<p>I know this is optional, but do I need to send it in if I do not think I will be accepted EA? I know it was supposed to be submitted by Nov. 1st, but I didn't submit it because it costs $25 and I want to see if I get accepted first. Why would I pay that if I don't think I will be accepted? Do I need to submit it ASAP or can it wait till I get my decision?</p>
<p>By the time you get your decision, you and everybody else who was accepted should already have their tentative financial aid packages, which makes you considerably behind. If you need financial aid, there’s no reason to screw yourself over like that. If finances are truly a problem they offer exemptions on fees for some families.</p>
<p>But the package would only be a rough estimate; how can they give figures when we haven’t done the FAFSA? We would still have to fill out the FAFSA…filling out aid stuff now doesn’t exempt us from it later…</p>
<p>I repeat: if finances are a problem, apply for an fee exemption. Otherwise, suck it up. Consider: if you’re accepted, that will be great, but you’ll have no idea whether you’ll be able to attend and you’ll have to wait a considerable amount of time for the office to look at what will be completely new information for them; meanwhile, it should go without saying that since you’ll be getting the EA pool’s leftover need dollars, you might not be getting the package you would’ve gotten if you’d met the deadline.</p>