In the unlikely chance that you did not get accepted by any of your colleges, there are a number of colleges, which still have room for freshmen after the May 1 deadline.
Why do they still have room? Figuring out exactly how many students are likely to accept a college acceptance is a very tricky calculation. For instance, University A has 8,000 freshman slots. 24,000 students applied, and they admitted 20,000. Why such a high number of admits? Because each of those students applied to 10 other colleges and got accepted by an average of 6 of them. If not enough of the admitted students choose University A, then they are left with room in their freshman class. This calculation is particularly difficult for smaller colleges. College B has 350 freshman slots. If 2,000 students apply and they admit 1,000 they are betting that 1 out of 3 students will decide to attend College B. Throw in an unusually harsh winter into the mix, and College B finds that fewer students choose to attend and they are short freshman. Some schools use the dreaded waitlist to fill in when not enough students agree to attend, others have rolling admissions that keep applications open until they fill all of the slots in the class.
Since more and more students are applying to more than 6 and up to 20 colleges, smaller colleges which do not have the same level of national recognition find themselves scrambling for students. While many of the colleges on the "space available" list are state colleges, and others tend toward religious institutions, there are an number of non-denominational choices as well. In addition there are colleges in Australia, Ireland, Britain, Europe, and Japan. Note many of the colleges still offer financial aid and housing.
Included on the list are Beloit College in Beloit, WI and Juniata College, in PA. Both are excellent colleges that are worth looking at. Beloit College on the southern border of Wisconsin has been around since before Wisconsin became a state. It has become known as a school that encourages individuals to think and become independent and intelligent, with the goal of putting liberal arts into active practice. It provides a nationally recognized anthropology program, hands-on science courses, vigorous social and creative programs, and a center for entrepreneurship in liberal education. (Full Disclosure: My son is finishing his first year at Beloit and is truly energized and enjoying the experience.) Also on the list are: Arizona State University, Arizona University College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Northern Arizona University, University of the Pacific (CA), Oregon St. University, University of Oregon, Willamette University (WA), Hofstra (NY), Ursinus (PA, offers exercise physiology), Trinity College (Ireland), U. of Edinburgh (Scotland), Temple University, Japan.
NACAC, The National Association of College Admissions Counseling, puts out an annual list on May 3. Here is the list for 2018 The list is updated so do check back.