This document explores the relationship between application date and early attrition in access colleges. The author notes that students applying to rolling admission colleges can be registered without demonstrating forethought or preparation. Institutions that allow late admission may be doing a disservice to students who have not adequately prepared for the transition to college. This research examined 785 admissions files of first-time college freshmen at an access college. Data were collected regarding the demographics, characteristics, and academic performance of the students. Using Tinto's model of attrition, three hypotheses were tested: (1) students who apply late have different characteristics from students who apply earlier; (2) students who apply late do not perform as well academically as students who apply earlier; and (3) students who apply late are less likely to re-enroll the subsequent term. The combination of age, sex, high school academic performance, and students' enrollment objective proved to be significant with respect to accounting for variance in students' date of application. Data analysis did not confirm the second hypothesis. The third hypothesis was confirmed; groups of students who applied 3 weeks or less before the beginning of the term had higher percentages of attrition than students who applied earlier. (Contains 44 references and 25 tables.) (Author/RC)