<p>I am planning to apply to Harvard / Yale / Stanford Early Action next year. Which one will have better chance of getting into among these three.</p>
<p>You’re asking the wrong question. None of the three have “better” chances for SCEA admit than RD admit. You should choose base on which of the three you’d most like to receive an “admit” notice from in December 2013. And no one here can tell you that – it’s your preference.</p>
<p>I agree with T26E4. Looking over this years SCEA Acceptance Rates (Harvard 18.43%, Yale: 14.36%, Stanford: 11.90%) it would be tempting to say you have a “better chance” at Harvard. But, keep in mind that most recruited athletes are all applying early. (According to Ivy League rules, a college can recruit a maximum of 230 athletes and Harvard probably recruits the maximum during SCEA.) In addition, many “hooked” applicants who are legacies, URM’s or developmental cases (big $$$$) are also accepted during the early round. So, that really skews Harvard’s early acceptance numbers for everyone applying early.</p>
<p>Bottom line: Apply early to the school you love the most!</p>
<p>Gibby is right. You have to keep in mind that Stanford is a Pac-12 school and can therefore offer athletic scholarships, so its athletes aren’t necessarily heavly recruited/admitted in the SCEA round. By that logic, Harvard’s/Yale’s SCEA acceptance rate is most likely closer to Stanford’s for non-recruits.</p>
<p>Gibby - I follow Ivy League athletics fairly closely and have never seen a rule limiting the number of recruits. Please point me to your source.</p>
<p>^^ [Athletes</a> hope next president will raise recruitment | Yale Daily News](<a href=“http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2012/09/21/athletes-hope-next-president-will-raise-recruitment/]Athletes”>Athletes hope next president will raise recruitment - Yale Daily News)</p>
<p>“For the class of 2015, Yale recruited only 177 of a total 230 athletes allowed by the Ivy League.”</p>
<p>I agree with everybody else here – apply to the school you love most. I don’t believe SCEA increases your odds of admission; though the admission rates are higher SCEA, many posters here have already correctly noted that this is mainly due to a more competitive range of applicants, filled with athletes, legacies, etc. For example, I was flat out rejected from Stanford SCEA, where I was a legacy, but was accepted to Harvard RD, where I have absolutely no hook.</p>