<p>Sorry for another one of these early v. regular threads.
Most early applicants have very strong applications (and a small amount of admission places are available), so is it better for me to apply regular where most applicants arent as strong (Stanford did say that it reserves most admission places for the regular session and that it doesnt favor SCEA over RD)? Note that Stanford is my top choice school and Ill be able to have everything ready for submission by the early deadline.</p>
<p>I really don't know if your chances increase if you apply EA but I'm sure that applying RD won't increase your chances.</p>
<p>Then SCEA is for you.</p>
<p>as far as i know from other threads, ppl say that EA is for ppl who have better resumes rather than for ppl who consider stanford (or wherever they are applying to) their top choice. So it COULD be a good idea to go RD to improve test scores, grades, etc... </p>
<p>But thats just me, and im not familiar with stanford's perspective of EA so i could be completely wrong.</p>
<p>There have been a million threads on this topic. A quick search would answer your questions. </p>
<p>That said, you should not apply EA if you
1) Need to raise your SATs and can't do so by the EA deadline
2) Need to raise your grades to show that you can succeed academically in difficult classes (this may apply if you have an upward trend in your grades)
3) Expect some important award or honor in November or December
4) Can't handle the stress/potential letdown of EA
5) Would prefer to go to another school with an EA or ED program </p>
<p>If Stanford is your first choice and none of the above apply, then you should apply early. It almost all cases it will improve your chances of admissions. I really don't think the EA pool is that much stronger than the RD pool.</p>
<p>RD also puts you up against early admits at harvard/mit/yale/caltech...its at least as tough of a pool, probably, in the sense that although 2500/4500 early applicants will be "exceptional", 6000/16000 RD applicants will be "exceptional", and in the end its the number not the percentage that matters.</p>
<p>not to bash you marlgirl, but are there any stats that show that the EA pool isnt that much stronger than RD? </p>
<p>and does stanford explicitly say anywhere that applying SCEA = better chances of admission that RD?</p>
<p>I doubt they'd publish stats about that. Even if they did, you wouldn't know what applicants' essays, recs, and ECs looked like. GPA and SAT scores don't tell you that much really. The students I've met who I know applied early don't seem any stronger than those who applied regular. There just doesn't seem to be any reason that the EA applicants would be THAT much stronger. You know that many students who applied to MIT, Harvard, Yale, etc. early will apply to Stanford as well. The EA admit rate is about twice as high as the RD admit rate. Stanford does not publically state that SCEA gives you better chances of admission, but the former director of admissions at Stanford conceded that one had at least slightly better chances of getting in EA than RD.</p>
<p>thanks.
actually, i may be expecting some siemens westinghouse results in oct-nov. The regionals list come out oct 31 and regionals occur in nov. does this mean that if i apply EA, stanford admit won't know about it, or can i send in a supplement in nov telling them? or would RD be simply better under this circumstance?</p>
<p>The admit rate for SCEA students, both admitted early and deferred-admitted, is over 20%. The admit rate for students applying RD is about 8%. </p>
<p>The choice is obvious. </p>
<p>You can send in a supplement telling them about Siemens.</p>
<p>I'm just going to take their word on this - SCEA is the way to go if Stanford is your first choice. Don't try and game the system, especially in this case because it's so variable.</p>
<p>Many people "try and game the system". </p>
<p>In fact, the binding ED schools <em>count</em> on it. </p>
<p>The attraction of course is the old "bird in the hand" scenario. Increase your odds of getting into at least <em>one</em> elite by applying early at a place where the odds are greater that you will be admitted.</p>
<p>I know.. I obviously pick what I deem my best chance, but people don't need to be freaking out every little thing. Chances are, if you're in, you're in no matter when you apply. Then again, what doesn't help you hurts you eh?</p>
<p>I don't see what's the point of guessing the system. It's a weird system based on MANY things. SCEA or RD, you won't know for sure if you'll get in. It's a gamble. I agree with julyinoh and marlgirl. College is like taking a chance. You might be accepted SCEA but rejected RD. And vice-versa. Don't let other people judge your future. Everyone leans one way and will coax you to follow their path. Granted, I think SCEA all the way. ;)</p>
<p>SCEA will have a higher concentration of very strong applicants which is why it has a higher admit rate. However, RD will have more applicants, diluting the amount of very strong applicants. That is why SCEA has a higher admit rate. Theoretically if you get in EA or ED anywhere, you probably would have gotten in RD and vice versa. If Stanford is your #1 choice i think it is better for you to know if you can get in or not earlier. IMO, it benefits you to get in early because then you are done with high school and apps, and benefits you if you get rejected, because then you will put more into your other apps to make sure you get into one of your other top choices. </p>
<p>about your competition, if stanford can't get your results, they can't get anyone's results, so you wont be against the people who do better in case you lose which may be good. </p>
<p>if you need the extra As, or that rec from a senior year teacher, then maybe you should apply RD, but you have to decide if you need the extra time to improve your resume. I would say apply SCEA unless you want to wait a month or two to get a hook or something like that.</p>