国产第一福利影院草草

The average applicant is fully aware of Early Decision as a 鈥渃ard to play鈥� in the admissions game. In that arrangement, each party makes a concession鈥攜ou, the applicant, give up your free-agency status, and the college, in many cases, grants a borderline candidate slightly better odds at receiving an acceptance letter. (It’s also an option under legal fire at the moment.) Early Action, however, is not as straightforward a transaction; it is less of a quid pro quo than Early Decision. The applicant doesn鈥檛 give up anything and neither does the school. It is a maneuver where each side gains a slight advantage, which means it is certainly worth exploring. In fact, while a more subtle move than ED, applying Early Action may just be the perfect way to gain an admissions edge at the school of your dreams.

When are Early Action applications due?

Most EA deadlines are November 1st or November 15th, but some have moved as early as October 15th, including those for UGA, Georgia Tech, UNC Chapel Hill, Texas A&M, and UT Austin. Recently, Auburn one-upped everyone by instituting a September 15th deadline for their first of three Early Action rounds. As colleges continue to navigate enrollment issues, increased competition for applicants, and fewer international student applications, we will likely see these early deadlines creep closer to the start of the school year.

Although you will need to get your Early Action application materials in order very quickly and feel pretty confident with where you stand academically, you’ll be rewarded with a decision that typically arrives by mid-December or January rather than the early-April notification of the regular decision cycle. The potential solace of enjoying the holiday break with an acceptance under your belt sounds pretty enticing, right? Heck, your whole senior year could be a lot less stressful if one of your top-choice schools offers you an early guarantee of a place on campus next fall.

Is Early Action restrictive?

It depends on the school. Early Action comes in two varieties, restrictive and non-restrictive, and knowing which category your prospective institutions fall under is an essential first step. The vast majority of colleges operate with non-restrictive Early Action policies, meaning that you are free to apply to as many Early Action schools as you like.

However, some colleges do place restrictions on Early Action applicants. For example, Single-Choice Early Action (SCEA) plans only allow you to apply to one school in the early rounds, similar to Early Decision. The good news is that most restrictive early action plans only restrict simultaneous early applications to other private schools鈥攜ou’re allowed to apply early action to as many public colleges/universities as you’d like.

Whether restrictive or non-restrictive, though, early action acceptances are always non-binding. Even if you are accepted, you are under no obligation to commit鈥攜ou can still apply to as many schools as you want during the regular round and then take your time to compare offers in the spring. You’ll have until May 1st to make a final decision about where you’d like to attend.

A sampling of REA or SCEA policies:

Harvard University: REA applicants cannot apply to any other private institution under an Early Decision, Early Action, or Restrictive Early Action plan, or to a binding early program at a public university.

Yale University: Single-Choice Early Action applicants may also apply through other early admissions programs if the other program is 1) a non-binding rolling admission program, 2) a non-binding early program at a聽public institution, 3) an Early Decision or Early Action program that聽notifies applicants after January 1, 4) an early admissions program at an institution outside the United States.

Stanford University: REA applicants may not apply to any other private college/university under their Early Action, Restrictive Early Action, Early Decision, or Early Notification plan, or any聽public聽university under an early binding plan, such as Early Decision.

Princeton University: SCEA applicants cannot聽apply to an early program at any other private college or university within the United States.

Georgetown University: Students applying under the Early Action program cannot apply to any binding Early Decision programs, but can apply to any other Early Action or other Regular Decision programs they like.

University of Notre Dame: REA applicants can apply to other Early Action programs at both private and public colleges or universities. However, they cannot apply to any college or university (private or public) in their binding Early Decision 1 program.

California Institute of Technology: REA applicants may not apply Early Action or Early Decision to any other institution, unless it is an institution outside of the United States; a public institution with a non-binding admissions policy; a non-binding rolling admissions program; or a military academy.

What鈥檚 in it for the college?

With ED, this answer is obvious鈥攖he institution gets to nail down a surefire member of their freshman class and can worry a tiny bit less about their yield rate come springtime. With EA, though, an admitted applicant is under no obligation to attend.

However, data shows that those admitted via non-binding EA are often more committed to the university and are ultimately more likely to enroll than someone admitted in the regular round (who is likely applying to a dozen other schools). Thus, EA does not provide the institution with anything near the level of benefit gained through ED, but it does offer them a minor edge in the quest to fill their freshman class with qualified, likely-to-enroll applicants.

Along these lines, certain colleges defer almost all non-accepted EA applicants to the regular decision round instead of outright rejecting them. This move is often used for yield management purposes鈥攂y increasing the size of the “active” applicant pool, the school keeps more students in play for longer. Georgetown, USC, Harvard, the University of Michigan, and MIT are well-known for deferring all or most of their EA applicants.

What鈥檚 in it for the applicant?

It is a well-known fact that applying Early Decision often provides students with a huge boost to their admissions chances. Even after accounting for athletes and legacies who are frequent beneficiaries of early-round policies, there is still a massive differential at many schools between the ED acceptance rate and that of the Regular Decision cycle. For example, at American University, 80% are admitted ED vs. 61% RD, at Middlebury, it is 30% (ED) vs. 8% (RD), and at Washington and Lee, it is 34% (ED) vs. 12% (RD).

The Early Action rates are not universally higher than ED rates. However, they typically are more favorable than the regular round. At some uber-selective schools, a fairly large advantage can be gained. MIT admits 19% of EA applicants compared to just 3% via regular decision (including deferred applicants). Last year, UVA admitted 16% of EA students and just 10% of RD applicants. At other institutions, such as Georgetown, UGA, and Purdue, the edge is negligible.

If increased admissions odds aren鈥檛 enough to entice you to consider Early Action, there is also the potential to get a financial leg-up on your competition. While schools do not have different official financial aid policies for EA vs. RD, there is the simple reality that more money is stacked in schools鈥� coffers in the fall than will remain by the spring. Therefore, scholarship offers can sometimes be more generous to EA applicants (who tend to be stronger overall) than to those applying as part of the normal cycle. Further, unlike with Early Decision, EA applications have the advantage of being able to apply to any other school they please if the offer of aid is less-than-satisfactory. This, of course, means that schools have more of an incentive to make aggressive offers to desirable applicants.

When shouldn’t you apply Early Action?

If you’re a borderline applicant at a particular school鈥攁nd hoping to boost your admissions chances with a strong first-semester senior year performance鈥攊t’s almost always best to apply during the Regular Decision cycle. An extra semester of excellent grades in a rigorous course load will only augment your application.

Same advice if you’re hoping to increase your SAT or ACT score before applying. At most Early Action institutions, the latest SAT/ACT you can submit for consideration is the . If you’re planning on a November or December retake, plan to apply Regular Decision rather than Early Action.

Don’t have a strong teacher recommendation lined up, and planning to ask one of your senior-year instructors? They may not know you too well by the time your early action applications are due, which means your recommendation may lack detail and personal connection. Waiting to apply Regular Decision may give certain teachers鈥攁s well as your guidance counselor鈥攎ore time to get to know you and write a stronger recommendation on your behalf.

Finally, a thoughtfully crafted Regular Decision application trumps a rushed Early Action application. If it’s 11:30 pm on November 1st and you’re frantically revising half-finished essays while blearily plugging in your transcript, questioning your sanity, and chugging espresso, do yourself a favor, shut your laptop, and plan to apply in a few months instead. You don’t want to regret submitting an application that you know could have been stronger with a bit more TLC.

国产第一福利影院草草鈥� Quick Take

Our basic advice, when it comes to Early Action, is that there is very little downside and a fair amount to potentially be gained. You don鈥檛 need to make an irreversible commitment, as in the case of Early Decision, and you might end up improving your admissions chances and walking away with more merit money. If not, you鈥檙e free to move on and continue shopping for the school of your dreams, having at least already gained the experience of going through the full application process.

Additional Resources

To view the most recent Early Action admission statistics and how rates compare to Early Decision and Regular Decision at 100+ of the nation’s most selective colleges and universities, check out our Dataverse table: Early Action and Early Decision vs. Regular Decision Admission Rates.