<p>It seems you can apply EA to many colleges, it's not binding and you don't have to make decision till may 1st, by that time you will be able to compare FA from various quarters. </p>
<p>So EA has all the advantages of RD + more such as acceptance rate may be higher. So is there any harm in applying under EA to all schools?</p>
<p>The only good reason I have heard to avoid EA is if your GPA was not good and you are trying to bring it up first semester of senior year. But other than that, go to town for schools that offer non-binding EA. It feels pretty great to have a couple of early acceptances in hand, too. Takes a lot of pressure off. D2 got into U of Chicago EA last year. She was certain she wasn’t going to be accepted at all, so it was a complete shock – but it sure made the rest of her search easier! She ended up at a different school, but I know that EA acceptance was a huge relief to her. D1 applied EA to one of her colleges and got in, and ended up attending there. Again… what a relief to have that acceptance in hand. Both had the same response, “I’M GOING TO COLLEGE!”. Like there was any doubt… but apparently they had some. :)</p>
<p>Check out this collegeboard website</p>
<p>[Early</a> Decision & Early Action](<a href=“http://professionals.collegeboard.com/guidance/applications/early]Early”>Early Decision and Early Action – Counselors | College Board)</p>
<p>The main downside IMO is when you don’t get in, especially for SCEA where there are no other options until RD. Either a deferral or especially a rejection at that early stage makes for a long, cold winter until the RD acceptances start to roll in in the spring. That’s what happened to both of my daughters. Both eventually got into many fine schools in RD, including high reach schools, but both were early very discouraged when their SCEA schools did not say yes.</p>
<p>If I had it to do over again I would advise them to skip the EA unless the school is a safety or a low match for them - in which case what’s the point? Supposedly one of the main advantages of going Early is to increase your chances of acceptance. But if you are applying to a safety or low match you are already assured or nearly assured of acceptance.</p>
<p>Something to watch for is that a handful that offer EA stipulate that you can’t apply early action or early decision to any other school. If you were planning on applying early to multiple schools or apply one ED and one EA… I’d double check the policies of the individual schools.</p>
<p>Yes, SCEA is a different story. But just regular EA… I would NOT have my kid skip EA. It takes so much pressure off it you are accepted. And if you are rejected or deferred – then you might adjust your RD list to have more matches or safeties, for example.</p>
<p>I love EA applications … the one downside is if you believe the fall will seriously improve your application either through improved grades or improved SAT/ACT scores … in these cases applying RD may make more sense. Having a/many early acceptances relieves the pressure (the student knows they are going somewhere next year) and possible allows them to cut down the number of applications submitted.</p>
<p>Just want to point it out that even with Stanford’s SCEA, you may still apply to other public school EA or other schools that require EA for merit scholarship.</p>
<p>If you apply EA to your second choice school and get in, you need to prepare only one more application (but watch deadlines!).</p>
<p>Well, that is assuming that the FA works out. Given that FA packages don’t always arrive right away for EA applicants, it might not be best to quit right away upon receiving an admission you really like. I am remembering the young man accepted ED to his top choice last year, and his FA package not coming to him until first week of January. It was insufficient and he had to scramble because he had stopped applying upon hearing of his ED acceptance.</p>
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<p>If a match or reach school produces an EA admission, and it is known to be affordable, then it becomes a safety, which can allow eliminating other schools on your application list that are less desirable than it.</p>
<p>EA applications are automatically rolled into RD. Is that correct? That way if you are not accepted early, you will still be considered for RD and you don’t have to reapply etc. The same application will be used.</p>
<p>EA applications get one of three decisions: accepted (yay!), deferred (rolled into the RD pool) or rejected (boo!).</p>
<p>If your EA app is rejected, you’re out. This happens when the college sees no likelihood of an eventual RD admit. </p>
<p>For those who are deferred, you’re still being considered and there is no need to re-apply. Deferrees can ultimately still be rejected along with other RD applicants.</p>
<p>@bella, that can happen. However, you can also be rejected and your application will not be looked at again.</p>
<p>If you are deferred in an early round, your early application will remain in effect for the RD round, but you may want to supplement it with additional information after the deferral. That means having your counselor send your fall term grades and possibly an updated recommendation (there is an “optional” form in the common app for your assigned recommenders). You might also send updated information about yourself such as awards or honors received during the fall term and possibly a short letter or email detailing why the particular school remains a top choice for you. It can be a situation similar to being on the waiting list at the end of the RD round.</p>
<p>Niceday, nope, my D1 received an outright rejection of an EA application. They do not always roll to the RD pool. Some colleges do, some don’t. I agree if you do roll to the RD pool, supplemental information can help a bit.</p>
<p>Of course it depends on the school. I believe ND discourages EA unless the applicant is a tippy top student.</p>
<ol>
<li>Stanford SCEA has a much higher rejection rate than deferral rate. You better think it through before applying EA.</li>
<li>If one really depending on financial aid to decide, ED is not for you although you may decline the admission for a financial reason.</li>
<li>I would not recommend EA for safety. You will get in by RD anyway, why waste the money if you are accepted EA by other better schools.</li>
<li>ED has a higher acceptance rate. EA usually but not always have a higher acceptance rate. However, it is mainly due to the pool of highly qualified applicants. It may not boost your chance by applying EA if you have below average credential. For top schools with high yield, EA would help them to secure some good students. There is no reason for them to accept below average student early on as they have more to choose from. I have read a book that it quoted someone from MIT admission office said that if they remove the whole class of admitted students, they will have another class of equally qualified students to fill the spots.</li>
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<p>@intparent, I agree there are both rejections and acceptances in early rounds. My post started with “if you are deferred” and wasn’t meant to imply that was the only possibility.</p>
<p>@billscho, agree that there’s no need to spend the money, but one nice thing about applying to a safety EA is that the applicant will have an acceptance early in the season. Even though intellectually you may know it’s a safety, having that acceptance letter in hand can provide a surprising amount of comfort to both applicant and parents.</p>
<p>Sorry, niceday, I see that now.</p>
<p>Billscho, my D got more merit money than expected from her safety. She still didn’t attend there, but in addition to having an early acceptance from their EA round, she had a true financial safety in hand. They were going to be her financial safety anyway, but they turned out to be REALLY safe. 
We always figure it is good to have that financial safety right up until May 1 in case of a change in family financial situations, health problems for a parent, etc.</p>