The application period is often a confusing time, especially for students trying to decide if they should apply to college early. There are many advantages to applying early but, the decision should not be made lightly! Below, we spell out the difference between Early Action and Early Decision and weigh the pros and cons of both.
Early Decision v. Early Action:
Early Decision, at its most fundamental level, is a way for students to not only apply early while also ending their college process early if they are accepted to their ED school. The reason being that any schools Early Decision admissions round is a binding agreement between the student and the university that if accepted they will matriculate to the university. This means that choosing an early decision school is a huge decision in a student’s admissions process as once they are only allowed to apply to one early decision school and they are signing a contract agreeing to only attend that school should they be accepted.
Early Action shares many characteristics with Early Decision regarding its ability to end a student’s college process on the early side of things while also having one important difference. Unless any early action admissions round you are applying has a label of “Restrictive” attached to it, it is common knowledge in the world of college admissions that early action admission rounds are nonbinding. This means that should a student receive an acceptance during the EA round, they are free to hear back from and choose from any other college they are accepted to until May 1st of the year of their high school graduation.
Advantages of Applying Early:
Whether Early Decision or Early Action, traditionally either round provides students with a higher acceptance rate and probability of acceptance for the universities they’re applying to. For example, at Northwestern University students applying via the Regular Decision round face a roughly 2% acceptance rate versus a roughly 25% acceptance rate if they apply during the Early Decision round. While students still need to be competitive for each college they apply to, being able to significantly increase their chances of acceptance at some of the most highly selective universities is still a preferred pathway in the college application process.
Disadvantages of Applying Early:
For families that are worried about the rising cost of college, applying via either of the available early application rounds may be an added stressor to their financial planning. With many early application deadlines beginning to approach from Oct 15th to early November, more emphasis is placed on completing the FAFSA and CSS profiles to make sure that, as a family, you are fully aware of the financial landscape of your student’s college goals. Additionally, for students applying via the Early Decision application round, families should be aware that if your student is accepted via this round they are required to attend their chosen university even if your financial aid package is going to be higher than expected.
Takeaways:
Now that we’ve broken down and compared the Early Decision and Early Action admission rounds, it’s time to think about the best pathway towards making this decision. Whether you’re considering how much you want to attend a university, how competitive you’ll be in their applicant pool, or where you can afford to go to college, making the choice between ED and EA is a decision that should be made as early as you can. The early preparation needed to apply, be competitive, and be at peace with whatever early admissions round you decide makes it imperative to start your college research, visit, and strategy process much sooner than the months leading up to your application deadlines. At Galin Education we offer the guidance, support, and expertise needed to make these decisions knowing that you are maximizing your ability to not only get accepted to the colleges of your dreams but also ensure that you will have optionality across the board when choosing where to start your college career.
