SCEA Rules...?

<p>So, what are the rules regarding Single Choice Early Action? Can you apply to rolling admission schools? Schools that only give aid to people who apply Early Action? (Forgive me if I'm being dense...)</p>

<p>Which school for SCEA? Here is the link to Yale’s rules: [Frequently</a> Asked Questions - Single-Choice Early Action | Yale College Admissions](<a href=“http://admissions.yale.edu/faq/single-choice-early-action]Frequently”>Single-Choice Early Action | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions)</p>

<p>Well, I’m thinking about Harvard, but I can’t find anything on their web site yet…</p>

<p>Noone knows how they will structure their SCEA agreement until it is posted.</p>

<p>I know from experience that Stanford’s SCEA rules are INCREDIBLY strict. For example, you cannot apply REGULAR DECISION to schools that have scholarship deadlines before December 15 (Stanford’s SCEA notification date). Some schools, like USC and Claremont McKenna, give special scholarship consideration if you apply before December 1st. USC does not have ED or SCEA, so you would think that – ah ha – I can just apply regular decision to USC before December 1 (to get into the scholarship pool) and still not violate the SCEA contract with Stanford. After all, regular decision is regular decision, right? And Stanford will let you apply all day long under regular decision to any school even if you are SCEA at Stanford. Right? BUT NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO: Let me repeat that (and this comes from my own direct experience talking with Stanford administration last year!). Even if you apply regular decision to a school, if you apply for a scholarship that has a due date before December 15, you are in immediate violation of your SCEA with Stanford. So, here you are, a poor URM and in need of scholarship money and an otherwise normal RD applicant and trying to maximize your options with other schools, but Stanford’s SCEA rules says that you are in violation if you apply Stanford SCEA and also apply for scholarships with early (pre December 15) deadlines at other schools. Practically speaking, if you apply SCEA at Stanford, Stanford puts you out of the running for scholarship consideration at other schools (at least those with a pre-December 15 deadline). Cruel and stupid!!</p>

<p>Thanks for your help, Erin’s Dad and placido240…I really hope Harvard’s rules are more like Yale’s than Stanford’s :-o</p>

<p>^I imagine they will be, since Harvard originally eliminated EA because (they thought it) disadvantaged minorities and the poor.</p>

<p>The other thing you need to be mindful of is that some colleges will automatically put you in their early scholarship program (a violation of the Stanford SCEA) even if you manually check off “regular decision” in the box on the Common App for that college. For example, in once case, in order to be considered for certain scholarships, you had to apply Early Action. Applying Early Action would, of course, have violated the terms of the Stanford SCEA. So, I checked off “Regular Decision” in order to avoid just that possibility. Nonetheless, I received from the college a note that they were considering me for the scholarship program only available to EA applicants!!! Even though I checked the RD box specifically to avoid being an EA applicant!! Arghh!! Very embarrassing emails ensued in order to protect the ethical obligation to Stanford. They will never know how many hoops I jumped through in order to meet the terms of my SCEA status, all only to be rejected. URMs do get rejected (for all those AA bashers out there!).</p>

<p>I read the Stanford SCEA site, and it seems like you’re right. Has anybody applied to both Stanford SCEA and USC RD at the same time and got in trouble from Stanford? If you apply to USC, it seems like you’re already in violation… very confusing situation created by Stanford.</p>

<p>I know people who did apply to USC scholarship with a stanford SCEA. I guess they did nt care to read the rules from Stanford but it is stupid of stanford to expect people not to submit a scholarship application when they accept only 12% of earlies anyway.</p>

<p>The main question is… does Stanford rescind their offer of SCEA acceptance if a student also applied to a private univ with an early scholarship program?</p>

<p>^Yes, Stanford will withdraw your acceptance/application if they find out that you applied anywhere else while the SCEA application was still pending.</p>

<p>

No, it is Stanford’s choice in how to apply the rules and it is the student’s choice to follow it or not. I expect my children to follow rules and be honest.</p>

<p>Never the less, its my choice to call it stupid sir. </p>

<p>Stanford is choosing to deprive 5000 or 6000 kids from applying for a scholarship, since they are going to reject that many people in EA.</p>

<p>Since they admit 40% Californians, it sounds like they dont want them applying to USC. </p>

<p>I am certain my kids will not be applying to Stanford EA irrespective of this little rule. Good luck to your children.</p>