<p>I understand the language used in Early Decision agreements. What I am unclear on is how it is applied in the real world. </p>
<p>For example, what if you were accepted early decision to your best "fit" school. What would happen if you then applied regular decision to a reach school? What if you were then accepted by said reach school? Are there penalties or risks other than loss of deposit at the ED school? What about applying RD to schools where merit scholarships might be likely?</p>
<p>Read the ED rules for the institutions carefully, they can vary. That will give you your answer.</p>
<p>When you apply ED and are accepted, you agree in advance to withdraw all other outstanding applications and no longer submit any new ones. If you cannot abide by this rule, then don't use the ED option at the first school. By even providing potential ED applicants this early notification and the assurance it confers, they expect a certain amount of protection. If you want special ED consideration, you need to be prepared fully. Otherwise, use EA/ED at your "reach" school and apply RD at your "fit" school.</p>
<p>If you violate this (by keeping active your other application) and the fit school finds out, they will withdraw your offer. Also, your high school will refuse to assist with other applications you're considering because they will face severe penalties for other students too.</p>
<p>If your fit school defers you or rejects you from ED, then you are free to apply to all other schools RD or rolling admissions. If you have any questions on this, please please talk to your guidance counselor.</p>
<p>As I said in the original post, I understand the "rules". However, what I don't understand is how universally these rules are obeyed and what the real risk is in not following them to the letter, other than loss of deposit. On this site, college admissions officer seems to advocate bending (or breaking) ED rules. Early</a> Decision Comments by David Hawsey</p>
<p>You risk losing your offer of admission to both your schools too...</p>
<p>It is unethical. Don't do it. </p>
<p>Another way ED schools can find out if you have applied elsewhere is the FAFSA. That doesn't get sent in until at least January. If you put down other schools BESIDES the ED school that you got accepted to, it isn't that hard for the ED school to grasp that you aren't following the rules. </p>
<p>Why even ask this? Just because one opinion states it isn't a big deal doesn't make it acceptable. Those ED decisions are binding, and if you can't deal with it, then don't apply that way.</p>
<p>I'm not sure you'd get caught, in fact I doubt it you'd get caught. But its not fair to other applicants and the school in question. Also, if you do get caught, there'll be no sympathy with these colleges. Though, if you are looking for how it works in the real world, I'd say I really have no idea, but I'm pretty sure you're unlikely to be caught unless you parade it around like an idiot that you did this. So, if you don't care about the fairness or fear of being caught, go ahead, no one's stopping you (except probably your parents and maybe your high school)</p>
<p>One thing to keep in mind. Each college has different rules. Some Early Decision schools do not prevent you from applying to other colleges Early Action and will never forbid Regular admissions if they are sent before an admissions decision has been reached by the ED school, as long as it is still before you have been notified.</p>
<p>For example, I live in California. You can apply Early Decision to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The application deadline to other Cal States and UCs is November 30th. You won't hear back from them before those other apps are due. That is okay - you can still send them off because it is before you have been given an admissions decision. If you look at school website, it doesn't forbid you to apply Early Action to another school. BUT, if you get in to Cal Poly, you have to withdraw those other applications, period.</p>
<p>There is a grey line here. Once you start crossing it, it is hard to go back. Some colleges even have honors codes.</p>
<p>Don't push it! And your guidance counselor might be a bit wary of her ED-admit still send out transcripts and recs....</p>
<p>That guidance counselor will most likely NOT send out transcripts or recommendations after the student has been notified of a yes on ED. However, if the student hasn't heard yet, he/she will still comply - as long as it meets the rules of the college in terms of other applications.</p>
<p>If you do it, you can kiss your college career over. If you do it, you clearly are an unintelligent and unethical moron and don't deserve to go to college anyway.</p>
<p>You can do it, but you are only throwing away your life if you do it.</p>
<p>As for getting caught, it's pretty easy. You can't apply to college without your high school transcript (at least any significant college) and once your guidance counseler notices that those transcript are being requested after you applied early somewhere (and they would know cause most schools only offer either EA or ED, so if you applied early to that school, and they would know which one since they have to mail it, then they would know if it has ED or not, and then thus if you applied ED or not), and so thus pretty quickly find out.</p>
<p>In the real world, they find out and kick your butt. But then again, if you do it, you deserve the punishment so whatever.</p>
<p>You can have 20 applications completed before you hear back from your ED school. You could potentially get into a bunch of schools through EA and rolling admission before hearing back from your ED school and there is nothing wrong with that. However, if you get into a college ED I don't think that your GC will send your midyear grade report to any college except the one you were admitted ED to, which would make your application and acceptances at other schools incomplete and nullified. Your high school will also not send out your final transcript to other colleges, which would also terminate your chances of attending those schools.</p>
<p>There are exceptions in the instance the financial aid is not enough, but those tend to be rare.</p>