters they submit.  

| Recommender (Title) | Application (Relation) | Relationship (Select) | Requested (Date) | Received (Date) | Letter (File) | Completed (Checkbox) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ms. Laura Chen (Physics Teacher) | Stanford – 2025 | Teacher | 2024‑09‑15 | — | — | ☐ |
| Mr. David Patel (Coach) | UMich – 2025 | Coach | 2024‑09‑20 | 2024‑10‑05 | Letter.pdf | ☑ |
| Mrs. Elena Ruiz (Counselor) | Boston College – 2025 | Counselor | 2024‑09‑10 | — | — | ☐ |

> ✅ **Best practice:** Set a reminder (Zapier step) 7 days after **Requested** if **Received** is still empty.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Recommendations** – filter by Completed.  
- **Board – By Relationship** – Teacher / Coach / Counselor.  

---  

## Tests (Standardized Scores)  
Log every SAT, ACT, AP, or IB score you’ll submit. Roll‑up into Applications to show the highest score per test type.  

| Test (Title) | Application (Relation) | Test Type (Select) | Date Taken (Date) | Score (Number) | Sent to College (Checkbox) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAT 2024 | Stanford – 2025 | SAT | 2024‑10‑12 | 1480 | ☐ |
| ACT 2024 | UMich – 2025 | ACT | 2024‑09‑30 | 33 | ☑ |
| AP Calculus AB | Boston College – 2025 | AP | 2024‑05‑05 | 5 | ☑ |

> 💡 **Tip:** Use the **Sent to College** checkbox to trigger a Zapier “Send email to counselor” reminder.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Tests** – grouped by Test Type.  
- **Calendar – Test Dates** – shows when each test was taken.  

---  

## Scholarships (Funding Opportunities)  
A curated feed of scholarships that match your profile, with deadlines and award amounts. Linked to Applications so you can see which scholarships apply to which schools.  

| Scholarship (Title) | Type (Select) | Deadline (Date) | Amount (Number) | Eligibility (Text) | Applied (Checkbox) | Application (Relation) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEM Excellence Grant | Merit | 2024‑11‑30 | $5,000 | GPA ≥ 3.8, SAT ≥ 1450 | ☐ | Stanford – 2025 |
| Michigan Resident Scholarship | Need‑Based | 2024‑12‑15 | $7,500 | Michigan resident, FAFSA submitted | ☐ | UMich – 2025 |
| Boston College Alumni Fund | Alumni | 2025‑01‑10 | $3,000 | First‑generation college student | ☐ | Boston College – 2025 |

> ✅ **Best practice:** Once **Applied** is checked, a Zapier automation can add the deadline to your Google Calendar.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Scholarships** – filter by Applied.  
- **Board – By Type** – Merit / Need‑Based / Alumni.  
- **Calendar – Scholarship Deadlines** – shows each deadline as an event.  

---  

## Financial Aid (Aid Management)  
Track FAFSA, CSS Profile, and any institutional aid offers. Roll‑ups summarize total aid per college.  

| Aid Record (Title) | Application (Relation) | Aid Type (Select) | Submission Date (Date) | Amount Awarded (Number) | Status (Select) | Notes (Text) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FAFSA – UMich | UMich – 2025 | Federal | 2024‑10‑01 | $8,000 | Pending | Awaiting verification |
| CSS – Stanford | Stanford – 2025 | Institutional | 2024‑10‑15 | $12,000 | Submitted | Need to upload tax docs |
| BC Grant | Boston College – 2025 | State | 2024‑11‑05 | $4,500 | Approved | Renewal required each year |

> 💡 **Tip:** Use the **Status** select to quickly see which aid items need follow‑up.  

**Preset views**:  
- **Table – All Aid** – grouped by Status.  
- **Board – By Aid Type** – Federal / Institutional / State.  

---  

## Counselor View (Read‑Only Share)  
A clean, read‑only embed you can give to your college counselor or family members. It shows only the **Dashboard**, **Applications**, and **Financial Aid** tables, with all other pages hidden.  

1. In Notion, click **Share → Share to web** on the top‑level page.  
2. Enable **Allow duplicate as template** and **Disable editing**.  
3. Copy the public link and embed it anywhere (e.g., on a personal website) using:  

```html
<iframe src="https://www.notion.so/yourworkspace/College-Application-Master-Tracker-XXXXX?embed=true" style="width:100%; height:800px; border:none;"></iframe>
```  

> ✅ **Best practice:** Rotate the public link every semester for security.  

---  

## How to set up in Notion  
1. **Duplicate the template** – Click “Duplicate” at the top‑right of this page to add the whole workspace to your Notion account.  
2. **Convert each Markdown table to a database** – Inside each sub‑page, type `/database` → “Table – Full page”. Paste the table rows; Notion will auto‑create columns.  
3. **Set property types** (as indicated in each header):  
   - Title columns → **Title** (default).  
   - Select columns → **Select** (add options shown).  
   - Date columns → **Date**.  
   - Number columns → **Number** (no decimals).  
   - Checkbox columns → **Checkbox**.  
   - File columns → **Files & media**.  
   - Relation columns → **Relation** (link to the referenced database).  
   - Roll‑up columns → **Rollup** (choose the relation, then the property to aggregate).  
4. **Create the preset views** – For each database, click “+ Add a view”, choose Table / Board / Calendar, name it as listed, and set the grouping/sorting filters.  
5. **Set up Zapier reminders**:  
   - **Zap 1 – Application Deadline Reminder**: Trigger = Notion “New or Updated Database Item” in **Applications** where **Application Deadline** is within 7 days. Action = Google Calendar “Create Detailed Event” (title: “📅 Application due: {{College}}”).  
   - **Zap 2 – Recommendation Follow‑up**: Trigger = Notion “New or Updated” in **Recommendations** where **Received** is empty and **Requested** is 7 days ago. Action = Gmail “Send Email” to recommender.  
   - **Zap 3 – Scholarship Deadline to Calendar**: Trigger = Notion “New or Updated” in **Scholarships** where **Applied** is unchecked. Action = Google Calendar “Create Event” (title: “💰 Scholarship: {{Scholarship}}”).  
6. **Publish the read‑only Counselor View** – Follow the steps in the “Counselor View” section, then share the embed link with your counselor.  
7. **Optional – Duplicate as Template** – In the top‑right menu, choose **Share → Share to web**, toggle **Allow duplicate as template**, and copy the public URL to sell or distribute.  

> 💡 **Tip:** After the first cycle, archive completed applications (move to a “Submitted” board) to keep the active view uncluttered.  

Enjoy a stress‑free college‑application season with a fully wired, premium‑grade Notion system!