<p>Let's say I really wanted to go to a certain prestigious university, let's say Princeton. Since applying EA/ED gives the applicant a slightly better chance at being admitted, would applying EA be a good choice? I hear that it's bad for low-income students like myself since different schools will have different scholarship options, and a better choice can be made when all is laid out before the student and his family. However, doesn't a school like Princeton offer comprehensive aid to low-income families, so how is applying EA bad for low-income students if he or she wants to go to a prestigious college?</p>
<p>virtuoso, I think you're mixed up between EA (or REA) and ED. Princeton, to use your example, is ED only. </p>
<p>ED, Early Decision, means if accepted you must attend. As a general statement kids who are going to depend on receiving a large chunk of financial aid are advised against applying ED. ED doesn't mean that you won't receive ANY aid. What it means is that you wouldn't be able to compare Princeton's offer to Harvard's, for example or to go back to Princeton and say, "Hey Harvard gave me more. How about upping your package?" (This really happens.)</p>
<p>You are correct that using an on-line calculator will give you a reasonable idea of what to expect. But the nuances of the type of aid -- the proportion between loans and grants for example -- can vary widely and can be difficult to predict. Remember the college is doing the calculating and what they think you need may not be the same as what you think you need. It's not purely formualic, but can be subjective.
The issue here is really one of personal risk. If you're willing and ABLE to risk that Princeton's offer will be adequate, then by all means apply ED. If that isn't such a good idea then don't go the ED route.</p>
<p>Some people believe that RD aid packages are logically better than ED packages because college's know that ED applicants have to accept whatever is given them. There's no way to prove this and many ED applicants do receive generous aid, but it's part of the overall risk factor.</p>
<p>You have to weight this risk against the risk of not being accepted at all if you DON'T apply ED. Only you (and your family) can decide which risk is greater.</p>
<p>Early Action (or Restricted Early Action) allows you a lot more financial freedom as you have no obligation to attend. You can still compare and negotiate your other RD offers. The catch is that if your number one school is an ED school, applying EA or REA somewhere else really doesn't help your situation.</p>
<p>Princeton offers ED, and from what I've heard, it gives people a much higher acceptance rate. Being low-income could also be a plus, but if someone low-income gets in and isn't offered enough financial aid, they will probably have to ask Princeton for better financial aid and explain their situation. The financial aid would probably be good, but not as good as if the aid were offered to entice an applicant away from another prospective school. Also, if they aren't given sufficient financial aid and thus cannot afford tuition, they are allowed to cross the binding decision and not attend the school (although people aren't really supposed to do that, it is possible).</p>
<p>Okay thanks for the replies guys. It helped to clear up the situation. Does anyone know when the ED applications are up for Princeton and when they are due?</p>
<p>Princeton uses the common app or its own (available Aug 8). ED due date is Nov 1. Good luck.</p>
<p>It's due Nov.1? :( I was planning to retake two of my SAT II's in November since I will be taking the reasoning test in October. Guess it's not possible for me to do it then?</p>
<p>The ED gives higher acceptance rate because the applicants are higher quality than the ones in regular decision.</p>
<p>Er, no.
ED has higher acceptance rates because it helps yield and shows applicant interest. </p>
<p>I actually don't see how applying ED would affect Princeton financial aid. I've heard that at other institutions, they offer ED admits lots of loans instead of grants, but since Princeton has a no-loan financial aid policy, how would applying ED change anything significantly?</p>
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It's due Nov.1? I was planning to retake two of my SAT II's in November since I will be taking the reasoning test in October. Guess it's not possible for me to do it then?
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<p>You can take it, you just have to let them know you're taking the Nov. test.</p>