ED or RD?

Colleges and Universities A-Z American University
1

<p>Okay… So I really want to got to American and it is definitely my number one choice school. I’ve been considering applying Early Decision. I talked to my guidance counselor about it and he said that that would be a good idea. But I have a couple of questions…</p>

<p>My GPA is currently a 3.0 uw and a 3.6 w.
Freshman GPA: 3 uw 3.5 w</p>

<h2>All Honors: English I, Geometry, Biology, French II, Latin II, Jazz/Concert Band</h2>

<p>Sophomore GPA: 2.9 uw 3.3 w</p>

<h2>All Honors: English II, European History, Algebra II/Trig, Chemistry, Physics, French III, Latin III, Jazz/Concert Band</h2>

<p>Junior GPA: 3.24 uw 3.88 w</p>

<h2>English III H, AP US History, Pre-Calculus H, French IV H, AP Music Theory, Philosophy H, Jazz/Concert Band</h2>

<p>Senior Courses: AP English Literature, AP European History, AP Statistics, AP French, College Dual-Enrollment Public Speaking, Concert/Jazz Band</p>

<p>That outlines my basic GPA… I took a dip in tenth grade for numerous reasons, one of them being that my dad had a heart-attack… but I don’t think that that will be mentioned in my info sent to the college… so I guess it is irrelevant.</p>

<p>This year, I have one-two study halls a day, and so far, I’ve only received A’s. I’ve been working so much harder than in the past and I think it’s making a difference.</p>

<p>So here are my questions:</p>

<p>If I can keep up the straight A’s, should I wait to apply Regular Decision so that admissions can see my first semester senior grades?</p>

<p>American is my absolute first choice, but I don’t really have the financial background to be sure to afford it… Should I wait to apply regular decision so I’m not binded? (My EFC is probably 0…)</p>

<p>I’m just so confused… I really want to apply to AU early decision… but there seem to be a lot of reasons to apply regular decision.</p>

<p>If you were in my situation, what would you do?</p>

<p>Also… My current SAT scores are M:600 CR:630 W:580… I’m planning on taking it again. Will these hurt my chances at all? I feel like my GPA isn’t that good in the first place so these scores can’t really hurt me… but I’m not sure.</p>

<p>I’m just so confused. Sorry for the long post, but thanks for reading.</p>

2

<p>I totally feel your pain. I think youre on the edge. I say RD because you dont have the money to pay and if you apply ED, get it, dont get enough $ then what would you do?
Good Luck!!</p>

3

<p>I think there is a misunderstanding about ED here. First, if and when you get the ED acceptance, they also give you a preliminary FA/merit aid package. It can change when you file all the paperwork, but usually it is pretty close if circumstances stay about the same. Second, if the money they offer is not enough, you are not obligated to accept/attend. No one can make you go anyplace, but most on point they cannot make you go someplace you cannot afford. And you determine if you can afford it, not them.</p>

4

<p>BUT, fallenchemist, when making that decision, the person who has been accepted ED has no idea whether a far better financial aid package might have been available from another school. What if the offer from the ED choice is “affordable”, but not great–what if it would require a lot of scrimping and saving, many hours of work study, maybe even a second part-time job, few visits home, a limited social life? How can a student make a sensible decision in that scenario, when he or she has no idea what sort of aid might be forthcoming from another college? If finances are a key issue, it’s best to apply RD and then compare offers from several schools.</p>

5

<p>MommaJ - I mostly agree with you. That wasn’t the point I was answering. I just got the impression that neither of the posters realized that A) one is not obligated to go to the ED school if the finances are unaffordable; and B) that one does get a financial package at the time of ED, at least at all the schools I have seen and/or heard about. Therefore college993’s concern is answered.</p>

<p>As far as what you are saying about getting a better package somewhere else, if that is a concern then of course one should not apply ED. The premise, however, was that the OP wanted to apply ED to American. So let’s say she did apply ED and got in. In theory, your scenario would never play out. Upon getting in ED and seeing that the FA/merit aid package makes it affordabe (perhaps not ideal, but affordable), one is supposed to withdraw all other applications. Therefore the applicant would never know if they were going to get a better package from another school. Presumably they don’t care because they wanted the ED school so much. If they are not sure the package is enough, they can turn down the ED offer and take their chances elsewhere. Of course then if nothing better does come along, they would be screwed at the ED school. This is why it is so important to find a financial safety that is also a school one would really like to attend. Obviously not the #1 choice, but still a good school that is the right size, academics, etc. There are often compromises, unfortunately.</p>

<p>This is why I agree with you that RD is better for most where money is a big issue. Of course it is also possible that the applicant gets a great package from the ED school and all is perfect. No matter how you slice it, the system has a great deal of the “unknown” associated with it for some period of time, and demands certain choices of which the outcomes cannot be known.</p>

6

<p>Thanks for all the great thoughts here folks; from an admissions perspective, my standard line is that if your enrollment at AU is contingent upon financial aid or merit scholarships then you should not apply under the Early Decision admissions round, as we do not guarantee to meet any student’s full financial need. Having to decline an offer of admission under the Early Decision round due to financial issues is a worst case scenario for all involved; you don’t get to go to your first choice school, we lose a great student, and you have to go back into the admissions quagmire.</p>

<p>Also, while we cannot technically hold a student to the binding aspect of our Early Decision round, any student who withdraws after admission for whatever reason is disqualified from further admissions consideration in that cycle and a formal letter of reprimand is sent to the student and the students’ guidance/college counseling professionals.</p>

7

<p>“*… you don’t get to go to your first choice school, we lose a great student, *”</p>

<p>KBJ, isn’t this also true when applying to AU at RD time? It would seem that the student couldn’t afford her first choice in either case. Or does AU offer more aid, on average, at RD than at ED?</p>

<p>“… who withdraws after admission for whatever reason …”</p>

<p>To clarify: Do you send a letter of reprimand when a student withdraws after ED admission for a financial reason?</p>

8

<p>First of all… Thank you so much for the responses. They are very helpful and informative.</p>

<p>Secondly… I just wanted to take something from the AU website itself.

</p>

<p>According to this… the school encourages all students who consider AU their first choice to apply Early Decision. So my question is, why would AU officially recommend that one apply ED if it is their first choice when in reality, those in the Admissions Department do not recommend that? It seems like that is misleading on AU’s part.</p>

<p>I hope my question doesn’t come off as rude or anything. I’m just curious as to why AU even puts that notice out there if it really doesn’t believe in it? I mean, if I was a little less educated about the college admissions process, but knew that American was my first choice school, then I would read that statement thinking that I should apply to AU ED even though finances are a concern.</p>

<p>Just today, I received an email from the school that specifically said to consider Early Decision. Why does American officially encourage Early Decision to all students when finances do play such a large role? Perhaps I’m just an odd applicant, because I do have to heavily consider the finances (with a predicted EFC of 0.) I’m just really curious and again hope I’m not coming off as rude, because AU is my number one choice school and I’d love to go there.</p>

<p>I have another question though. If I had to back out of the Early Decision Admission due to finances [which I really hope doesn’t happen, hence why I’ve asked this question in the first place =)], would that affect any future students from my school who applied to American? I know that there is currently a junior who wants to go to AU as much as I do, and I would hate to hurt her chances of admission.</p>

<p>I think AU is a great school. The only con that I can find at all with it is the financial part, which is very unfortunate. But I guess you get what you pay for… And I do think that AU is worth the money. My problem is obtaining that money…</p>

<p>Out of curiosity, what is the average financial need-only package offered to students at AU? I can find stats with merit aid, but not need aid. Or does AU not publish that?</p>

<p>Again, all of the responses are extremely appreciated. This is something that’s really been bugging me lately and I am really happy that you all replied with your own thoughts. =) Thank you so much.</p>

9

<p>vossron - I couldn’t agree with you more. That post by KJB sent a chill up my spine, followed by disgust if the post meant exactly what it said. I can only hope that it was just worded in a most unfortunate way. As I said, I think people that have money as a big issue should apply RD because I think that they should keep as many options open as possible. I never contemplated that any school would chastise a student for applying ED and then saying no if they simply got less than they anticipated AND less than they believe they can afford. Who is any school to tell them otherwise, and then on top of that to send a letter chastising them. That is just beyond all comprehension.</p>

<p>But even if it was horribly mistated, there is no mistaking that what KJB is saying is “Only apply ED if you are full pay”. As AUGirl points out, this is in direct contradiction to their web site. I hope the web site is right. I would hate to think that AU has the policy that only rich people can get in early.</p>

10

<p>AUGirl - Before now I would have said there is no way a school would hold future students responsible for something you may do, but after KJB’s post I am not sure that is true about AU. I hope he comes on to clarify.</p>

11

<p>Hi everyone; I’ll try to respond to the best of my ability to all here. It appears I’ve inadvertently ruffled some feathers…</p>

<p>@vossron - what I noted COULD be true of an RD student (we lose a great student, student doesn’t go to their first choice school), except for the fact that RD is not a binding admissions round. That student is free to select any of the institutions he/she applied to and was admitted to as a Regular Decision applicant Early Decision at AU is binding; by applying under ED a student is emphatically and purposefully committing to their first choice institution. RD students do not have this same burden by way of their application. Our (and the student’s) loss in the scenario of an ED student withdrawing is compounded by the fact that the student signed a form stating that they were committing to the institution (our Early Decision Agreement form). No one is required to apply under this round; however, applying under ED implies that one is ready to commit to the institution, financial aid or no financial aid, scholarship or no scholarship. Consequently, foreknowledge of this commitment is required for those students who want to apply under ED. And no, there is no benefit by way of financial aid or scholarships for ED applicants over RD applicants. Finally, yes, the letter of reprimand is sent to any student who withdraws, regardless of the reason.</p>

<p>@AUGirl - we certainly appreciate your interest and concern about your application to AU! And while we want to encourage those students who are interested in American University and ready to commit to the institution with complete foreknowledge of what that commitment means to apply ED, it is quite clear that Early Decision is not for every applicant. By no means should you interpret my comments to mean that I am not recommending Early Decision as an admissions round; I would recommend ED as an admissions round to those students who are ready and able to commit to AU, both personally and financially (as the case may be). Let me use an analogy: I would RECOMMEND that you purchase an expensive, safe Swedish automobile. However, that doesn’t mean that you can AFFORD that expensive, safe Swedish automobile. No doubt, before you make that purchase you will have researched your financing options, personal finances, etc. etc. The reality of a high cost, private education is that this education is not accessible to all students, the same way that car is not accessible to all consumers. We do our best to make the education possible for as many students as possible, but we do not guarantee to make it possible.</p>

<p>We ask you to “consider” Early Decision, but we by no means force anyone’s hand in this respect. I would hope that no one would apply to an institution under a binding admissions round without doing their due diligence in understanding exactly what that decision means. So we have to walk that fine line between touting what is a wonderful and impressive opportunity for some of our students via ED, and being pragmatic and careful in aiding those students for whom ED is not a good choice to make a sensible decision.</p>

<p>As to your additional questions, your actions do not impact other students from your school. Unfortunately, we do not calculate average financial aid packages as this information can be very misleading, considering that each financial aid circumstance is different.</p>

<p>@fallenchemist - I’m not sure what in particular disturbs you so about my post; I hate to think I’m spine-chilling in any way! Our policy of sending a letter of reprimand is due to the fact that a student willfully and knowingly enters (along with their high school guidance professionals, who countersign their ED Agreement form) into a binding agreement with our institution to make their deposit at AU if they are admitted under the ED round, provided that we release their admissions decision at an earlier date than the rest of our applicant pool. As I noted above, students who enter into the Early Decision round do so with complete foreknowledge of what that commitment means to apply ED; this includes an understanding of financial aid and merit scholarship realities at AU and a student/family’s own financial resources. To not do so would be analogous to someone signing a contract to buy a home and then telling their lender that they were unaware that the mortgage payments would be so high so they’d like to be released from their contract. We would also run a higher risk of students applying to multiple schools under ED; without proactive steps on our part, the binding aspect of ED could be undercut by less honest students.</p>

<p>Finally, by saying that students should only apply ED if their enrollment is not contingent upon financial aid or merit scholarships is to note two factual items per our admissions policies: we do not guarantee to meet the full financial need of any applicant to the University and we do not guarantee a merit scholarship of any type to any applicant. The fact of the matter is that many of our ED students do arrive at AU with a financial aid package or merit scholarship; however, these students no doubt did their due diligence before deciding to apply to AU via ED and decided that their ability to provide for their education (by way of an understanding of their own finances) and our ability to finance their education (arrived at through conversations with our Financial Aid Office) meant that they could apply under ED. Again, while we would encourage students to consider Early Decision, we know full well that it is not the admissions round for every student. Early Decision is not designed for “rich people;” it is designed for students who, first and foremost, want to commit to AU, and then for those students who have an understanding of their ability to pay for their education and/or finance their education in conjunction with our financial aid packaging practices.</p>

12

<p>Thank you so much for your response. It is greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>This is a really hefty decision to weigh and I’ve been encouraged by many people to apply early decision (including my own parents and guidance counselor), but of course the money is an issue and I don’t want to get myself into a situation that I can’t realistically afford.</p>

13

<p>KBJ, thanks for the clarification. Does “through conversations with our Financial Aid Office” mean that AU guarantees that the final package will be at least as much as the early read, if the family’s estimates don’t change? The mortgage analogy is fine, but only when recognizing that mortgage companies are not allowed to deceive their borrowers about final net costs.</p>

14

<p>KBJ - thanks for the reply, but I find your logic flawed in a very basic way, and I continue to find some of your statements baffling. Let’s start with your two analogies regarding applying knowing that one will need FA.

</p>

<p>In either of those cases I know what the item costs, the interest rate being offered, and the length of time the payments will last. I can caluculate to the penny what the payments will be, and in fact by law the lender has to show me that amount as well. So there is no reason one would have to say they have to default on the contract because they did not know the payments were too large for their budget. In the cases where the interest rate goes up in 2 years or 5 years or whatever, that is the more analogous situation. In that case the future rate is unknown, and in the case of aid from AU the amount of aid won’t be known to the “buyer” until you tell them what it is. It is easy to say that people should contact your FA office to get a sneak peek into what the aid is likely to be, but many people are unaware they can do this I am sure. It doesn’t take a long time to be on CC to know that is true. (BTW, I looked at the AU web site for early decision financial aid and it says absolutely nothing about working with the FA staff privately. It simply says to get the CSS in by Nov 15, the same deadline as the application). So in perfectly good faith, perhaps using one of these online EFC calculators, people think they know what they are eligible for, and then often get less. To penalize people for not being able to afford AU is, in my opinion, reprehensible. Don’t you think in most cases they are embarrassed and disappointed enough already? They just found out they really cannot afford their first choice school, which they applied to ED in perfectly good faith. Sure, let’s pile on by sending a letter telling them they are dishonest, immoral scum.</p>

<p>You then say that ED is not just for “rich” people, but you also say that the amount of FA cannot be guaranteed to meet full need. I assume by full need you mean by your calculations of their EFC, which is almost always more than most families expect already. So you may not even be meeting the full amount of a lesser amount.

Of course no one is required to apply ED, but you are essentially asking students with need to apply partially blind. I find no other way to read this other than the only people that can apply ED and not risk your letter of reprimand are people that can full pay. Granted these are not all “rich” people, but at $50,000+ a year they are probably doing very very well. I have no doubt that many of the students that have gotten in ED also got FA (I agree with you that no one should assume any merit aid). That is hardly the point. Your school is telling people that they can both apply ED, even if they have FA needs, and that they will “punish” you if that FA need is not sufficient. Tell me again how you are not asking people in that position to take a risk with regard to your school’s potential reaction. I truly cannot imagine how you cannot see you are saying two contradictory things. Or even three. ED is not only for full pay people, but we cannot guarantee you can afford the school if you have need once you see our package, and we will reprimand you for not knowing the unknowable. If an applicant takes the morality of the ED agreement seriously, or your threat (which is rather hollow but that is another discussion), or both, then anyone with need that does not realize it is OK to get some preview of the offer from the school’s FA office is essentially shut out from your ED process. I know you won’t agree with that, but that is in fact essentially what all the statements you have made add up to.</p>

<p>Finally, not to pile on, but you really did not address what vossron said.

That does not address vossron’s point. AUGirl is likely the perfect example. Based on what you have said she should not apply ED, because she has high need. Of course, now she knows that she can get some early indication from the school, but let’s say she did not (and most people won’t). So she applies RD, doesn’t get enough FA and merit, and you lose a great student and she doesn’t go to her first choice. There is no except about it, the scenario is exactly the same as what you said in your first post:

which is the part vossron was talking about. Binding or non-binding has nothing to do with that particular debate.</p>

<p>I know this was long, and I know I am coming across as very agumentative regarding an issue in which I really have no personal stake. I just strongly think that AU should rethink its drastic position of sending letters when the reasons are financial. I simply find that insensitive, ignorant to the good faith on the part of the applicant as well as to AU’s own role in not making certain things clear to the applicant, at least from what I can see, and therefore beneath the level of a fine school like AU. Yes, this does open a possibilty for abuse, although I think that would actually be a minor factor. In the alternative, I would encourage AU to highlight much more strongly the availability of a financial review before the actual application, thus hoping to avoid this unfortunate situation.</p>

15

<p>I left out a key part to one sentence. I said “In either of those cases I know what the item costs, the interest rate being offered, and the length of time the payments will last.”</p>

<p>What I meant to say was "In either of those cases I know what the item costs, the interest rate being offered, the length of time the payments will last, and the amount of any rebates I might be eligible for.</p>

<p>Obviously in the case of AU, I do not know the amount of the rebate and so do not how much principle I must repay.</p>

16

<p>“you really did not address what vossron said”</p>

<p>I noticed that as well, but gave up, figuring the subtlety was lost.</p>

<p>AU accepts the Common Application, but certainly doesn’t abide by its spirit:

<a href=“https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf[/url]”>https://www.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/ED_Agreement.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I, for one, have never heard of another school sending such a vengeful letter, and no hint of this reprisal is given at [Early</a> Decision Plan](<a href=“http://www.american.edu/admissions/freshman/earlydecision.cfm]Early”>Early Decision Plan, American University, Washington, DC | American University, Washington, DC) or [Freshman</a> Prospective Students](<a href=“http://www.american.edu/financialaid/freshmanprospects.cfm]Freshman”>Prospective Freshman Students | American University, Washington, DC). Affected applicants will thus be blindsided, with salt in the wound after the crushing disappointment of not being able to attend their dream school due to unpredictable merit scholarships and gapping, especially for the naive who don’t know the system. Other schools handle this compassionately by figuring into their yield calculations that they will lose a small percentage of admitted ED FA applicants due to insufficient aid.</p>

17

<p>vossron, you and I ae a good team on this one. I will make one minor correction to what you just said, which makes it even stronger.</p>

<p>

</a></p>

<p>Usually one one talks about the “spirit of the law”, it means something was unstated specifically in the law but should be clear in its intent. In this case it is actually “the letter of the law”, or rather the Common App Agreement in this instance.</p>

<p>That is why I found AU’s policy so heinous, so distasteful. The “common knowledge” out there is that finances are the only usual reason one would not accept an ED, and AU is virtually silent on making it clear they are disavowing that convention. I also read their specific ED agreement <a href=“Error retrieving uploaded document”>Error retrieving uploaded document; and it just says to read a manual and send in the forms by November 15. The only line about talking to them is</p>

<p>

Hardly a clear statement that they are taking a different stand than most other schools regarding this topic, or that they are strongly recommending one get an early preview of the FA that will be offered.</p>

<p>I would also note that nowhere in the agreement do they talk about the penalty for withdrawing from the agreement. In buying a car or house (analogies put forth by KBJ), penalties are always clearly outlined. I do wonder if AU is leaving themselves open to a lawsuit by taking an action that potentially harms the student without having warned the student prior to entering the agreement that this is their standard practice.</p>

18

<p>It sounds like KBJ is saying that the best prospect for ED is a student who can afford the full cost of attendence but may not be strong enough to be admitted RD.</p>

19

<p>@vossron - Per your first question on follow up, yes, so long as the FAFSA data that a family submits is consistent with their pre-FAFSA information submitted for Early Decision financial aid awarding, then the actual financial aid package should be the same. There is no guarantee in this respect as each financial aid scenario is unique, but if information provided by the student/family is consistent from pre-FAFSA to FAFSA, then the financial aid package should remain the same.</p>

20

<p>I think a lot of what KBJ is saying is being misinterpreted. The term “letter of reprimand” may be a little strong. To call this vengeful or mean-spirited is to make a lot of assumptions. It is likely not worded in that manner at all. Second, AU most likely does take into account that some of its ED body will melt off, but this is not through any sense of compassion (nor is it for any other school), merely reality. Finally, sending such a letter to those who must drop out of the ED round is likely common practice among many schools, although many likely wouldn’t publicly call it a “letter of reprimand” for this very reason, although that is likely a “technical” term in the industry. </p>

<p>Unfortunately KBJ phrased it poorly (no worries KBJ, I know you’re technically on paternity leave at the moment!), but I find it somewhat ridiculous that a picture is being painted of mean, vengeful admissions counselors mocking ED acceptees who are not able to attend ED. To my knowledge, AU handles this the way just about every school does. KBJ, can you confirm any of what I’m speculating here?</p>