<p>@biprof no worries, I have a ton of safety schools that I wouldn’t mind going to like UIUC (5th in CS) GTech and UMich. They’re all around the 50% acceptance rate range and my scores/gpa are well above their median acceptance numbers. </p>
<p>@skieurope Thank you for clarifying Columbia’s admissions policies; I didn’t look much into GS and was not aware of their policies regarding gap year students. I am now seriously reconsidering applying to Columbia at all. </p>
<p>Thank you all for your help. I will most likely apply to Dartmouth ED this coming admissions cycle, but will look further into it. If anyone else has any more insight on the Early Decision situation, please don’t hesitate to post!</p>