• Computer Science > Computation and Language [Submitted on 23 Jan 2026] Title:Large Language Models for Assisting American College Applications View PDFAbstract:American college applications require students to navigate fragmented admissions policies, repetitive and conditional forms, and ambiguous questions that often demand cross-referencing multiple sources. • We present EZCollegeApp, a large language model (LLM)-powered system that assists high-school students by structuring application forms, grounding suggested answers in authoritative admissions documents, and maintaining full human control over final responses. • The system introduces a mapping-first paradigm that separates form understanding from answer generation, enabling consistent reasoning across heterogeneous application portals. • EZCollegeApp integrates document ingestion from official admissions websites, retrieval-augmented question answering, and a human-in-the-loop chatbot interface that presents suggestions alongside application fields without automated submission. • We describe the system architecture, data pipeline, internal representations, security and privacy measures, and evaluation through automated testing and human quality assessment. • Our source code is released on GitHub (this https URL) to facilitate the broader impact of this work.
Article Summaries:
- Summary
A new system called EZCollegeApp uses large language models to help high‑school students navigate the complex U.S. college application process. The tool separates form understanding from answer generation through a mapping‑first approach, allowing consistent reasoning across diverse application portals. It ingests official admissions documents, performs retrieval‑augmented question answering, and presents suggestions via a human‑in‑the‑loop chatbot that displays answers next to application fields without submitting them automatically. The authors detail the architecture, data pipeline, security measures, and evaluate the system with automated tests and human quality assessments. EZCollegeApp’s source code is publicly available on GitHub to encourage broader use.
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