Early Action... help or harm?

<p>I planned on applying early action to Harvard next year, but now I'm not so sure. The numbers say that it's easier to get in with early action (18% versus the regular 5.9%). But some people say that since very few early action applicants are deferred, they're just accepted or denied. Obviously I'd love to be accepted, but I'd still rather be deferred than rejected if it means I still have a shot! My question is would applying early action really help me at all to get into Harvard, or just harm me? Should I apply EA somewhere else (my second choice Yale) or stick to my plan? If you need information about me for some reason, like if you think it affects whether or not I should apply EA, then you can look here: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1618755-will-i-get-into-harvard.html#latest"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1618755-will-i-get-into-harvard.html#latest&lt;/a>
Otherwise thanks so much for your help and advice! </p>