I absolutely love Columbia, I knew it from the moment I stepped on the campus for my tour. I’m now trying to decide whether or not I should apply ED. I know the admit rate is higher ED, but is the applicant pool more competitive? Does Columbia accept all its athletes ED, therefore skewing its ED rate? My other option would be to do a whole bunch of EAs that I could probably get into, i.e. Georgetown (legacy), UVA, UNC, UMich, BC. Obviously not a shoo in at these schools, but I would say I have a very good chance. If I went this route, I would have some schools in my back pocket so I wouldn’t have to completely rely on RD, which in my opinion is risky. My stats are pretty good: 2330 SAT (800 CR, 750 math, 770 writing), and 4.3 gpa (out of 5), top 10% of my class. My main EC is music, so I have a bunch of relating stuff I won’t bore you, but I think overall I’m a pretty good applicant for any school. I just don’t know which route would be better. Thanks in advance for your thoughts!!
Pretty sure you can still EA to public schools while applying ED to a private, so if you’re comfortable with those, and think you have a good chance with Gtown and BC RD, I’d do it.
@ecouter11 is correct.
You can apply EA to other schools if you apply ED to Columbia, but if Columbia accepts you, you are COMMITTED to attend Columbia and will have to withdraw your other EA and/RD applications.
If you are 100% sure that Columbia is the perfect fit for you, and it is your top choice, money is not a factor in your decision, then go for it! If, however, finances are a consideration or you are on the fence, then do NOT apply ED. (If you are applying for FA and they don’t give you enough to make it viable, you can back out of your ED commitment, but if you don’t get any better offers, you’ve just burnt a bridge you might not want to burn.)
ED to any school, including Columbia, is a good option 1) if the school is your absolute top choice and 2) if you have no need to compare financial offers. And double check but I think you can apply to other schools EA but if accepted you will be committed to attend Columbia.