What's with this universal increase in ED applicants?

Applying to College
1

<p>I'm just wondering, despite the economy being so bad, why have the # of early decision applicants skyrocketed this year</p>

<p>[this is based off of Duke [up 33%] and Dartmouth [up 3%] right now, but I'm sure other schools are going to show similar trends]</p>

2

<p>Probably because of all the hype about ED giving higher chances of admission. (legacies and sports do boost the numbers)</p>

3

<p>i’m pretty sure athletes can bypass the whole application process.</p>

<p>some get acceptances as late as june</p>