<p>Hi, I am a sophomore in high school, and I was wondering what the benefits of applying ED to Barnard were versus applying RD. I know that Barnard is where I definitely want to go to college, but I’m hesitant because I don’t know if I would have a better chance at acceptance if I apply Rd? Thank you!</p>
<p>The ED vs RD debate is an ongoing one. </p>
<p>Some will tell you that your “chances” of acceptance are higher in the ED pool vs the RD pool of applicants, since the percentage rates of those accepted is higher from the ED pool than the RD pool. Some will argue, though (and do a search…Calmom has been pretty eloquent on this in these Barnard threads), that these numbers can be a bit misleading. As Barnard becomes more and more selective, it just makes sense to assume that applicants in the ED pool who are on the edges of the qualifications spread would likely be differed or even rejected in order for the ad com to consider more “qualified” applicants from the larger and possibly more diverse RD pool. All of this is speculation on my part, though. And again, Calmom has articulated this much more ably in past discussions…</p>
<p>The biggest drawback to applying ED is that you are limiting yourself in possibly being able to compare other options. And the decision to apply ED MUST include a very detailed discussion with your parents about finances, because you will be eliminating any chance to compare financial aid offers from other schools. </p>
<p>That being said, IF Barnard is absolutely your top choice school, if you seem to be a pretty good “fit” for the school, and IF finances are NOT a concern to your parents and you, then applying and being accepted ED is a huge stress-reliever in your Senior year of HS. </p>
<p>You have a way to go yet…enjoy the rest of HS. Do your best and see where that leads you!</p>
<p>IIRC 48% of ED applicants were accepted this go-round, wasn’t that the number?
Seems to me like Barnard would have fewer sports teams, fewer legacies than most other places so these were likely unhooked applicants, to a greater extent than most anyplace else.</p>
<p>Personally, I think ED gives you a leg up. I asked this question at a Barnard admission tour, and the woman said, with much hesitation, that if you are 100% on Barnard, then it does give you a very slight advantage to apply early. Also, I cannot stress enough what a relief it is to know where you want to go. I started second semester knowing I had gotten into my dream school. That being said, Barnard rarely defers ED applicants (according to the same admissions officer) and only does so when a student takes more APs senior year and hasn’t taken any before or something similar. Still, the advantages of applying early are significant–if only for your own sanity.</p>
<p>I’m with figureskater on this. I am now a big advocate for ED. As a second semester senior who has gotten into her first choice and hasn’t been denied from any school (since, there wasn’t much opportunity as ED is binding), feeling this sense of relief and importance has been awesome. I am able to focus on WHY I go to school as opposed to HOW I go to school. Why has reason. How has duty prescribed by a letter grade. Granted, I am still getting As. I am, however, ENJOYING the As I receive. Learning is now easier since my mind is clearer, and I have met my goal. My self confidence is through the roof. I walk around everywhere with the swagger of knowing that I’m a Barnard woman. My sport has become enormously less constricting since I am now doing it for fun and not recruitment, where I live in constant fear of having to go home and tell the college coaches how I, unfortunately, did not meet my numbers this time.
Shoe on the other foot: all my friends have been accepted into LOTS of amazing colleges. One of my friends is able to flaunt that she turned down Yale because she was accepted into Harvard. Arrogant as that is, I can’t blame her, because I imagine it’s a pretty good feeling! Another one of my friends has amazing scholarships and financial aid to line up side by side. As my parents say, “They’re THROWING money at her to learn! How awesome is that?” Let’s face it: it’s human nature to like to be wanted. If a lot of institutions want you, then the feeling can be even more epic than ED.
That is the human side of things. Acceptance statistics of ED vs RD, as the adults on this thread have said, are hazy. It depends which experience is your cup of tea. I know that you’ll pick colleges that fit you and your grades, and you’ll be happy with ED or RD. As an athlete, my parents and coaches heavily influenced my decision to go ED. That was what I wanted, also, as Barnard College is the perfect fit for me as a student and as a person. My friends, however, decided to go ED or RD very late the summer before senior year. You have time!
Good luck and keep working hard. It pays off!</p>
<p>So it seems like the group consensus is leaning towards applying ED is better? Though it would make sense to say that applying ED would also mean more rejections.</p>
<p>To figureskater and smartundecided, I know you two recently were accepted into Barnard ED. Firstly, congratulations! Secondly, would your opinion of applying ED be very different if you were rejected?
Thanks!</p>
<p>Hey ivwannabe. Thanks for the congrats! I set myself up so that rejections wouldn’t be so hard. I applied to a state school that had rolling admissions (that just means that I could apply in September and find out a couple weeks later). I knew I’d be admitted into the state school because the admissions went by a numbers system. If I made their numbers (SAT, GPA, etc), I’d get in. I also looked into their honors program to make sure that I’d be happy there if I did get rejected from Barnard (which I would have been). My parents almost had me convinced to not even apply to Barnard and just be happy at the state school but I would have been kicking myself in the butt if I didn’t apply. Though I am aware of BC’s cost, my parents told me that finance would not be an issue so I mine as well just go for it. If rejected, I would just go to the state school where I was already admitted. Looking back, as long as I had that safety net in place, I don’t see how rejection could have been absolutely, full out devastating. I would have felt the same way if I applied RD.</p>
<p>There’s no way I can really say how I’d feel if I hadn’t gotten in, but I’m still inclined to say that ED was just a good idea. I also applied to Agnes Scott and DePaul because I wanted to get an acceptance letter around the same time (for the confidence boost–just in case). I’d probably feel the same way if I’d gotten rejected in December as I would’ve in March or April, but my feelings in the spring would’ve been more drawn out. Kinda like when a guy doesn’t call you and doesn’t call you and doesn’t call you and THEN breaks up with you. If he had broken up with you as soon as he started having issues, it might not have been as bad. I guess that’s a dumb analogy, but that’s how I see it.</p>
<p>Okay, that makes sense. Sort of like ripping off the band-aid now rather than later. I just still don’t know whether it would be worth applying early if I wasn’t sure that I would definitely get in when they might be rejecting more.</p>
<p>Just a quick note: LOVE the analogies going on here: band-aids and boyfriends. Couldn’t have expressed it better myself.</p>
<p>ivwannabe- I believe that if Barnard is sincerely your first choice AND if you have the stats for the school, you should definitely apply ED. Although there’s that debate on whether applying ED or RD holds the greater advantage, the fact is that ED kind of saves you a lot of stress. You finish your application faster, which means that if you do get rejected or deferred and the RD deadlines come around, you’re not -totally- frazzled and clueless.
I was deferred for Barnard ED, but it doesn’t change my perception of the benefit of applying ED. Sure, rejection stings for a while, but you recover in time for RD admissions, and plus, it’s fairly easy to fall in love with another school. (at least, it is for me.) If a person didn’t make the cut for the more self-selecting ED pool, I don’t feel like she would make it in the RD pool, either. Sure, RD’ers may not be AS enthusiastic about the college, but it’s a much larger number of applicants and some may be people with high stats who have been rejected from Princeton, Yale, Harvard.
Just my two cents. I guess, in the end, it comes down to financial aid and your interest in the school and your confidence in your stats/application.</p>
<p>Hey figureskater. You said this-
“…only does so when a student takes more APs senior year and hasn’t taken any before or something similar”
Could you elaborate? Where did you hear this? : )</p>
<p>I really have to point out that ED is NOT a good choice if you seriously need financial aid to attend school. Barnard is super expensive and students who are competitive for admission at Barnard probably are also likely to receive strong merit-based aid at other schools, as well as possibly equal or better aid packages at peer colleges. Please, if your parents cannot easily afford the full cost of attendance at Barnard, do not limit yourself by applying ED. </p>
<p>Secondly – even though there are students who are admitted ED who are happy that they made that choice, I do NOT think that a current high school sophomore should be even thinking about ED at this stage. To the OP – at this point you should be learning about many colleges, at various levels of selectivity – as a high school sophomore you don’t even know yet where you will fit as an applicant. You need to wait until spring of your junior year to start drawing up a realistic list of colleges (match, reach, and safety) – now is a time for exploration, not narrowing your focus to one school.</p>
<p>Finally, please note that the students who have posted their satisfaction at applying ED to Barnard are recently admitted students who have not yet matriculated. The are very, very happy they got accepted… but they don’t yet know what it is like to actually attend the college. </p>
<p>I am a parent of a Barnard grad who did very well academically in school, but I honestly don’t know if she would choose Barnard if she had it to do all over again – perhaps in hindsight she would consider applying to a different set of schools, perhaps not. She was an RD applicant, so she have multiple options and was able to compare financial aid offers – but my point is, seeing Barnard indirectly through her eyes, I don’t think it really is such a good idea for a student to lock themselves into that choice early on. The students posting here are telling you about the relief they feel during a few months of their high school senior year – they have an admission decision in hand, no other apps to fill out, no stress while waiting another 3 months for results. But college is 4 years of one’s life-- and Barnard presents its students with some unique challenges as well as unique benefits. </p>
<p>Many students consider their ED college to be their “dream” school – but a “dream” is fantasy. I think choosing a college should be based on a more probing and objective analysis – making lists of pros and cons, getting answers to very specific questions. I can’t imagine buying a car without test-driving more than one, or buying a house without doing a walk through of more than one. </p>
<p>So I find it somewhat disconcerting that a high school sophomore is debating ED vs. RD, for any college. I can see a senior who has done her homework, perhaps visiting many colleges during the spring or summer of her junior year, and carefully considering alternatives, coming to the determination that no other college is as desirable to her as Barnard – but I just don’t think that anyone should start their college search with that idea in mind.</p>
<p>Okay, thanks for your input. At this point, it doesn’t seem like financial aid will be necessary, but I’ll definitely be sure to keep that in mind. While I totally understand that I am only a sophomore, it’s difficult to not get carried away in college researching. Between the SAT Prep I have been enrolled in and my Indian parents, college is something that is always on my mind, and a large part of it is the environment around me. Also, I know I said Barnard is where I want to go to college, but I still am keeping my options open; it’s just comforting to have an idea of where I might be in 3 years instead of not doing any research now and being clueless about my future. But, I completely understand that at this point I shouldn’t be so definite about this, and I still am looking at other places. Anyways, thank you for the help and I definitely will keep your advice in mind in the future!</p>
<p>ivwannable - Smart girl! Research now is important. I agree wholeheartedly with calmom. My daughter was similar to you and locked onto Barnard in sophmore year - she is now a senior. Barnard is still at the top of her list (RD), but I have cautioned her that it will come down to April with financial reports in hand. She has already received a full tuition scholarship to one of her schools and we keep revisiting her top four schools, so that she can get a better feel for all her choices, in case Barnard does not work out. You are on the right track! Good luck in your pursuits.</p>
<p>Hey figureskater. You said this-
“…only does so when a student takes more APs senior year and hasn’t taken any before or something similar”
Could you elaborate? Where did you hear this? : )
@ Shay- I take notes and ask lots of questions when I visit schools. The admissions rep said that.</p>
<p>You have time, but if you have your heart set on one school, that’s fine too–just have some more options. Sophomore year I was dead set on UVa. I totally changed directions.
I might not be attending Barnard just yet, but I am through with the college admissions process (aside from the occasional letter from DePaul offering more scholarships). Granted I don’t qualify for FA, for me, ED was the right choice. That was my experience. Take from it what you will.</p>