<p>Alright I understand that by applying to a school under an early decision agreement it means that you HAVE TO go to that school if accepted. But are their any loopholes? And specifically, if i were to apply to a school ED and get accepted, but at the same time be offered admission in an overseas school in the UK, is the ED agreement still applicable? I anyone has any knowledge on this I would really appreciate it.</p>
<p>I remember a thread a while back where a student applied ED to Brown but also got accepted to either Oxford or Cambridge. However, Oxbridge found out about about the ED acceptance to Brown and couldn't allow the student to attend since they signed a contract with another college.</p>
<p>EDIT: here it is <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1060947853-post14.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/1060947853-post14.html</a></p>
<p>if you can prove to them that you can't pay for it, then they'll let you out. but only after strong evidence.</p>
<p>Wait, if you apply EA, you have to go to that school? I was thinking of applying EA to a couple different schools, but I guess not.</p>
<p>hawaiiboy you need to read the thread. 1) This is about ED and 2) EA is not mentioned anywhere in any of the posts</p>
<p>Ok, I'm sorry. I'm going to assume that ED means you make your decision in the winter and EA is just where you find out if you are accepted or not before Christmas. But some schools only let you apply to one school EA, like Stanford, right?</p>
<p>The idea behind ED is that you actually want to go there more than anywhere else. If you got in, and the money was manageable, why would you want a "loophole"? And if you want to go somewhere else more, then apply there and apply to all your fall-back options in RD or rolling admissions or EA or some other non-binding manner. That's kind of a no-brainer, isn't it?</p>
<p>well heres my situation............I have been debating whether or not to apply to George Washington University for some time, but am also applying to several schools in Scotland. I don't really have a clue if I will get into any schools in Scotland but if given the option I would go there. The only school in America that I actually have any desire to go to is GW, but that desire isnt so great that i would turn down a scottish school. I am just worried that I could be turned down by all the schools in scotland and GW and then end up going to a college i dont want to go to. So i am just trying to cover all of my bases.</p>
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I'm going to assume that ED means you make your decision in the winter and EA is just where you find out if you are accepted or not before Christmas. But some schools only let you apply to one school EA, like Stanford, right?
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<p>ED and EA are similar in that you apply early for each, and you find out if you have been accepted early. They are VERY different in that ED is binding-- you have to go unless your Financial situation after being accepted is dire. And, you have to really prove that you can't go because of money. EA is NOT BINDING. That is, you still find out early, but you can wait for other decisions, including Regular and other EA decisions to make a final decision on your part. You can make your final decision on May 1, as with other RD and other EA schools. </p>
<p>Some schools allow you to apply to as many EA and RD schools as you want, but some only allow you to apply to one EA. Yale and Stanford are among these. You may only apply to one ED school, but you may apply to other RD schools (don't know if you may apply to other EA schools, but maybe yes). If you get accepted to your ED school, you must withdraw your other applications. That is why ED is tricky. Even if you need to withdraw because of financial reasons, you will have very little time to get other applications in, and there will need to be an appeals process with the ED school.</p>
<p>It's time for the FAQ again. Learn the vocabulary before applying. </p>
<p>ADMISSION ROUNDS PER NACAC </p>
<p>Non-Restrictive Application Plans: All of these plans allow students to wait until May 1 to confirm enrollment.</p>
<p>Regular Decision is the application process in which a student submits an application to an institution by a specified date and receives a decision within a reasonable and clearly stated period of time. A student may apply to other institutions without restriction.</p>
<p>Rolling Admission is the application process in which an institution reviews applications as they are completed and renders admission decisions to students throughout the admission cycle. A student may apply to other institutions without restriction.</p>
<p>Early Action (EA) is the application process in which students apply to an Statement of Principles of Good Practice Interpretations of Mandatory Practices institution of preference and receive a decision well in advance of the institution’s regular response date. Students who are admitted under Early Action are not obligated to accept the institution’s offer of admission or to submit a deposit prior to May 1. Under non-restrictive Early Action, a student may apply to other colleges.</p>
<p>Restrictive Application Plans: These are plans that allow institutions to limit students from applying to other early plans.</p>
<p>Early Decision (ED) is the application process in which students make a commitment to a first-choice institution where, if admitted, they definitely will enroll. While pursuing admission under an Early Decision plan, students may apply to other institutions, but may have only one Early Decision application pending at any time. Should a student who applies for financial aid not be offered an award that makes attendance possible, the student may decline the offer of admission and be released from the Early Decision commitment. The institution must notify the applicant of the decision within a reasonable and clearly stated period of time after the Early Decision deadline. Usually, a nonrefundable deposit must be made well in advance of May 1. The institution will respond to an application for financial aid at or near the time of an offer of admission.</p>
<p>Institutions with Early Decision plans may restrict students from applying to other early plans. Institutions will clearly articulate their specific policies in their Early Decision agreement.</p>
<p>Restrictive Early Action (REA) is the application process in which students make application to an institution of preference and receive a decision well in advance of the institution’s regular response date. Institutions with Restrictive Early Action plans place restrictions on student applications to other early plans. Institutions will clearly articulate these restrictions in their Early Action policies and agreements with students. Students who are admitted under Restrictive Early Action are not obligated to accept the institution’s offer of admission or to submit a deposit prior to May 1.</p>
<p>Thus far the vocabulary. Only Yale and Stanford have a restrictive early action plan (usually called "single-choice early action" in everyday language).</p>
<p>token:</p>
<p>you might want to amend the EA to include semi-restricted EA (for lack of a better term). Georgetown and Boston College, for example, will not allow thier EA applicants to apply ED to other colleges.</p>
<p>double J, the agreement you make when you submit a binding ED application is that you'll attend if you are accepted and the fianacial aid (if that's an issue) is sufficient.</p>
<p>It sounds to me like that's just not how you feel about GWU. Why not apply in RD? And focus all your efforst on the Scottish colleges you're intersted in? If your question is will you get busted if you apply ED to GWU and then refuse attend because you got into a college in Scotland... there's no way anyone here can answer that with certainty. It's a choice and a chance you'd be making the decision to take.</p>
<p>I totally understand the need to think strategically about college admissions, but what you're talking about is no where near the intention behind the ED option. At a certain point it goes from strategic to cynical.</p>
<p>Why not just apply to GWU in regular decision? Then you could apply to some other American schools you're sure at the moment that you "don't want to go to" --which is a pretty uninformed comment, to be honest-- and you could compare offers and see what your options are.</p>
<p>I agree with 'rent of 2; in addition seek out and apply to some US safety schools that you would be happy at.</p>
<p>I agree: GWU is nice but most people can find at least one other college in the United States that they would like to attend.</p>
<p>It concerns me that you are looking for "loopholes" on something that is a very clear contract that you are signing. First and foremost this is your name, your word, your signature that you are pledging. That, to me is the primary issue with ED.</p>
<p>Now to answer your question: there are loopholes in nearly everything. There are folks who have "gotten out of " ED contracts. Some of them for very understandable reasons. Some of them had a family or personal catastrophe occur that was completely unforeseen between the time they applied ED and when they were accepted. Yes, they were released from the contract. Some kids get out ED for financial reasons. They are accepted and then for whatever reason the family cannot or will not pay the COA. Maybe they did not get the financial aid package they expected. Clearly, a school cannot force you to attend. Some kids just don't go and break the agreement. Maybe they go elsewhere. A school in another country, or your local CC is not likely to shut you out because of your ED contract. There are a lot of colleges that will not check if you are breaking ED and it is unlikely your ED college is going to go on a vendetta against you. </p>
<p>However, here are some risks of breaking ED. First of all, your name does appear on the ED list that is circulated among colleges. Even some colleges that are not in the official agreement of the list can choose to go along with not accepting someone who breaks the ED contract. The world of college admissions is smaller than you think, and you just never know what sort of coincidences occur in it. You can get backlash from that. Also if you decide to later transfer or want to do a graduate program at that same school or deal with the admissions person who may be at a different school by then, you can find yourself in trouble there. You can burn bridges and we all need bridges to somewhere.</p>
<p>A person I knew who had to break ED when her parent become terminally ill, even found it was a pain in the neck because of that circulating list. Some things are on autopilot in the admissions process and if you on the ED list, you can just automatically be dropped from consideration from other colleges, even if you are released from the contract for acceptable reasons. There is so much going on with admissions that things do get botched or not done at times , and once you are on the list, you have to really be on the ball to make sure it does not boomerang on you. It can be a real hassle if things go wrong.</p>
<p>Also your high school counselors are not likely to support you stiffing ED acceptance. You are just one student, and this can have a bad impact on future kids from that high school. The counselors who may have to deal with this future fall out may just be annoyed enough at you that they let your other school know what you did, and the admissions people there might feel that it is dishonorable of you and they may decide to hold off on your admissions in light of the situation. All of these things have happened to people. </p>
<p>When you do something that is fundamentally wrong and you get yourself into trouble for it, you have only yourself to blame. When you sign an ED contract and then have to break it, regardless of the reason, there is a potential for problems. Yes, even if you had the best of reasons to have to break it such as severe family/personal problems. If you break it for even more foreseeable events, you are not going to garner a lot of sympathy. You are taking a risk when apply ED. It is that risk that gives you an extra boost in admissions.<br>
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<p>There are many threads about this. One emphasizes the point that ED is NOT a legal contract; that said, it IS an obligation one should take seriously, and attempt to break only for financial reasons-after an aid offer from the ED school is reviewed and deemed inadequate. If one tries to game the system, the biggest effect may be that future applicants and guidance counselors from the same high school may be negatively affected.</p>
<p>Make a decision. Stick with it. </p>
<p>You could always apply to George Washington RD you know.</p>
<p>referring to that story a few posts back about a guy who accepted Brown ED and still applied to Oxford: how did Oxford know of his Brown ED? Did his HS guidance counselor really go all the way and tell Oxford about it? that would seem like intentional sabotage to me, since only Brown, and not Oxford, asked the GC about that guy's situation.</p>
<p>It could have happened in several ways. It may have been the guidance counselor, who considered it the only way of preserving their own credibility with Brown and not ruining the chances of several other students from that high school of being accepted there over the next several years. Viewed in that light, it is not so much an act of sabotage as it is one of preventing an act of sabotage.</p>
<p>Oxford could have gotten a copy of a list of accepted ED students that Brown shares with other schools.</p>
<p>Admissions reps from Brown and Oxford may have gone to the same event and one could have overheard the other mention the name of the student or their high school, which triggered a conversation that led to Oxford's actions.</p>
<p>The parents of a classmate who was rejected by Brown or Oxford could have heard the student in question bragging about the situation, and they decided to write to the schools.</p>
<p>The student could have accidentally let it slip themselves, perhaps by including more information than they should have on a personal blog that was found by one school or the other.</p>
<p>There are surely many more ways it could have happened.</p>
<p>firstly, i don't think Brown and Oxford talk. they're not even in the same country. the scenarios you suggested are so incredibly unlikely. why would oxford and brown attend an event together? why would they mention successful candidates in casual conversation, and even so, of all candidates, THAT candidate who happened to apply to both? the improbability is staggering. people imagine there's some international association of admission officers from distinguished universities but that's just paranoia.</p>
<p>secondly, not many people in the US apply to UK schools, and vice versa.</p>
<p>thirdly, i'm not even sure that schools share successful EDers with fellow colleges. nobody knows that they do or don't. judging by the many stories of rogue applicants getting away unscathed, it seems rather unlikely or ineffective.</p>
<p>i totally think that that guy deserves it, but it scares me that the GC might have done that. i think the first scenario is what actually happened.</p>