<p>First of all, what is the difference between ED I and ED II?</p>
<p>Is there an advantage to applying to one over the other?</p>
<p>Which option is typically applied to more?</p>
<p>There is only one difference between ED I and ED II: ED I applications are due November 15; ED II applications are due December 20. ED I is generally said to provide the best chance of acceptance, although that’s also said about Early Decision applicants in general. I have no way to answer your third question, although I applied ED I and was accepted with an average GPA and mildly impressive SAT scores. But clearly you should always take anecdotal evidence with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>The simple answer: If Reed is your first choice and you are sure you can afford it, apply ED I.</p>
<p>It’s for sure my first choice. But I’m graduating HS a year early, and haven’t taken SAT/ACT or subject tests yet… I’m registered for all of them but don’t know if my scores will be all that great. And there will also be much less on my transcripts. And my semester grades won’t be available by the ED application date. And I need to ask for letters of rec sooner. And… Well, there’s probably something I’m forgetting. Haha.</p>
<p>My point is that I’ll have to cram tons of stuff into this semester.</p>
<p>Then take a year off. You have no SAT/ACT scores and will be missing a number of classes from your transcript. That combined with the fact that colleges don’t readily accept students who graduated early tells me you’re jumping the gun due to your excitement, which is a mistake when it comes to college applications.</p>
<p>I’m taking the SAT and ACt in October, and have taken every single challenging academic class my school offers, plus multiple community college classes. There would be no classes for me to take senior year. A gap year is my Plan B if I don’t get accepted at Reed.</p>
<p>Have you self-studied any AP courses?</p>
<p>No, but I’m doing two this year. Well- sort of. I’m taking a community college psychology class and a CC US history class, and am taking those AP tests. Maybe I’ll do human geography, too. </p>
<p>Why do you ask?</p>
<p>“If Reed is your first choice and you are sure you can afford it”</p>
<p>You don’t actually need to know if you can afford it. If you are accepted and need FA, Reed (and any school) will make you an offer which you can accept or decline.</p>
<p>Aid was implied with being able to afford it. However, ED I and ED II are supposed to be binding contracts and one should not apply if they do not know they can afford it. While that factor is the one way to weasel out of the ED contract, it’s not something you should plan on doing and therefore OP should know if you can afford whatever amount is left after FA, if she would receive any.</p>
<p>^ The problem is there is no way to know if the school is affordable before receiving the actual aid offer; only estimates are available before applying. That’s why schools adopted this rule to encourage top non-well-to-do applicants to apply ED to their top choice:
</p>
<p><a href=“https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf[/url]”>https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf</a></p>
<p>I’m applying regardless of whether I can or cannot “afford” it. My parents are willing to take out any loans necessary and even sell our house and go live in a cardboard box under a bridge somewhere if it means providing me with a Reed education- my father said so himself. So FA is not a concern for me at the moment.</p>
<p>^I’m sorry, but that was a very…irresponsible thing for your father to say. However, I would assume that means he can afford it since making a serious statement about taking out enough loans to put your family in a financial crisis would be downright asinine.</p>
<p>Basically, what he meant was that his children’s education is most important to him, and he is willing to do whatever it takes to provide that to my brother and me (he already provided it to my brother). It’s all about priorities. And my father’s priority is my education. He won’t literally go live in a cardboard box (he used that mainly as a joke to express how important college is to him), but they are willing to downgrade their lifestyles significantly, and take out a bunch of loans. My mother is an accountant, she knows our limits. So cost will not prevent me from going to Reed. FA aside…</p>
<p>I was basically wondering if the fact that I am a junior graduating early has any effect on whether I should or should not apply ED. Because less info would be available, like first semester grades.</p>
<p>You cannot apply Early Admission and ED:</p>
<p>[Early</a> Admission](<a href=“Apply - Admission - Reed College”>Apply - Admission - Reed College)</p>
<p>There is some discussion that needing a “high school diploma or a GED in order to be eligible to receive federal financial aid funds” is no longer the case.</p>
<p>I know. I called the admin office and they told me not to apply early admission because I will already have my HS diploma.</p>
<p>So basically, the fact that I have only taken one of the six or so AP tests I plan to take so far (which I got a four on), and that less grades will be available on my transcripts won’t hurt me? I’m taking the SAT this weekend (shooting for over 2000), and the ACT later in October (shooting for well above 30). I’m taking two or three subject tests in November, and planning on keeping my straight As. When I called, they said they consider every individual case, which sounds good given my situation. </p>
<p>Do any of you know how often someone like me (early grad or early admission) is admitted?</p>
<p>There is no early grad/admission data available. Email the admissions rep for your area for the best answer. It would also help to establish a relationship with the rep.</p>
<p>And how exactly would I go about establishing a relationship with her?</p>
<p>Email conversation! Tell her about yourself, ask questions. They like to get to know prospies. :)</p>