The Case for Early Decision
We’ve written before on the differences between Early Decision and Early Action. Now, let’s take a closer look at Early Decision (ED).
When applying to schools, you may have heard that applying in the ED round is a great way to boost your chances of acceptance. There is some truth to this line of thinking. Generally speaking, acceptance rates in the Early Decision round are roughly two-to-three times higher than the rates during Regular Decision. Two factors play into this:
High Yield Rate
Colleges want their accepted applicants to choose to attend their university.. The more students who choose their university, the better they look. Since Early Decision is binding, the college has an opportunity to fill up freshman slots with students who are guaranteed to attend.
Selectivity
The more students a college rejects in the Regular Decision round, the more selective they seem. If the college fills more slots in the ED round, there are fewer slots available in the Regular Decision round, giving more opportunity to reject students in the RD round.
There are two rounds, and therefore deadlies, of ED. Which should you apply to?
It is important to note that in both rounds, the acceptance is binding. What this means is that if you are accepted in either round of ED, legally, you must attend. So only apply ED to your absolute top-choice school.
ED I deadline: November (typically the 1st or the 15th).
Advantage: Schools generally tend to accept more applicants in the first round.
Disadvantage: Since ED is binding, you can only apply to your top choice, leaving your other schools off the list.
ED II deadline: for ED II is January 1st or 15, depending on the school.
Advantage: If you were rejected from your first-choice school, you still get a shot at your second-choice school.
Disadvantage: Fewer students from EDII are accepted than in ED I.
Whichever round you choose, Early Decision still gives you a statistical advantage over Regular Decision. So check your preferred schools deadlines, and good luck!
