Mrs. J. Arguelles

College Resource Center

 

Early Decision and Early Action

If your child finds a college that he’s sure is right for him, he should consider applying early. Early decision and early action plans allow your child to apply early (usually in November) and get an admissions decision from the college well in advance of the usual spring notification date. Your child will know by December or January whether he’s been accepted at his first-choice college.

Sometimes, students who apply under these plans have a better chance of acceptance than they would through the regular admissions process. These plans are also good for colleges, because they get students who really want to go to the school to commit early in the process.  

Early Decision vs. Early Action

Your child should be aware of the differences between early decision and early action before sending in his applications. The exact rules may vary somewhat by college. Check with the school counselor to make sure you and your child understand your rights and obligations.

Early decision plans are binding. Your child agrees to attend the college if it accepts him and offers an adequate financial aid package. Although your child can apply to only one college for early decision, he may apply to other colleges through the regular admissions process. If he’s accepted by his first-choice college early, your child must withdraw all other applications. Usually, colleges insist on a nonrefundable deposit well before May 1.

Early action plans are similar but are not binding, unlike early decision. If your child has been accepted, he can choose to commit to the college immediately, or wait until the spring. Under these plans, your child may also apply early action to other colleges. Usually, your child has until the late spring to let the college know his decision.

Single-choice early action is a new option offered by a few colleges. This plan works the same way as other early action plans, but candidates may not apply early (either early action or early decision) to any other school. Your child can still apply to other schools and is not required to give a final answer of acceptance until the regular decision deadline.

Application Type	Binding	Can Apply Early to Other Colleges	Can Apply to Other Colleges Under Regular Admissions
Early Decision	Yes	No	Yes
Early Action	No	Yes	Yes
Single-Choice Early Action	No	No	Yes

Should Your Child Apply Under One of These Plans?

Your child should apply under an early decision or early action plan only if he is very sure of the college he wants to attend. He should not apply under an early decision or early action plan if he plans to weigh offers and financial aid packages from several colleges later in the spring. Also, your child shouldn't apply early if it is advantageous to have more senior year work to show a college.

Which Colleges Offer Early Plans?

Some colleges have chosen to discontinue their early decision and early action plans because they are potentially unfair to students who rely heavily on financial aid. There is a concern that students who apply early may be limiting their financial aid opportunities and feel forced to make a decision without adequate time to consider all aid awards available.

Do Research

Before your child applies to an early decision or early action plan, research all the options to decide which college is the right one for him. Use College Search to find schools that match your child’s preferences.

Get Input

Your child does not have to apply for early decision or early action; they are simply options to consider. Talk with your child about whether it is in his best interests. It’s important that you, as parents, understand there might be financial implications.

Get advice from the high school counselor and other trusted advisors before your child applies to a college as an early decision applicant. Your child’s counselor is a trained, objective professional who serves as an advocate in the college search process.

The benefits and drawbacks of applying early

Counselors hear it all the time: "I don't know where I want to go to college, but I know I need to apply for early decision!" 

Early decision and early action plans can be beneficial to students—but only to those who have thought through their college options carefully and have a clear preference for one institution.

Early decision versus early action

Early decision plans are binding—a student who is accepted as an ED applicant must attend the college. Early action plans are nonbinding—students receive an early response to their application but do not have to commit to the college until the normal reply date of May 1. Counselors need to make sure that students understand this key distinction between the two plans: binding is binding.

About 400 colleges have early decision or early action plans, and some have both. Some colleges offer a nonbinding option called single-choice early action, under which applicants may not apply ED or EA to any other college.

ED plans have come under fire recently as unfair to students from families with low incomes. In 2002 both Stanford and Yale universities replaced their binding early admissions programs with nonbinding early action plans. And in 2006, Harvard College eliminated its early application program entirely, giving all applicants the same deadline, "in large part because of concerns that early admission provides an unfair advantage to applicants from privileged backgrounds," according to the Harvard Crimson.

ED applicants

·               Apply early (usually in November) to first-choice college

·               Receive an admission decision from the college well in advance of the usual notification date (usually by December)

·               Agree to attend the college if accepted and offered a financial aid package that is considered adequate by the family

·               May only apply to one college for early decision

·               May apply to other colleges under regular admission

·               Must withdraw all other applications when accepted by ED

·               Usually must give a nonrefundable deposit well in advance of May 1

EA applicants

·               Apply early

·               Receive an admission decision early in the admission cycle (usually in January or February)

·               Do not have to commit to an EA college

·               May apply to other colleges under regular admission plans

·               Must give the college a decision no later than the May 1 national response date 

Who should apply early?

Applying to an ED or EA plan is most appropriate for a student who:

·               Has researched colleges extensively

·               Is absolutely sure that the college she is applying to early is a first choice

·               Has found a school that is a strong match academically, socially, geographically, and so forth

·               Meets or exceeds the admission profile for the school for SAT scores, GPA, and class rank

·               Has an academic record that has been consistently solid over time

Applying to an ED or EA plan is not appropriate for a student who:

·               Has not thoroughly researched and visited colleges

·               Is applying early just to avoid stress and paperwork

·               Is not fully committed to attending the schools to which she is applying

·               Is applying early only because friends are

·               Needs a strong senior fall semester to bring her grades up

Print out NACAC's Early Decision Self-Evaluation Questionnaire for students who want to apply early, and encourage them to fill it out-you may want to share this with parents as well.

The benefits of applying early

For a student who has a definite first-choice school, applying early has many benefits besides possibly increasing her chance of getting in. Applying early:

·               Reduces stress by cutting the time a student spends waiting for a decision

·               Saves students the time and expense of submitting multiple applications

·               Gives students more time, once accepted, to look for housing and otherwise prepare for college

·               If student is not accepted, having this information gives that student time to reassess options and apply elsewhere

The drawbacks of applying early

Pressure to decide: Committing to one college puts pressure on students to make serious decisions before they've explored all their options.

Reduced financial aid opportunities: Students who apply under ED plans receive offers of admission and financial aid simultaneously and so will not be able to compare financial aid offers from other colleges. For students who absolutely need financial aid, applying early may be a risky option.

Time crunch for other applications: Most colleges do not notify ED/EA applicants of admission until December 15. Because of the usual deadlines for college applications, this means that if a student is rejected by her early-decision college, she will have only two weeks to send in other applications. Encourage those of your students who are applying early to prepare other applications as they wait to hear about admission.

Senioritis: Applicants who learn early that they have been accepted into a college may feel that, their goal accomplished, they have no reason to work hard for the rest of the year. Early-applying students should know that colleges may rescind offers of admission should their senior-year grades drop.

Does applying early increase the chance of acceptance?

Many students believe applying early means competing with fewer applicants and increasing their chances for acceptance. This is not always true. Schools vary in the proportion of the class admitted early and in the percentage of early applicants they admit.

Higher admission rates for ED applicants may correlate to stronger profiles among candidates choosing ED. Students should ask the admissions office whether their institution's admissions standards differ between ED and regular applicants, and then assess whether applying early makes sense given their own profile.

The ethics of applying early decision

The Common Application and some colleges' application forms require the student applying under early decision, as well as her parent and counselor, to sign an ED Agreement form spelling out the plan's conditions.

Make it clear in your school handbook and at college planning events that your policy for early-decision applications is to send the student's final transcript to one college only: anything else is unethical.

Keep in mind

·               EA/ED program specifics vary, so students should get information as soon as possible directly from their first-choice college admissions staff.

·               EA/ED applicants must take the October SAT and/or SAT Subject Tests in order for these scores to make it to the college in time.

A Last Word of Advice

In the fall, it may seem appealing to get the college decision over with, but your child may find his goals changing as senior year progresses. On the other hand, he may be confident of thriving at a certain college. If so, your child is the type of student early decision was created for.