Application Overview

The University of Notre Dame offers three secure online applications for first year applicants:

Please note that after your application is submitted electronically, letters of recommendation and transcripts can still be sent to complete your application.

First-Year vs. Transfer Applicants

First-year admission is defined as appropriate for those students in high school or who have graduated from high school but have not attempted college coursework after high school graduation.

If you have graduated from high school and have attempted college work post-high school graduation, you will now be considered a transfer applicant. Please see our transfer admission requirements. Special exceptions may be made for those in military service and such applicants should inquire with their area admissions counselor.

For transfer admission, if you have attempted college coursework post-high school graduation, you must obtain 24 credits and completed one full year of academic coursework at an accredited four-year institution.

The Notre Dame Writing Supplement: We want to meet the real you.

We require applicants to submit the Notre Dame Writing Supplement in addition to the Common Application or Coalition Application. This form is available to registrants of either website and is submitted with the application. It must be submitted online.

The writing supplement gives us an opportunity to get to know you in a more personal way outside of your stats. So, let your personality shine, take risks, and remember that there is no right answer.

The University of Notre Dame Writing Section consists of responses to one (1) short essay question and three (3) short-answer responses to questions you select from the options provided.

Short Essay

Please provide a response to the following question. The word count is a maximum of 150 words.

Short Answer

Please choose three questions from the options below. Your response to each short-answer question should be between 50-100 words.

Application Checklist

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions must have all of the following items before beginning application review:

NOTE: If you are an international student, please visit the International Admissions pages for additional instructions and information.

Regarding Deadlines

Submit the online version of the Common Application (with the Notre Dame Writing Supplement) or the Coalition Application (the writing supplement is included within the application) no later than November 1 for Restrictive Early Action or January 3 for Regular Decision.

We reserve the right to make a decision on your application based on the materials that we receive. Be sure to pay careful attention to your applicant status portal and monitor your email as well. We send regular communications to students with incomplete applications.

Note that we will continue to accept required supplemental application materials past the application deadline (i.e., letters of recommendation, test scores), but encourage students to submit documents as soon as possible so that we may take all important information into consideration during our review.

Don't Lose These Dates

Print them off, mark your calendars, set reminders on your devices.

McKenna Hall
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame , IN 46556 USA Phone 574-631-7505 Fax 574-631-8865 admissions@nd.edu