<p><a href="http://iae.wm.edu/ir/CDS/cds_1314_part_c.pdf">http://iae.wm.edu/ir/CDS/cds_1314_part_c.pdf</a></p>
<p>According to this document they don't. But they took my name when I entered for the tour. I'm sure they must. And in their early decision they are a little nicer to you, and that must be because you express confident interest in attending.</p>
<p>Even some of the big colleges where i am sure they do not take interest into consideration, they will take your name. So that is no indicator. Tufts says they don’t take interest into account either, and I don’t know anyone who believes that. If ED has favorable stats, I think that is a strong indicator that interest does play a role. That’ s really the ultimate indicator of interest.</p>
<p>Demonstrated interest is not a part of our process. We do not track how many times a prospective student makes contact with our office (via calls, emails, visits or any other means). We check you in when you come for a tour so that we can send you a follow-up email (that email can’t go out if we don’t know that you came). And because that helps us gather data on our campus visit and prospective student behavior (for example are you more likely to apply if you visit). Yes, for ED the fact that W&M is your top choice is part of our process (but that’s used equally across the board for everyone who applies ED because every ED applicant is saying that W&M is their top choice). </p>
<p>I see, thank you for clearing that up. So does ED offer strategic benefit? Eg. I wouldn’t make it for RD but would if I applied for ED?</p>
<p>@BassGuitar, the benefit to ED (besides hearing early) is the smaller applicant pool (approximately 1200 compared to over 13,000 in RD). It’s easier for any student to stand out in a smaller applicant pool. That being said, ED should never be used as a strategy because you are committing to attending W&M if admitted.</p>