By definition, Early Decision means that your son’s first choice is Vanderbilt and if accepted and they have met your need (as defined by your EFC-not whether you like their offer or not), he will go there. There are no choices once you make that commitment. And it is a binding contract. The ED schools can communicate that contract with his other schools if the commitment is not met. I’m curious that you say he’s received an EA decision from Tulane and another school and is weighing his options. I’m sure his counselor also explained to you that if you don’t withdraw all of his applications now, it can leave a negative impression of his high school for next year’s applicants.
UNC made it very clear that they are evaluating each applicant on a holistic basis, as opposed to many EA schools that are only looking at course rigor, GPA & test scores (UGA, for example). They said they read everything that’s submitted so I’m assuming that given the number of applicants, it takes time. Georgia Tech and NC State had the same EA dealine of Oct. 15th and their decisions are not due out until late January too. Actually Tech is Jan. 14th. It’s difficult to wait, but it indicates that they take this job very seriously and each student is being given the consideration they deserve.
I agree with @snorkelmom in that our applications are being very carefully looked over. We all knew what we were signing up for when we applied: a long wait until late January.
@nubbiemom, you offer a cautionary tale. Once your son applied ED to Vandy, he sealed his fate. Whether UNC had responded Dec. 15 or Jan. 31 makes no difference; your son signed a binding contract with Vandy the day he applied.
I understand it’s frustrating to wait on UNC’s EA decision, but ED is not something anyone should gamble on unless they understand that it is binding.
Nevertheless, the good news is that your son will be attending an excellent school, and I’m sure he will prosper there.
I am confused as to why there is so much anger about UNC’s lengthy decision process. Anxiety I understand but lashing out about fairness or about how UNC is missing out on a great student due to being too slow just does not make sense. They take their time. They read every application (20K plus for EA). UNC is explicit about their time frame and anyone who researches the process knows that at best decisions will be out mid to very late January. A number of other top schools do the same (UVa and WFU are on approximately the same time frame, Berkeley & UCLA later, for example). Just because you receive an early offer does not mean you have to commit prior to hearing from your other choices. You can put those acceptances in the bank and decide once all the cards have been revealed. There is also no reason to get jacked up about something you knew about all along.
My D applied to seven schools and got accepted by six great choices prior to hearing from UNC on January 18th. UNC is slower than many but very thorough with their process. Find more substantive things to worry about…
@smack28752 - Berkeley and UCLA don’t have EA or ED. I guess he argument is having EA decisions around December 15th is helpful for both students and colleges. For students few applications at the last minutes and for EA schools better yield.
@srk2017, my point with noting the California schools is that you could be waiting until late March for any decision. The others have EA/ED with similar decision release dates. I understand that it would be NICE for a December decision and easier on the students (or more settling maybe?) but the Universities are making and living with the decision to delay. Getting upset with the process when the expectation has been set up front seems to be a waste of energy.
I completely agree. Anybody who has applied to Michigan would know. The app deadline is Nov. 1 and they get all their decisions out before the 24th of December. What’s more, they have 50,000+ applicants compared to UNC’s 20,000. I’m not saying that thoroughness is a bad thing or that time shouldn’t be spend on reviewing applications. What I’m saying is that efficiency is equivalent to thoroughness and both should work together. If Michigan can release 50,000 decisions before the 24th, then UNC can definitely review 20,000 applications (with thorough reading) by the 24th especially since they request the application earlier than most EA schools.
I’m sure it’s a matter of investment in staffing. Michigan is 50% OOS and has marketed as (and successfully become) a truly national/international university. With minimal investment from the State of Michigan (about 12% of their funding), the university is run more like a private institution. So as application numbers skyrocket, the administration puts tremendous resources into the admissions office. I think UNC is terrific but with a cap of 18% for combined OOS and international and a mandate to be primarily a top university for their residents, UNC’s resources/aspirations are just different. I’m sure Michigan and UNC both give thorough and holistic review to all applications, but it stands to reason that the more staff you hire, the more quickly you can get through the mountain of applications.
Hey everyone!
Im an OOS applicant from NJ
34 ACT 4.3 GPA
just denied ED to Vanderbilt, really hoping for some good news from Chapel Hill in january! good luck to everyone 
OOS is really competitive for UNC Chapel Hill; it’s 15-18% I think so I’m feeling a little iffy about my acceptance especially after my confidence was brought down due to two deferrals from BC and UChicago respectively… 
@Sandy12345 @lucky0318 no matter what, you both will end up where you’re meant to be. Best of luck to each of you. Hope we are all UNC 2021
Hey guys did anyone here receive an email from UNC saying that you were nominated for the More-head Cain scholarship? I know that either your high school or UNC Admissions can nominate you, but I was wondering if anyone could give me some more info on this. Does getting nominated mean you are very likely to get into UNC Chapel Hill? By the way I think I was nominated by the UNC Admission office the Admissions Referral Program, but Im not sure if that means anything. Thanks for the help!
@vcq7890 what do you mean you think you were nominated by Admissinons? The semi-finalists have already been notified. Have you received an email from Morehead Cain?
Congratulations by the way, that is a great honor! And yes, if you were nominated, you are likely in.
Students nominated for Morehead Cain through the ARP (Admissions Referral Program) will be notified Dec 21
@Joe2015 Sorry about my last post. At first I wasn’t sure if my counselor nominated me or if the admissions nominated me. However, I now know that I have been nominated by Admissions Referral Program, and I was notified today, December 21. Does anyone know that stats for Morehead? Like how many applicants get nominated and things like that?
And uhh… if getting nominated though ARP means I’m likely in then… yay? lol I’m kinda surprised I was nominated honestly…
@vcq7890 That’s super! Congratulations and good luck in the next step of the process!
Yes, you are 99.999% in!
@Joe2015 Nice. Thanks for the kind words!
@vcq7890 do you know how many people were nominated? Also what are your stats
50K+ is the total amount of applications to Michigan - both EA and RD. I don’t see a report of the volume of EA applicants to Michigan. If it’s anything like UNC, the number of EA applicants is probably closer to 27K-30K, with the rest applying RD.
So, while your point remains valid, I think the 50K number is a bit misleading.
Edit: Found a link indicating Michigan received ~25K EA applications in 2014. So the current number is probably in the 27K-30K range per my estimate above.
http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2014/05/how_the_university_of_michigan_2.html