We all know that postsecondary planning gets messy once school starts and we can never anticpate everything. Things pop up. Schedules shift. You get pulled into five different directions at once. That’s exactly why July is the best time to map out the foundation of your year. Not every detail — just the big pieces you already know are coming.
Even a rough calendar helps you reclaim your time, see patterns, and avoid having everything land in October (again).
Start With The Scaffold
If you do nothing else, block time now for the key events and deadlines that anchor your year.
Here’s a short list to build from:
Fall
- College rep visits (or a window) – especially schools on many of your students’ lists
- Senior college meetings
- Recommendation writing time (block it off!)
- FERPA forms / transcript release process
- Top Early Action / Early Decision deadlines
- Local college fair dates
- Fall break or testing blackout weeks
- FAFSA Opening (Supposedly October 1)
Financial Aid Night
If your school does one — or wants to — now’s the time to get it on the calendar.
Even better: invite an expert, if possible. Many states have free programs where reps from the DOE, local colleges, or financial aid nonprofits will present for families. They know the FAFSA updates, are familiar with state programs, they’re great with Q&A, and it saves you from having to be the expert on everything.
FAFSA Launch
New timeline this year — block a couple weeks in December or January for FAFSA awareness and support.Even if you’re not running workshops, you’ll want to prep messaging for students and parents.
Classroom Lessons
- Junior kickoff (college search, YouScience, etc.)
- Career interest or pathway planning
- College application basics
- Scholarship essay writing or local aid guides
Even if you don’t know the exact lesson plans yet, pick your ideal weeks so you can start building around them. If you’re taking time in a school day, you’ll need to coordinate with admin and teachers. At all schools, the schedules get filled quickly so better to plan these way ahead.
Pick the Organizing Tool that You’ll Actually use
You can do this in a Google Sheet, a paper calendar, or your school’s master calendar — but if you want a head start, here’s a simple, editable template. This isn’t the most exciting resource, but it may at least help you have a foundation to build on:
Copy This Very Basic Postsecondary Calendar Template (Google Sheet)
It includes:
- A chronological planner with key weeks (samples)
- Space to note priorities by grade level
- Built-in reminders for key financial aid and testing dates
Give Yourself Some Time to Catch-Up
While you’re in calendar mode, take 5 minutes to block a few windows to protect your time, too.
- Rec letter writing time
- “No meeting” hours for admin weeks
- Materials submission
- At least one week with no events after a major deadline
You probably won’t stick to all of it — but even a loose framework helps you say no when everything starts to fill in.
Final Thought
This is the last week of the July Reset — and if you’ve made it this far, even just skimming, I hope it’s helped make fall feel a little more manageable. I know next Sunday is still July but I also know many teachers will be going back to school so switching gears to helping our seniors more directly.
No calendar is perfect. But a good-enough calendar now is 10x better than a blank one in mid-September.
If you want help customizing the template for your school, or just need a second set of eyes on your plan, feel free to reach out:
📬 jeremy@higheredification.org
That’s a wrap for July Reset!
The Fall Roadmap series starts next month — stay tuned for tools, timelines, and templates to carry you through the busiest stretch of the year. Let’s get ready to support our seniors during this exciting but stressful time.