California State University’s application portal, Cal State Apply, has been redesigned with a mobile-first approach and reopened on Saturday, Aug. 1 — two months earlier than in previous years.
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Students applying for the 2027-28 academic year will have more time to complete their applications before the first day of CSU’s priority application period, Oct. 1.
Cal State Apply’s new design modernized the portal, which will reduce the time it takes users to fill out an application, according to a CSU press release. The portal guides users to complete one section before moving onto the next.
“Our goal in reimagining our online application system was to make the experience easier and more intuitive for students and parents,” April Grommo, CSU’s assistant vice chancellor for strategic enrollment management, said in the press release. “We want to meet students where they are, and we know students are on their phones all the time.”
But Alyssa Matthews, a rising senior at Los Alamitos High School, said she isn’t a fan of the new structure.
“If you had Cal State Long Beach on your list, and you were trying to get to San Diego State, you had to scroll through every single major at Long Beach to get to San Diego State,” Matthews said in an interview. “There’s no search bar for universities or majors. You just have to scroll through every single school and every single major until you get there.”
The redesign also took a mobile-first approach that makes the portal compatible with all cell phones. Matthews, who wasn’t aware of the mobile option, said she prefers to complete the application on her computer, where she has tabs open with her other applications.
Matthews logged into Cal State Apply briefly on Monday, Aug. 3, to get a feel for the portal, which allows students to apply to multiple CSUs with one application. She plans to apply to San Diego State, Cal State Long Beach, Cal Poly Pomona and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Opening the portal on Saturday aligns CSU with when other universities open fall applications, including the University of California system. Common App, another portal, launched the 2026-27 application season on Saturday, with more than 1,200 schools.
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“I think it’s nice that you can just, on the same day, go through and look at everything, get an idea of what the application would look like,” Matthews said. “I also think it’s helpful because you can look at it before school starts and before it’s due, so there’s not as much pressure.”
While students can familiarize themselves with the information they need to complete the application, not all sections will be available to fill out until Oct. 1. At that time, the portal will link to CaliforniaColleges.edu, allowing applicants to upload their academic credits. Students cannot submit their applications until CaliforniaColleges.edu has verified their coursework.
“There were a few things that were blocked,” Matthews said. “You could fill out things like your residency or your parents’ information, but I think transcripts were blocked.”
Until the portal connects to CaliforniaColleges.edu, applicants can populate other fields, and research campuses and majors. Prospective students can also navigate the site to learn about CSU campuses and degrees, and admissions requirements and deadlines.
Matthews, though, said she prefers the Common App and UC portals because they are still easier to navigate.
“With Common App, it’s really easy because everything is condensed into your personal information that every school is going to get,” she said. “There’s a separate bar and a drop-down category for each individual school, and then the majors from there, which I think is way better. Same with the UCs.”
CSU’s fall 2027 priority application period closes on Nov. 30. The application fee is $70 per university, but CSU offers a fee waiver for California resident undergraduates. Nearly half of applicants will qualify for the waiver for up to four universities.
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