D21 is interested in Union College. Their EA deadline is 11/5, RD is 1/15/21. She has the stats to get in (she is only slightly below the 75% SAT mark, and no one from her high school has ever been rejected, looking at the Scattergram.)
We are most likely looking at a purely merit aid award. Does applying EA decrease the probable amount of the merit award, i.e. it is an indicator to the enrollment management system of high interest, and therefore, lower merit aid needed to be offered to get the admission.
Given how uneasy colleges are about admissions this cycle, I might reach out to your regional rep to ask that question. My guess is that they would love to lock in a student like your D and would still extend merit in the ED round if the option is waiting til RD and potentially having her go someplace else. But that’s just conjecture on my part.
Thanks for the feedback. It’s actually Early Action, as opposed to Early Decision, but the same principle may hold.
After asking around, we’re finding out that an academically strong high school that’s within 30-40 minutes of where we live sends 5-6 students to Union every year. “They major in Economics or Business, and they get jobs,” a friend of ours said.