Would it be wise for a weak student to apply Early Decision/Action?

I’m asking this on behalf of a family friend, who is a member of the class of 2017. He and his parents are highly considering applying Early to SCU, which supports both an ED and an EA plan (they don’t know which plan they are going to pick yet). Unfortunately, I think the father’s ideas about the Early application process are a bit asinine, and they did ask me for advice.

So here’s the bit on the student: 1460 (Math+Reading, which SCU only looks at, but he has a 680 W or whatever), sub 3.4 GPA after Junior year (significant downward trend with 2 C’s and a low moderate course rigor), which if history repeats itself at his school, will put him in the bottom 25% of his class. He has no extracurriculars, around 40 volunteer hours, and is a high income non first gen Asian Male who lives 1 hour away from SCU.

Here’s the part I don’t like (although I think the parents and family are free to do whatever they decide): the parents believe that applying Early will give him a boost, due to their 300K income bracket (even though admissions is need-blind…) and the fact that Early acceptance rates are “twice as high.” However, the early acceptees from his school have an average 3.63 GPA and roughly the same test scores. This number is also steadily climbing.

Is it wise for this student to apply early when he is behind the historical curve for his school? If not, can any of you suggest appropriate colleges, preferably in CA (but some OOS is fine) for him to apply to?

Any help would be appreciated!

SCU does consider “level of applicant’s interest”, so ED could theoretically be a boost. However, this boost may be mainly for “overqualified” applicants whose yield would ordinarily be lower than those who are reaching for the school. Of course, ED is binding, so it should only be used if the school is the first choice, and there is no need to compare financial aid offers. Applying EA does not require a commitment to attend, but does not give a boost in terms of “level of applicant’s interest” (although knowing a decision early can be helpful to the applicant).

SCU’s ED and EA is described at https://www.scu.edu/admission/undergraduate/first-year-students/early-or-regular-decision/ .

@ucbalumnus All of us come from affluent families and we know enough about college to understand ED and EA, and the matters behind FA (which they stated they do not need), but thanks for the info.

Intended or possible major(s)?

Seems like a realistic application list would consist of CSUs (not just CPSLO or SDSU) and perhaps UCM and UCR (other UCs would be very reachy for him, and even UCM and UCR are not that likely with a sub-3.4 GPA; see http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/infocenter/freshman-admissions-summary ).

Since he’s unlikely to qualify for need based FA, I don’t see what he’s got to lose by applying early. ED will give him a slight boost because it signals to the school high yield.

Unless all the early acceptees from his school have identical GPAs, then some will be lower than the average

@GMTplus7 After the 3.5 mark, acceptances become very shaky, and the school has a history of rejections for those with approximately 3.4 GPAs.

@ucbalumnus I think he is going in undeclared, although he might do biology (even though the C’s were in science and he has never received an A in a science course)

If SCU is his most desired U, then this is a fine plan to maximize his chance into getting into SCU.

However, if you are in the bottom 25% and are not an athlete or something, this plan has a high degree of uncertainty of working.

I would spend more time finding a school that matches better for all the RD/EA2 applications he will end up doing.

He’s got one ED card to play. If he doesn’t play it on his favourite school that he can afford, then what do you propose he play it on?

If SCU doesn’t admit him, then doesn’t he still have time to pursue other schools in the RD round?

If he is a California resident applying to UCs and CSUs, those applications have relatively early deadlines, so he will have to apply there before knowing the SCU result, even if he applies EA or ED to SCU.

Unless there is a chance for the application to markedly improve after the ED deadline (ex. re-taking standardized tests, thinking first semester grades will “wow” admissions etc.) then there is no harm to applying ED – this way they will feel like they gave the school their best shot. He should just be sure to have other applications in to match/safety schools.

It sounds like his GPA was above average until junior year, when he experienced a downward trend. Perhaps there was some reason for the decline that could be explained by his guidance counselor in his/her recommendation? Either way, if this is his first choice and he doesn’t need the aid, I see no problem with going ED. Even with his current GPA, it’s not like he’s THAT far off from their average.

if SCU is his clear-cut no-doubt #1 school of choice and money is not a concern, then he should apply ED there.

it’s just like @GMTplus7 said, if you have only got one ED bullet in the chamber, then aim it at your #1 school. it doesn’t make sense to use ED on schools you don’t like as much as SCU.

@mjrube94 No, his GPA has been on a constant downward trend since freshman year, with no semester ever exceeding a 3.6.

Ok everyone, thanks for the advice. But my main question was the father thought him applying ED would maximize his chances, and that he would have a >90% chance of getting in. Is this true?

well, that’s two different questions. yes, it will maximize his particular chances, but since he is not exactly a sterling candidate to begin with, it’s not going to magically vault him into the 90% range. so yeah, he should apply ED, but the dad has to realize it is far from a sure thing and therefore they have to do due diligence about researching and applying to other options.

A downward trend in grades does not look good to an admissions reader.

Of course, the CSUs only calculate GPA and plug it into a formula, so trends are not noticed. However, a downward trend is still harmful for admission to CSUs, since the GPA is based on 10th-11th grade course grades (grades from 9th grade are not included).

Also, a downward trend does not bode well for the student’s transition to college.

One advantage of applying ED is that if he doesn’t get in, it will be a reality check to apply to more appropriate schools in RD.

@Wien2NC @ciervo Those are very good points, we’ll keep that in mind.
@ucbalumnus The thought of going to a CC has crossed the family’s minds, but the parents are adamant he can make it into a top school.

What is their definition of “top school”? A 3.4 HS GPA with downward trend in low course rigor does not make the applicant look attractive at the more selective colleges.

@ucbalumnus They modify the term “top schools” based on their childrens’ performance. For their older child, “top schools” were literally “top schools.” For him, it’s probably things like UCD, UCI and higher CSUs.

@thisisfine2020

I think you’re confusing ED with “sure thing”. With his stats, SCU is an upward climb. But ED is the least steep path. For all you know, he could write a killer essay…