<p>A friend recently received this letter ............</p>
<p>We have learned from (NESCAC College I) that you have been accepted for admissions under their early decision program. Please accept our heartiest congratulations and best wishes for a rewarding four years.</p>
<p>Since an early decision acceptance carries with it a commitment to attend that institiution, I am taking the liberty of withdrawing your (NESCAC College II) application from further consideration. </p>
<p>Actually his withdrawal letter had been mailed. </p>
<p>but -- QUESTION: how did the first school find out about his acceptance. And, under the privacy laws is this legal?</p>
<p>Colleges like to let their competitors know who they've accepted ED so that you don't think you can apply to multiple places ED and pick your favorite later. They are protecting that binding commitment you made in order to keep that yield up.</p>
<p>but I thought you could turn down an ED offer if the school didn't offer you enough financial aid to attend... so what would happen to the student that couldn't attend, but had their other applications automatically withdrawn?</p>
<p>After getting in early decision I, they make you send in you housing form and deposit by a certain date, usually before any other school would start reviewing ED II apps. I'm sure the friend already sent in his deposit reserving a spot at school number 1, or something like that. If that isn't the case, he can always just call school number 2 and explain the situation. Of course, he would definitely have to decline school number 1, first, based on the fin. aid package.</p>
<p>Did that post make any sense?...well, I hope so.</p>
<p>Right on ^. Sounds fishy. What if a student was accepted ED and has to withdraw due to financial issues, should he be barred from any college even if the other one was cheaper. I know for example a specific case where a student ended up withdrawing due to financial issues from his ED college and the school was very understanding in realizing that even though they were the first choice school they couldn't provide him with the $ he needed. (Later he ended up going there anyway.)</p>
<p>Sounds like there are some serious ethical issues at play here.</p>
<p>Trust me, though. Any school would be happy to have an early decision applicant if, in fact, it was ethical and legal. Especially if he already turned down the other school due to fin. aid, I see no reason for a school to deny his application like that.</p>
<p>Yeah, that is interesting. My friend applied ED to XYZ school and EA to ABC college and was accepted to both. When someone from ABC college called her to congratulate her on her acceptance to ABC college they basically said they knew she had also been accepted ED to XYZ school and to have a good time there..</p>
<p>The Ivy ED agreement says,
[quote]
An Early Decision Plan, which is offered by Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, and Princeton, requires a prior commitment to matriculate. Financial aid awards for those qualifying for financial assistance will normally be announced in full detail at the same time as the admissions decisions. An applicant receiving admission and an adequate financial aid award under the ED Plan will be required to accept that offer of admission and withdraw all applications to other colleges and universities. All the Ivy institutions will honor any required commitment to matriculate which has been made to another college under this Plan
[/quote]
I guess if you send in your deposit a college should be able to tell all its direct competitors that you are their student, but if your aid isn't sufficient, you can opt out of ED and apply elsewhere to get more money. However, if you get into an Ivy or other school which is need blind and promises 100% of demonstrated need, it would be difficult to say that you did not consider finances before applying ED, that the "100% demonstrated need" isn't sufficient, or that another Ivy can give you more money. I don't know anyone directly or indirectly getting out of an ED agreement due to finances, but have heard that there are very few (I remember something like 4-6 at Columbia one year). </p>
<p>Also, if I remember correctly, my matriculation card had on the back a list of 30 some top private colleges that are in an agreement where once you send a deposit check to one, you cannot send a deposit to another school. The other school will not accept it (basically to prevent someone from locking in with Cornell as a backup while waiting on Harvard's waitlist). I guess if the OP's friend sent in a deposit, and the schools were in this agreement (I think all NESCAC schools were listed) his EDII college would have notified the RD schools. I doubt that one would send in a deposit to a college if they could not afford to go, but that's just me.</p>
<p>the whole point of early decision is that if u get into 1 school, u go there. this is not early action where you get 2 decide after receiving various acceptances. by applying to a school on early decision, u are saying that if u get into that school, u WILL go there no matter what unless they don't meet your fianancial need. of course info of acceptances is shared bc otherwise the schools wouldn't know if they should stop looking at ur application or not. and u r not supposed to apply 2 more than 1 school under early decision bc it is binding. if u get into both, u have 2 go 2 both-that doesn't work so u only apply 2 one on early decision and do early action or regular for others.</p>
<p>The lesson here is, if you apply to a school ED, you are not only agreeing to forego admission anywhere else if accepted, ** you and your family may be tacitly accepting that school's financial aid methodology in advance and have agreed you will pay whatever they deem to be your share. ** </p>
<p>If you don't agree, then don't apply ED. It's not for you.</p>
<p>Yes, I know you can get out of it... but, let's be honest, financial aid awards from most schools are actually fairly predictable. Do your homework.</p>
<p>Wait, could someone please explain this ED thing to me. Are you saying you can't just say "I'm not going to your school." What can they do to you? Take legal action? I doubt they would waste resources on lawyers and such to make someone go to their school. So what prevents someone that applied early decision to not just opt out.</p>
<p>Kinshinsan, I have a feeling that if you opt out of an ED contract for no good reason (not money-related), ED school may go tell other schools about this and you might get fewer if not 0 acceptances.</p>
<p>Like say you opt out of a Cornell ED contract just cause, Cornell might go tell all the other Ivies about your wussying out, and if you applied to any of the others, they might just auto-reject you.</p>
<p>OK - What if you were accepted EA to your state school and went ahead and matriculated in early March. Do you think this will effect this person's RD acceptances in late March? In other words, will State U. share with other colleges the fact that this person has matriculated, and thus the other colleges this person has applied to will give that person rejections??</p>