The Down Side of EA/ED

<p>With all the happy EA/ED news coming in, I think it’s important to talk about the down side of EA/ED. I think it’s the greatest thing in the world for those kids that do get in. However, for the majority of kids that get rejected or deferred, I wonder if they would have been better off if they hadn’t applied early.</p>

<p>Many kids get so invested in their early school, that they don’t give their RD applications enough attention. If they’ve waited for their early decision before they start on their other apps, they’re in a mad rush to finish many applications in a very short period of time. Maybe they haven’t even visited all of their choices, or haven’t given them much thought and aren’t able to articulate why the RD school is a good match for them.</p>

<p>The rejection or deferral can also take an emotional toll. They are heading into exams, holidays, and finishing apps in a defeated state of mind. I can only imagine what some of these kids are feeling. Even if they seem to be “bouncing back”, their self confidence has taken a beating.</p>

<p>Thoughts?</p>

<p>Cookiemom, I think you make quite valid points. I am struck by the number of posters who wait to hear from the ED or EA school and then proceed with their apps. This is not a process/strategy I would recommend. First, I see some situations where the kid is so keyed into one place with all the focus on that one. If the decision letter is not positive, then there is way too much stress to effectively do six or more apps in a short period of time, apps that require as much if not more attention than the first one. Then the kid has to do all that in perhaps a less than upbeat mood and the holidays are at that time to boot. I cannot see going about it that way but apparently many seem to do that. </p>

<p>Admittedly, we did not go about it that way. For one thing, my D's EA school was a favorite and ONE of a couple first choice schools and she used EA to get a boost and she finished that app first. As soon as that app was filed in late Oct., she kept going on every app after that, one by one with the goal of doing all 8 by Dec. 31 or sooner if possible. By the time the EA decision came in mid Dec., she had 1-2 apps left to go. She was deferred Early Action and did not get bent out of shape (though understand other kids' great disappointment) and was not of the mind set of "EA school or bust". As well, it was not like she had to then hurry and do 7 apps. She never waited for the EA decision to do her apps. I can't imagine how she ever would have done all those essays and what not for 7 apps in two weeks! Impossible as she did not use Common App and leads a very full lifestyle of activities and mucho homework. Another option to save app fees would be to do what she did but just not mail the apps til Dec. 15. We did mail them as we went but also she applied EA, not ED and that might explain that somewhat. Second D applied to an EA school but not as a first choice but cause it was the only school on her list that had that option. She proceeded through all 8 apps (must have written 20 different essays though some are tweaks of others, not all) and in fact, I am happy to say filed the last one today! In either D's case, we did not have this two week crunch which I cannot imagine even doable even if in a happy mode of thought. If crushed by an early decision, that would compound that more. My kids were not only NOT crushed by deferrals but also their application plans were not affected as they spaced out all 8 apps over the entire fall and so only had one app to go after Dec. 15. Maybe that is why we did not feel quite the same as some posts are reflecting on this matter now. </p>

<p>However, I wholeheartedly agree how tough all that is at this time of year for those referred. </p>

<p>I think one of the worst parts is that in Dec., the student gets ONE letter and if it is not an "admit", then there is this disappointment followed by a 3 1/2 month wait (it was LONG!). But in April, when a kid gets a negative decision, usually it is balanced, often on the same day, by some positive news that cancels out the other news to some degree. That helps! In the early round, it is just one letter, and that makes it tougher too. </p>

<p>Susan</p>

<p>Largely agreeing with Susan, I would say the EVERY applicant simply has to figure on applying to more than one school. The only way to have TIME to do that is to get an early start. Many of the state universities with rolling admissions that serve as "safety" schools for kids applying to Ivy League schools have remarkably early rolling admission priority dates, so one has to plan during the summer between junior and senior year to get a list of applications out by the end of fall. </p>

<p>NO ONE should be so fixated on one school that going to another school would feel like a disaster. There are always tradeoffs to doing anything; staying flexible is a good way to feel better about life and to succeed at more endeavors.</p>

<p>I would say ED/EA worked for me but not my cousin, who was rejected EA from a semi-difficult school. It definately took the wind out of her sails, and ended up resulting in a bit of an application craze (that proved unnecessary)</p>

<p>I feel blessed that the process is over in my home this season. ED to me makes a lot of sense if kids are realistic about their prospects. While there were some surprises in who did not get in on the threads I followed, there where many unrealistic prospects who seemed to think ED would trump low stats. Over and over I read about how the schools look at the whole person, mostly written by kids with sub 1400 SATs. Not a single one of these whole people appear to have been accepted. I have a real issue with what these schools are telling kids, but not with ED. My only beef with ED is that it isn't a real oprion for kids who need financial aid. It would not have been a possibility for me. Did it even exist in my day?</p>

<p>ED worked well for our son and our family, but, I emphatically agree with what Soozievt and other posters have already pointed out. ED/EA is a strategy not an end-all and be-all. If, after reviewing many options and making a shortlist of 8-10 including valid safeties and matches, if, after doing all your due diligence including visiting said safeties and matches, one school rises to the top, then by all means apply ED/EA. DO NOT, however, delay completing the other 7-9 applications. If you don’t want to pay all other application fees, fine, don’t mail them, but for heaven’s sake have them finished and ready to go. For me the most distressing part of the rejection/deferral stories is that these kids have to overcome their disappointment (in some cases devastation) simultaneously with writing knock-out essays for the other schools. Last bit of advice is don’t adopt a screen name like Harvard-or-the-Marines!</p>

<p>My kids all got in ED, which made for several relaxing senior year springs, but I agree with all the above.</p>

<p>Even worse than waiting until one hears about the ED school to start apps for other schools is waiting to CHOOSE other schools!!! I have read posts on CC from rejected ED kids who seem to be just STARTING the process --- they say things like, "What schools should I be looking at?" And this is DECEMBER!!</p>

<p>PS I disagree that SATs have to be over 1400 to apply ED. A number of kids from our high school got into top ten LACs and in several cases Ivies with SATs in the 1300s.</p>

<p>The ED process was much less stressful for my daughter because she already had two acceptances in hand when she sent in her app to Northwestern on November 1. One was at Illinois, which uses rolling admissions. She applied electronically and could view her acceptance online just over a week later. The other was a with a midwestern LAC (DePauw) which offered a "fast track" application because she had attended an admission reception. They waived the app fee and essay requirement and promised a decision within three weeks--and they delivered. Obviously, neither of these were binding admissions. My daughter would have been very happy at either of these schools, but she really wanted Northwestern. We knew that it was a bit of stretch and that no one should take anything for granted (or get one's hopes up too much), when applying to one of the more competitive universities. So the acceptance was a delightful surprise, and she did feel sad at having to turn down the other two schools.</p>

<p>So my advice to other kids would be to research a reasonable safety school fairly early and get that app in ASAP. And do not invest too much emotionally in the first choice ED, especially in the hyper-competitive Ivies/Stanford/MIT. It was very sad to read some of the comments by kids who were rejected in the ED round--maybe their parents let expectations get out of hand because they simply weren't aware of the odds? I'm still surprised by some parents I know who aren't aware of the competitive climate these days. They think that because their child has good grades and high test scores that their child will certainly be accepted at one of the top 25 schools. I'm not arguing that parents should be too pessimistic, just that they should try to encourage realism and have a good back-up plan at hand.</p>

<p>Similar to Suzy, my S already knew he was accepted to Michigan before the ED decisions came out. As he loved this school too, it was just, for him, a matter of which of the two he would be attending, depending how the ED decision went. So, it was really win/win for him.</p>

<p>Our ED process was virtually identical to Suzy's. Before sending in the Northwestern ED application my son applied to Alabama's Honor College which offered new dorms and money. </p>

<p>A visit to Northwestern was sandwiched between two visits to Tulane to which he applied and was accepted EA. He would have been happy at either place. At the same time he was completing his Northwestern app he completed a couple others.</p>

<p>His GC did his job. My son had to demonstrate a thoughthful mix of schools with a range of selectivity and costs. My son said the GC was very honest with other students and had them come up with feasible safety and match schools before signing the SCEA or ED form.</p>

<p>Even if the Northwestern decision had been no I would have been pleased with his effort and the whole process. I am pleased he had the opportunity to demonstrate to NU his honest and strong desire to go there and be rewarded with a greater chance of admission.</p>

<p>My only concern was money. The financial aid came a couple days ago. The combined total of family EFC, 2 very small loans, and a couple hours a week of work study was right where the EFC calculators said it would be. </p>

<p>If a student and his family is well prepared and starts the process EARLY, ED can be a win-win situation. Everyone seems to grasp the concept of early testing–our family saw the ED application as just one part of a whole application package made up of applications to a range of schools.</p>

<p>I've preached this in a couple of other threads, but the point applies here as well. My DD's school has a college counselor, who works only with the 145 seniors, starting in their junior year as the prior seniors have finished the process. The school limits applications to 6 total, and they must be in by Dec 1, she encourages using Common Application. Now there is some flexibility, DD was did a total of 8 apps, although 2 were simple, and I know some kids don't meet the Dec 1 deadline. My point is DD and her classmates are fortunate enough to have someone savvy enough, with clout (ie non-parental) to impose the discipline we are talking about. She held some (we sent some in ahead) of DD's apps waiting for ED and tore up the checks.</p>

<p>Now on the downhill side of this excruciating process, I think the biggest advantage of private school over public was not the quality of the education (which was good, but not great) it was having the counselor. After hearing stories on this site, the confusion, the miscues -I'm sending her flowers! Seriously, lack of knowledge and counselor time is a big detriment to the students, mostly public schools.</p>

<p>See Frazzledad's post above, counselors with the knowledge, and the time to do the job are worth their weight in gold!</p>

<p>Cangel--you are so right about the role of the GC. I'm envious of you and Frazzleddad because your children had counselors who actually provided guidance. If my daughter had only her GC to rely on, I can't imagine where she would have attended college. He simply exists to sign off on transcript requests! My daughter's school is well-regarded, but it's large and the kids are treated like numbers by the guidance staff. (There's no viable private HS option for us). Because I had once been a TA at a large university and a prof at a small LAC, I served as counselor to my daughter (plus I found CC--a huge help :) ). But her friends haven't had this advantage and I think that they've made a few mistakes in their application strategies because their own parents don't have the info to take on the GC role.</p>

<p>Oh and congrats on your son's admission to NU, Frazzledad! I just hope he handles the cold lakefront (as you're from AL). We're in the west suburbs of Chicago and Evanston always feels chilly to us!</p>

<p>Oops--Cangel's from AL--sorry, guess I need another cup of coffee!</p>

<p>Knowledge is power...look at how well most of the regular CC people did..Our family (son, wife and myself) have all read CC daily for well over a year. For those without a good GC it can be a great resource. We've passed along the URL to other families with college applications approaching...</p>

<p>We're in north Alabama and as Cangel noted in another thread we consider ourselves as a separate part of the state..LOL...but we're already watching WGN's nightly news and weather!</p>

<p>Frazzledad, Dartmouth has live webcams mounted at the top of a couple of buildings, we are having fun with that, guesstimating snowfall - NU may have something similar. I can get away with tweaking North AL's tail - I grew up in Jasper.</p>

<p>The counseling edge is very striking to me, CC can help parents tremendously, but parents can't write the recommendation letter, or make strategic phone calls after a rejection - and darn it, this is another example of the kids with less, get even less! OK rant over, I'm going to think of some constructive ways to help this.</p>

<p>One of my fears about thr ED process is buyer's remorse. I remember one of my Daughter's friends applied ED to Wesleyan, got accepted and then when april rolled around and saw that her friends had choices, she did not feel as in love with Wes as she had in November and began playing the what-if game. She is now at Wes, but a part of her feels like she settled over what might have been. </p>

<p>I am in agreement with the other parents about the changing face of ED. ED was once used for tose who loved their schools, were committed to attend above all else and now it is being used almost as first come, first served.</p>

<p>Frazzledad summed it up well, Knowledge is Power. Many seniors are going into this process with almost a sheep mentality, looking for the best named school that they can get into. It sad that we see on the board the number of times we respond to students who are still going into the process uniformed, are still not doing homework regarding financial aid and are getting "stuck" with schools that they can not afford.</p>

<p>But this paret of the process is over and now the long months until april!</p>

<p>I think one of the few arguments left in favor of ED is that it clearly shows a designated favorite and love for a school - something that must be viewed within the context of the application. If the applicant appears to be applying ED for the wrong reasons, I suppose it is up to the adcom to determine that (though there could be an argument over whether it is their place to do so). </p>

<p>Though I am not familiar with the financial aid variations, it seemed to me that if you applied ED to a school like Princeton, no one could argue that they would give you a better package (unless merit based)</p>

<p>Cangle, We too have been looking at frigid images from web cams....</p>

<p>I agree about the affects of the disparity of resources from applicants from different backgrounds. One of my jobs is as a book sales rep for all the schools in N. AL and southern TN...Each day is a revelation....</p>

<p>But, I take the admissions offices at their word when they say an application from Dora High School in Walker County, AL would be read a bit differently than one from a prep school in Virginia....hopefully if we each do our own little job the system will work out...</p>

<p>On the Northwestern board is a young lady from NM...lower scores, big Fin Aid award, got in ED...certainly not what the sterotypical ED applicant should be...good for her...I hope her story is not too rare...</p>

<p>The one thing I take home each day is that the people working in the schools, perhaps even more so in the poorer ones, are doing so to make a difference. They want to help. It is not an easy job and only getting more difficult each year.</p>

<p>Both the parents and students looking ahead need to realize the importance of the GC. Students at big schools need to take a few minutes before school one day and introduce themselves and plans to the college counselor or GC. It took two months of daily nagging by my wife before my son did this at the beginning of his junior year. If the GC is unfamiliar with the process at selective schools, then it is up to the student and parent to bring the GC up to speed. Let the GC know what in important role they will play. </p>

<p>One of the better pieces of advice we got from this board LAST YEAR was to ask the college counselor to go over the college applications and acceptances from prior years. It really helped the relationship between my son and the counselor...</p>

<p>Maybe all these CCer's who had good results with EA/ED can come up with a bulleted list of recommendations for those families facing the process next year....and the next...and next...</p>