Early at Penn or Harvard?

<p>^ JHS, I’m aware of everything you’ve stated but, again, my assumption is that since Harvard had a yield in the neighborhood of 80% even during the few years that it didn’t have an early admissions program, the yield for its SCEA admits is no doubt higher than 80%, and significantly higher enough to have convinced Harvard to reinstate an early admissions program (despite its purportedly altruistic reasons for ending one several years ago).</p>

<p>I think, though, that we’re really starting to split hairs. My original point was that Harvard and Penn are in the same ballpark when it comes to the proportions of their classes that they now admit through their early programs, in response to thechor346’s statement that a reason to apply early to Penn instead of Harvard is that “Penn accepts half their class ED.” Perhaps I should have stated that Harvard accepts more than half of its target class number through EA. In other words, the OP shouldn’t base his/her decision on how heavily either school relies on its early admissions program. The fact remains that Penn accepts slightly less than its target class number through its early program, and Harvard accepts slightly more than its target class number through its early program (recognizing the difference between binding ED and nonbinding SCEA, the differences between their early and regular admit rates, etc.).</p>