<p>Pyewacket:</p>
<p>You do have to consider each school individually and look at the applicant is terms a little broader than just the stats.</p>
<p>However, I think that a binding ED application is appropriate for any student who is at least a solid candidate in the applicant pool for that college (say, mid-pack or above).</p>
<p>At many schools, the value to the college of guaranteed yield means that a solid mid-pack applicant is more likely to be accepted in ED. For a strong candidate, ED takes the element of risk out of the equation. Risk that your strong app just happens to get read at 2:00 am by a grumpy adcom who has just seen 15 more apps just like it and is looking to spit nails at the next yearbook editor. The ED evaluation takes place at the start of the season, before the crush of apps, exhaustion, and cynicism creeps into the process.</p>
<p>The mistake many students make is thinking that ED will magically turn a weak application into an acceptance. I don't think that happens very often, so I'm not a big believer in wasting ED apps on extreme reach schools. To me, ED works best for a student who is a plausible applicant for the particular school. For the schools I've looked at, the ED enrollees pretty much mirror the enrolled class as a whole in terms of stats.</p>