<p>My son did not apply during the first application period (when the applications were due November 10) but he will apply by the regular deadline (which I believe is January 1 or 2). I have been told by a high school counselor that the University of Illinois fills up most of its slots during with people who applied early (by the November 10 deadline) and there may be few slots available for people who apply in the regular period. Any truth to this comment? </p>
<p>My son is in a large, competitive, suburban Chicago high school. Top 8% of his class (using his weighted gpa), lots of advanced classes, an AP score of 5 on both chemistry and calculus. a 32 composite on his first ACT (with a 36 in math) and a 33 composite on his second ACT (with a 34 in math). He wants to apply to the math program and focus on math and physics. I would expect that even though he did not apply in the early period, he should get in anyway.</p>
<p>I have never heard this before, though I suppose it's simple math of probability that the sooner you apply, the better your chances will be. But UIUC does not "fill up spots" so to speak. They actually offer way more acceptances than they anticipate the next incoming class to be. In other words, they send out 10,000 acceptance letters, and really only expect 7,000 or so to actually attend the university. I highly doubt your son will have difficulty getting into the university. I also think whatever high school counselor you talked to doesn't know what the hell he/she is talking about since U of I's current application system just started up 2 or 3 years ago. Admission's officers KNOW they aren't looking at all possible future student applications, and they certainly feel no pressure to "fill up spots" with priority-deadline apps since there's always such a great surplus of overall applications.</p>
<p>"To apply during the Priority Filing Period, a complete application and all supporting documents must be postmarked by November 10, 2007. Completing the application during the Priority Filing Period may give you an advantage when space is limited." U</a> of I Admissions: Freshman Dates & Deadlines</p>
<p>Not really clear how to interpret this. When is space limited? When there are more applicants than normal? Or just in programs like engineering and business?
Your son has wonderful stats and should not worry overmuch.</p>
<p>Number to be admitted to any program is determined by (a) they have a target number for hoped for enrollment, (b) they then admit significantly more than that by estimating portion of those admitted who will likely enroll based on prior experience.</p>
<p>Generally, priority applications do not completely fill programs, but the degree to which they are filled depends on program, number of priority applicants for it, and quality of priority applicant pool for that program. Though many get more filled than others, engineering, business, math and science are generally programs for which 40% or more of those admitted are admitted after all applications are in.</p>