How Safe Do Safety Schools Need to Be?

Just to clarify, I did not receive bad advice when a Yale adcom told us not to apply EA to BC.

@northwesty I agree completely. The subtle differences in what a program is called (e.g., “EA deadline,” “priority deadline,” etc.) should not confuse the intent behind the rules. It should not be a mystery or subject to interpretation. If HYPS wanted a true single choice early action, they would not allow any exceptions to the policy. All they really want is to require a student to only apply to one of the HYPS schools.

In response to the OP: When is the ED notification expected? If it is early enough in the application season, then your daughter could adjust her other applications based on the outcome. If she is accepted, she is done (presumably) and does not need any other applications, safety or otherwise. If she is deferred, then she could add a real safety or two to the application mix. Also, the specific rules set by the ED school about applications to public schools with rolling admissions, applications to schools that offer scholarships but require the application by a specific deadline, etc. need to be determined.

@QuantMech, all those rule exceptions are for SCEA.

ED schools don’t really care so long as you don’t apply ED elsewhere; they just want you to go if admitted.

A true safety is affordable, a very likely admittance AND a place the DC could see themselves attending. Keep searching until you have all 3.

@18yrcollegemin , I’m late to this thread, so I have not yet read all the posts.

DS had US GC with very close ties to Yale and other selective schools. They send 3% to Yale, 8% to Penn, etc. No foreign retainers involved :). They were clear in their interpretation of the requirements, and frankly, we didn’t ask, because reading comprehension of a certain level should be expected of Yale applicants.

There is no mention of scholarship in Yale’s list of exceptions.

IMO, starting a relationship with a school without complete honesty is not a good plan. As a father of 4, I can suggest that kids learn from observing us more than listening to us.

DS applied EA to Yale and Michigan, completely legal, accepted at both. Had he needed safety applications, that would have taken place in the RD round.

Thanks, PurpleTitan, for the information about SCEA vs. ED. So the student could have a reply from the safety (potentially, if it’s rolling admissions), even before the ED decision is announced? In that case, would the OP’s daughter need an additional safety? Unless, unexpectedly, the original “safety” wasn’t safe?

^ @QuantMech, my daughter had a decision and a preliminary scholarship/FA award from a school where she applied regular decision before her ED admittance this December. So it can happen if the apps and financial stuff is in early and the stars align.

Our D16 wanted a prestigious school and she was not very interested in safeties. Out of the 7 schools she applied to, 3 were Mom’s picks. Mom picked 3 big OOS public flagships offering big merit money.

visit university of pittsburgh

“Thanks, PurpleTitan, for the information about SCEA vs. ED. So the student could have a reply from the safety (potentially, if it’s rolling admissions), even before the ED decision is announced? In that case, would the OP’s daughter need an additional safety? Unless, unexpectedly, the original “safety” wasn’t safe?”

Absolutely. That’s why careful use of the early options can so greatly simplify the whole safety school thing.

I had my kid apply EA to Tulane, which does semi-rolling decisions in its EA stage. Although Tulane only has a 30% admit rate, the odds (although nothing is ever 100%) were pretty good for my kid. Accepted on 11/7 with a nice merit schollie.

So we were done thinking about safeties. Which freed up RD to focus only on matches and reaches and scholarships/merit.

While we had a list of potential safeties just in case, that list got tossed mostly unused very early in the process.

@18yrcollegemin and @northwesty
The consensus is that 18collegemin got bad advice from dd’s guidance counsellors. It is clear that the GC mixed up Yale and Stanford. As a result, dd submitted an EA app to UM in violation of Yale’s rules.

Therefore, dd should do the following asap;

  1. Advise the GC of his/her mistake so it doesn’t happen again; and

  2. Contact UM and Yale to discuss the appropriate remedial action.

I trust this now resolves this issue.