<p>After visiting all of her potential schools, D is now ready to begin working on the applications (4 of them accept the Common App). How should we decide which of the 6 schools she should apply EA? Her top 4 are private schools, but she will also be applying to 2 state schools (due to financial considerations). Her GPA, ECs, Class Rank are all strong, but she will be retaking the SAT's in October to try to boost her scores a bit and the ACT's for the first time to see if she does better on those. All 6 schools accept EA applications. I don't believe we will be doing any ED applications because we must rely on possible merit aid, so she knows that she should not get her heart set on just one of the schools. Truthfully, I would rather see her get all of them out of the way and submitted by mid-November if possible, but I am not really sure if this would help or hurt her chances. Would appreciate any advice! (Of course, we just found out yesterday that her Guidance Counselor, with whom she had a great rapport with and was excellent in helping students with college apps has resigned and gone to a new school, but that is for yet another day's question!)</p>
<p>Allie's mom--most, though not all, EA schools allow for multiple EA submissions. Check their websites to be sure, but otherwise, why not aim to do them all early? I dn't see how they could hurt her chances, and with some schools it will most likely help.</p>
<p>I agree with garland. My son applied EA to the schools he was interested in that offered it, and allowed more than one EA. In fact, one school actually wrote to my S and notified him that b/c he applied EA, he will be one of the first to be considered for a merit scholarship. This school ended up offering the most generous merit scholarship (he was offered merit scholarships at 5 schools).</p>
<p>If your D is accepted EA, at least she knows where she stands. If she is deferred, then she ends up in the RD pool anyway. My son was deferred at 2 schools and then accepted at both (one with a nice merit scholarship). I suppose one is risking rejection during the EA round, but at least those applicants would know where they stand with that application. Fortunately, my S did not experience this.</p>
<p>I would apply EA to all of the schools which are not SCEA (or some other limiting version of EA). It's nice to get as many in early as possible and get early answers. There is some evidence that applying early enhances your chances of merit $$/better merit $$ at the schools which offer it. Northeastmom's kid is a good example, having been directly told that EA boosted his chances. My S got good merit aid at two schools to which he applied early. </p>
<p>If you need to choose between more than one school with limiting EA policies, such as SCEA, I think we'd need to hear more about which schools those are. Since it's not as restrictive as ED, I don't think it necessarily needs to be her far-and-away first choice. It might be more of a strategic decision in terms of which would give her more of an admissions boost.</p>
<p>Also, following up on Northeastmom's point re possible EA deferral/rejection, I agree with her that this is a risk worth taking. Our hs's (excellent) GC advised in favor of EA for this reason - deferrals/rejections provide you valuable feedback on your admissions planning, with adequate time to re-evaluate your list of schools and/or have someone review and comment on your essays, etc.</p>
<p>If all her schools are unlimited EA, she should apply as early as she can get a good application finished.
If she is aiming for merit aid, aome scholarships have different deadlines than the school's EA deadline. At other schools with binding ED, you have to submit an RD application by an early deadline (maybe as early as Dec 1), to qualify for certain merit schol, usually the largest awards.</p>
<p>We put this data on a spread sheet - all the deadlines - then sorted by deadline. D's school also had a deadline for submissions of applications that they would mail out - which was Nov 28 - that really makes the kids get those applications finished.</p>
<p>For the most part, I agree with the advice to apply to as many EA schools as you'd like. We also did not allow our son to apply ED anywhere, but he did apply to several EA. It's just a relief when you know that they can get in somewhere! The only school for which I think it is a disadvantage is MIT. I wish I could remember where I read it, but it is one school which seems to have higher standards for EA applicants.</p>
<p>I would just caution that there are a few EA schools which have LOWER EA acceptance rates than during the RD round. Not many, but some. So, I would always recommend doing a bit of research to find out the difference and then decide from there, depending on where the applicant is likely to fall in the admissions pile. </p>
<p>Although this does not sound like the case for your daughter, if an applicant's grade history might significantly improve with another semester, I would use EA cautiously. An example would be a student who had a rough freshman and junior year, but then did much better in junior year. Another semester of good grades might convince an admissions committee that the junior year grades were the start of a trend, not a fluke. Again, it really depends on the situation and the applicant's fit with the school -- if it is a match or a safety, however, usually applying EA when available is a great idea.</p>
<p>Applying through non-single choice Early Action and early rolling admissions programs can be a wonderful option. My daughter applied either EA and rolling to four schools early last fall and by Christmas she not only had her acceptances in hand, but decided not to apply elsewhere as she was happy with her choices. It really made for a very stress free senior year. A bonus is that since she sent her deposit and room information in to her final choice so early, she got a single dorm in her top choice dorm. So, there can be more advantages to deciding early then just getting in. :)</p>
<p>But again, check the EA numbers and consider all sides just to be sure.</p>
<p>By the way, my daughter was also assigned to a new guidance counselor right at the start of senior year. She asked her old guidance counselor to write a brief letter of recommendation to the new guidance counselor, which the old GC was happy to do. Daughter also went in and introduced herself to the new GC and paid some extra attention to the packet of information about herself that she gave the new GC. It worked out fine, and, the new GC apparently wrote a very nice recommendation for her based on snippets she shared with my daughter.</p>
<p>Will agree with all the wonderful advice you have been given. My son last year did apply to several schools EA. He did not apply SCEA nor ED. Had one of the schools which are SCEA been a clear favorite he would have exercised that option, however they were not and some were not on his list to apply to at all.</p>
<p>MIT was one of his EA apps and he was accepted. However, I will agree with some of the other posters in that I do not know whether or not applying there EA is a help. He also applied EA to CalTech was defered and then accepted RD. His other EA acceptance's also came with merit scholarships we were not expecting but granted us much relief not only as acceptances but financial relief as well. He wanted to allow himself time to complete his service academy apps, and the appointment process so completing some of his apps EA allowed him some breathing room to do so. Allowed more room for interviews and travel in the fall/late fall and more time to focus on his varsity fall sport as he was captain.</p>
<p>All in all, applying EA to several schools was a big help both from a time perspective and relief. I asked him if he had to do it all over again if he would use the ED or SCEA option?</p>
<p>He said no. He needed time to mull through other applications, interviews, mutiple visits and see different financial aid offers to make the most researched and examined decision. As it was, the school (an ED school) he chose sent their decision after April 1, and he made his decision April 30th.</p>
<p>He has said many times he needed the time from July after junior year til then to really think about his decision. He hasn't looked back and is firm with it. No buyers' remorse for that child!!</p>
<p>(I on the other hand am still torn!!!!!)</p>
<p>Kat</p>
<p>Count me in with applying EA at all schools. Thats what my son did last year. I'm a strong proponent of encouraging the student to write essays, prepare apps, etc. during the summer before senior year, if possible. That approach allowed my son to get the apps out of the way before going back to school, so he could focus on having great grades for his senior year. </p>
<p>I believe at most schools you increase your chances for admission/scholarship by applying EA...and that can be researched at each schools website or here at CC.</p>
<p>Best to all.</p>
<p>Aside: There is no difference in the selection criteria applied to MIT EA applicants vs RD applicants. Two of the Admissions officers (Ben Jones and Matt McGann) have said so in their blogs and here on CC, saying basically what admitted applicants get from EA at MIT is a few months' early notice that they've been accepted, that's all.</p>
<p>(Sorry for any threadjacking, I was just responding to an earlier comment in this thread.)</p>
<p>One more advantage to an EA application: it provides a chance for feedback and supplementing and application. My daughter applied EA to Chicago and was deferred. After the deferral, she sent Chicago a supplemental essay and a graded writing sample -- and she was accepted in the spring.</p>