<p>Is there really an advantage to applying for ED/EA? also, if there's already a thread on early action/early decision, could someone please direct me to it?</p>
<p>Depnds on college. Many ED schools claim it is not an advantage but their higher (often much higher) acceptance rate for ED applicants over RD applicants indicates otherwise and essentially every college with ED has a higher ED acceptance rate than RD. EA is usually different for the high ranked colleges that have it, in that it it does not create an additonal advantage and it can even be harder to be accepted EA (many get deferred to RD decision).</p>
<p>higher (often much higher) acceptance rate for ED applicants over RD applicants indicates otherwise</p>
<p>Not necessarily. These schools usually maintain that the ED applicant pool is more or less self-selecting - that is, most students who got accepted ED would’ve gotten in RD as well, and that overall the ED pool is more distinguished than the RD pool. I also don’t see any reason why elite colleges would lie about whether there is an advantage to applying ED - what would be their interest in saying it if it weren’t true?</p>
<p>But people on CC are determined to believe that ED boosts your chances, and perhaps it does. Nevertheless, you shouldn’t apply ED to a school unless you are 100% sure you want to attend there AND that you could afford it regardless of what financial aid package they give you.</p>
<p>EA is the best deal out there;you find out early and if accepted, the rest of your senior year is stressless. One of my kids got in to three schools EA. SCEA is a close second, but more of a strategic decision. ED is marginally less of a commitment than it used to be; the CommonApp site actually states what has been occasionally the case, that you can get out of an ED acceptance if the FA package isn’t enough for your family. This can reflect negatively on your school and GC, though.</p>
<p>However, much of the above implies applying somewhere stategically. Ideally, you’ll apply ED only where you really want to go and can afford (with some or without FA).</p>
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<p>If a family needs FA, the problem with ED is not so much the commitment, which you can get out of as stated above, but rather the inability to compare FA packages to other schools.</p>