<p>When a college says the acceptance and rejection letters will be given on a certain date, do they send out the letters a few days prior with the hope that it will arrive on that day, or is that just the day they send it out?</p>
<p>It varies from school to school. Most aim for delivery by the decision date but some simply mail by then. Nearly all adcoms now post on twitter/facebook on the day decisions go into the mail. If you watch your school’s social media posts, you’ll know when to start stalking your postal carrier.</p>
<p>If you look through posts on cc under your school’s forum for prior years, you will find at least one thread each year about ED1 decisions. By spending a little time you can figure out what day decisions were mailed in 2012, 2011, etc. That’s helpful information, but not conclusive. Schools are sometimes surprised by a big jump in ED applications year over year and that can throw off a schedule.</p>