<p>Not pertaining to the Ivies, but in regards to places like MIT and Caltech, each school has different defferal policies. From what I've read from Matt McGann's blog, the majority of students who apply EA to MIT and are not accepted are deferred. In contrast, I've heard that at Caltech, the majority of EA applicants who are not accepted are immediately rejected. A deferral at Caltech means you have a very good chance at getting in RD, especially if you can submit any more information to help your case.</p>
<p>A viewbook is the pamphlet they send you in the mail. Is that what you mean?</p>
<p>Yes and I know that's totally not reliable, but isn't it all speculation anyway?</p>
<p>This is bleeding over into EA. My comments were only about ED. I don't believe that EA offers much advantage over RD to the applicant. The effect of SCEA is being investigated by people who do that sort of thing for a living. Adcoms have a convention every year where they discuss this sort of thing, and educators do studies. If nothing else, it is big business.</p>
<p>The bottom line is, if you really like one school (and don't have to worry about finaid), apply ED. It's useless trying to analyze and try to beat the system.</p>
<p>I agree with zantedeschia. The problem is that people do try to game the system with ED. ED was originally intended to just be a way to apply early to a school that you love, but it has become an admissions strategy. It drives some people crazy when they hear a high school student say that they can't decide where to apply ED, and they feel that they have to apply ED somewhere in order to get accepted anywhere.</p>
<p>I have also heard what tanman said about how not being accepted during ED means that you are denied for the year. Northwestern is also that way.</p>
<p>I know...that bothers me too when people feel like they are wasting some great opportunity if they don't find a school to apply ED to.
There was a lot of pressure in my school to apply early. People didn't ask whether you were apply early, they asked what your early school was. I think 80% of my grade applied ED or EA somewhere. My school has a policy, for better or worse, that you have to go to your early school, even if it's EA. I guess it prevents people applying for the hell of it, but I guess my school can get away with it because most people don't have financial worries.</p>
<p>deferred...waitlisted....accepted....</p>
<p>then i deferred my enrollment for a year</p>
<p>@ Dartmouth</p>
<p>cj: after all that, you probably need a year off :)</p>
<p>Amen to that.</p>