by Sabrina Redlingshafer

Superstorm Sandy’s damage to the East Coast caused colleges to extend the Nov. 1 deadlines for early application, early decision and scholarship applicants.

According to The Associated Press, Hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast and transformed into a 5.8-magnitude damaging system, killing 125 people in the United States and leaving a peak of 8.5 million homes and businesses in the northeast without electricity.

Due to the power outages, lost internet and delayed postal service, more than 220 colleges extended their Nov. 1 application deadlines, according to National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC).

Impacted East Coast colleges pushed deadlines back to ensure the colleges could process applications. Many other schools across the nation extended deadlines for applicants living in areas affected by the hurricane.

“The hurricane, obviously because of the power, knocked out schools that were needing to receive applications,” STA college counselor Debi Hudson said. “But [it] also knocked out high schools whose students needed to submit for Nov. 1.”

Senior Elaine Schmidt, applying to a school in Connecticut, was among thousands of applicants whose college process was effected by the storm. She requested to not name the school for privacy reasons.

“The deadlines were extended, but they only wanted the extensions to be used by those who were actually affected by the hurricane,” Schmidt said. “I decided to turn my application in before Nov. 1 regardless of the extension because I didn’t want to take advantage of something that wasn’t intended for me.”

Despite the tragedies from Hurricane Sandy, college admissions offices have been understanding about student’s circumstances.

“We realize that many people are still being affected by power outages and school closings,” Boston College’s Director of Undergraduate Admissions John L. Mahoney said in an online notice. “Most importantly, the Boston College community hopes that everyone will soon be restored to their homes with full power, that all schools will soon be reopened, and that normal routines will return to your lives.”

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan encouraged application extensions, tweeting “it’s the right thing to do.”

Duncan further expressed his encouragement in a Department of Education release.

“Many colleges and universities have recognized the unanticipated difficulties that students are facing in completing their college applications, and some institutions have already extended their deadlines,” Duncan said. “We encourage other institutions to consider being as flexible as possible in the coming weeks to accommodate students whose lives were disrupted by Hurricane Sandy.”

Although most deadline extensions ended mid-November, some colleges remain lenient towards affected students to ensure a fair application process.

“We will also accept late school reports and letters from high school counselors and teachers in order to complete these…applications,” Mahoney said in the Boston College Undergraduate Admissions notice. “Finally, if we can be of assistance in any way…please feel welcome to call Undergraduate Admission. Our thoughts and prayers continue for those who have been affected by this storm.“