So I know that Stanford has an exception for their restrictive early action program that allows students to apply to other private colleges under early action if it is for a scholarship or special program that requires an early submission.
My question is, do other schools with restrictive early action (Harvard, Yale, Princeton) allow this exception too? It does not explicitly explain this.
Thank you!
Read the web sites.
Early submission ≠ early decision or early action. There is nothing that prevents you from submitting an RD application early for a scholarship program so long as the admissions decision is not binding. You cannot, however, submit an SCEA application to HYP and an EA/ED application to a private college.
HYPS do not have all of the same REA/SCEA rules with respect to early applications at other schools. So read each of their web sites on the matter.
At least in the case of Princeton this is allowed, so long as the other application is classed as Regular Decision. In our case many dance programs (e.g. Fordham/Ailey) had early deadlines for applications to allow time for portfolio evaluation and auditions (as early as Nov 1, even though they don’t give decisions until March) and Princeton said that was fine so long as it was not an Early Action program.
From Yale’s website:
Applying to Other Colleges and Universities
If you are a Single-Choice Early Action applicant to Yale, you may apply to another institution’s early admission program as follows:
•You may apply to any college’s non-binding rolling admission program.
•You may apply to any public institution at any time, provided that admission is non-binding.
•You may apply to another college’s Early Decision II program, but only if the notification of admission occurs after January 1. If you are admitted through another college’s Early Decision II binding program, you must withdraw your application from Yale.
•You may apply to another college’s Early Action II program.
•You may apply to any institution outside of the United States at any time.
If the scholarship or special program to a private school is contingent on applying in a formal EA or ED application, then you have to make a choice whether to do that or apply SCEA. If it is a pubic school, applying formally EA is ok but not ED. Most scholarship or special programs we have come across that have early deadlines are part of rolling admissions processes (or relate to a public school), which are both specifically allowed.