<p>Based on my own self-assessment, I am not the strongest candidate to Harvard, but I stand a chance. With that said, I have heard a lot of mixed opinions on the pro's and con's of applying EA. </p>
<p>Should I go for it? Or would it be pointless? What I mean to say is, will it be to my advantage to apply early, and do I have a better chance of acceptance in the EA pool or the RD pool?</p>
<p>As of right now, the best thing that could come out of waiting is the chance to have more time to work on my application, take another SAT Subject Test, or retake my SAT if I need to. None of these seem crucial, but I suppose they could be useful.</p>
<p>EA is new this year. The whole playing field of college admissions for top schools is different this year, so it’s very hard to tell what you should or should not do.</p>
<p>That said, I recommend going with RD. Your app will probably be stronger then than earlier. I found that the case with mine.</p>
<p>Apply EA to a school where you will be among the strongest candidates. In that way, you will be assured of having at least one college in your back-pocket come December 15th.</p>
<p>Harvard is nice, but it not the end all be all of you life, or even your education. if you yourself even feel like your not the strongest candidate don’t apply EA for 2 reasons</p>
<ol>
<li><p>More EA people get in, but its a tougher applicant pool e.g. all the 4.0 2400 captain president leader types like to apply EA and it make the running harder </p></li>
<li><p>Harvard EA is RESTRICTIVE which means that you wouldn’t be able to apply early to another one of the top 10-20 schools where applying EA/ED would really give you a good shot at getting in.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>so be smart with EA/ED, it can be a powerful tool or you can waste it. the decision is ultimately up to you.</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback. I have just double checked online and I now realize that my next 3 schools (Brown ED only, UC Berkley, UCLA) do not even have EA programs, so maybe I will try and apply Harvard SCEA after all. </p>
<p>So I have another question for anyone who knows: Is it common for Ivies to reject early apps rather than simply deferring them? </p>
<p>I mean, that seems like it would be a bit extreme, but I am worried because many EA apps are slightly above par, so an “average” app may look even worse in that applicant pool ( I do mean average as in, not a legacy, URM, athlete, or 2400/36 perfect scholar. You know, people with a few flaws but with interesting EC’s and essays). I am not sure about any of this, but I have been reading all of the posts on this subject, and frankly I am a bit confused and ultimately am at a loss on what to do here. </p>