<p>I know there are several schools that have non binding EA, with of course early notification. My question is this-why would a student apply RD instead of EA if they know they are applying to one of these schools? Am I just missing something? I have heard kids in September talk about applying to let's say, UNC, but they apply RD. The only logical reason I could come up with is that they didn't, or couldn't get the application ready by November 1.</p>
<p>At BC, Villanova, and Georgetown, it is more difficult to get in early due to tougher competition.</p>
<p>But I think the real reason is because people can't get it all in on time!</p>
<p>I'm sure it varies by school, but I can think of a reason why EA may not always be the best option: in EA and RD you get compared to a different group of applicants, which is what Ilcapo is saying.</p>
<p>For example my D was accepted by Harvard in RD, but I'm not so sure she would have been accepted there in EA. Northstarmom, who is a Harvard alumna interviewer, has repeatedly made the point that the EA acceptees tend to be kids in the stratosphere - with extraordinary national or international recognition and achievements. Once they've got those all chosen, they then the fill up the rest of the class with "regular" high end kids in the RD round. And it's clear that at many schools a deferred EA applicant does not have the same shot as an RD applicant. Coming off the deferral list is often an even longer long shot than RD.</p>
<p>So in cases like this, IMO, it might be easier for the applicant to outshine the other vals, sals, and NM finalists in the RD round than it would be to outshine the Intel finalists and Olympic gold medalists in the EA round.</p>
<p>I'm not sure this applies at all schools, but it probably applies to some beyond Harvard.</p>
<p>There are a number of reasons not to apply Early Action. If you need to up that GPA a little bit, work on a teacher, get that application tweaked to perfection, need to show some demonstrated interest. You are not always ready by 11/1 to show your best stuff. Some kids are taking their first AP courses then, a strong grades in those could make a difference. Also many EA schools have restrictions on the combination allowed. The top schools tend to be single choice EA which restricts you to one early school. Also some kids have their eyes on an ED school that cannot be matched with an EA school.</p>
<p>But kids also tend to procrastinate. So many kids are sending that app on 12/31 as the ball drops in Time Square that I would not be surprised if the lines jam at that desperate hour.</p>
<p>I've heard somewhere that EA/ED, as stated previously, is used to secure the anchor of the class ...best and brightest, assurance that GPA and SAT medians don't stray too far, etc.....and once that anchor group has been selected, the adcoms know how much "liberty" they can take with the balance of the admits (RD). If they know that the ED class SAT median is above their median trend, then can take risks with the Rd applicants and select a few that bring the average down....without worry that their USNews rank is in jep. </p>
<p>If this is true, then the ED/EA admit pool would have to be especially selective since they represent such a small fraction of the overall acceptances.</p>
<p>According to "The Early Game", EA is advantageous to all applicants at many schools even without the binding agreement. Looking at stats over the years, it is pretty clear that was the case. Whether it still is, remains to be seen.</p>
<p>My personal opinion is that the earlier you get your apps reviewed, if you have all of your ducks in a row, the better your chances. Adcoms start the process fresh and ready to put together a classs and it is just human nature that they are going to be more generous at the beginning of the process when they have all those seats to fill. When the crunch come, it becomes necessary to deny more than accept simply because there are not enough seats left at the more selective schools. Also in the beginning, you are not the 1000th violinist or the 720th year book editor. In a sense, you are compared to everyone already admitted since diversity in activities and interest is a goal in putting together a class. There is also the advantage to the college to accepting kids early in that there are kids who have not yet finished their RD apps, and they just might decide to spend Christmas break enjoying themselves instead of finishing up apps since they are already accepted to a school. Why break your neck, if you are happy with an EA school? Ya gotta do the apps if you want to go somewhere, but once you have a place to go, the urgency disappears. That Princeton app looks awfully ugly and if you are accepted EA at Yale, why bother?</p>