vonlost

"We will not do ED with any of our subsequent students as a result of your advice."

That could cost them admission to their first-choice schools; ED confers an admission advantage at most schools. ED does require the school's being the by-far number one choice, IMHO.

Ignoring speculation that ED and RD aid differs, if you can't afford a school at ED time, you can't afford it at RD time, either; the disappointment is the same. So if ED doesn't work out, you apply elsewhere RD (or ED II) as if ED wasn't attempted. It even allows time to develop alternate favorites. If it does work out, the student is freed from preparing all the other applications and can relax during the spring semester.

As long as the student has a number one favorite, I don't see the downside of applying ED. I know others do!

Lakemom

ED is a business advantage for colleges. Often parents can negotiate a better package after they have all the RD ones in front of them and they call the so called #1 school and ask if the school can top their offer. My car purchasing analogies really appy to ED.


We hear constantly how over 50% of students change their major. Can you really rely on the opinion of a 17 year old that no other school is as good as the one that is their top choice?

No one should feel pressured to apply ED or the might not get in. If they don't, they don't. There are other schools, boyfriends and careers out there. Disappointing yes, but better disappointed then broke.

vonlost

^ I do think that's a misuse of ED to try to negotiate. If there's any thought about wanting to compare FA offers, don't apply ED; do so only when the only question is: Can I afford it?

Many ED applicants are delighted with their FA offer, many are not. NYU is clearly one place to expect a poor FA offer.

wmurphy126

vonlost, i think Lakemom means that ED is an advantage for schools because you can't negotiate. RD is an advantage for students because they can negotiate. It took me a couple times of reading over it to understand what Lakemom meant :P

Lakemom

Sorry I wasn't clear. I am not for applying to any school ED. I think it is not a good choice given that 17 year olds really are not reliable to say that is the only school they want.

I meant that if you have offers from RD schools and one is the preferred school but the package isn't as good as one would like then you can negotiate with the #1 RD school that you got a better offer from another RD school and see if they will match it.

When you apply ED, you have to withdraw from all other RD schools if you get in so you will not be able to see what they offer.

If you apply ED you must be willing to take what you get-- period. That is why it is an advantage to richer parents who can take the hit if the FA and merit money is not so great and an advantage to college because they then get a slot filled.

So I would not recommend to anyone you apply ED unless you an afford it, what ever the it turns out to be.

vonlost

Don't forget the main ED advantage for the student: Increased chance of admission to the "dream" school. When admitted ED and the FA offer is enough, everyone is happy. This student doesn't care if a school she doesn't want to attend is cheaper.

Don't minimize this: If you want to compare FA offers, don't apply ED.

notrichenough

One school of thought says that there is an admissions boost.

Another school of thought is that the applicant pool is higher quality in ED, and that is why the admissions rate is higher. IOW, if the ED admissions rate is 20%, if you look at the subset of RD applicants that have the same quality of application as the ED applicants, their acceptance rate will also be 20%.

Do schools release enough information to tell one way or the other?

ohiobassmom

^ I think it depends on the school. Elon seems to have a MUCH higher ED admit rate than RD, but other schools notsomuch.

Lakemom

notrichenough, I actually thought that was not the case. That more students apply ED to their reach school and think by applying ED they are increasing their chances. Especially if the school knows that the student is not applying for FA aid.

notrichenough

Of my kids' friends that I know applied ED somewhere, their GPA/stats were such that no school could be considered a reach. So I can't judge from personal experience.
If the school considers this, I would think this would likely give an equal boost in RD.

Lakemom

Knowing a student isn't applying for FA for RD could give a boost but remember, only a reduced percent of accepted RD kids go that college. You can look at schools stats and see how many admitted and how many enrolled. It is significantly less.

With ED, it must be over 90% I would think. I have never seen those stats. I don't think schools would really want anyone to know how many students bailed out of ED.

oldfort

By applying ED, it is showing the ultimate love. One admission person said that everyone wants to be loved.

D2 applied ED to Cornell because it was her top choice, but at the same time, no one has been admitted to Cornell in the last 5 years. The reason - they admitted few students 6 year, and no one matriculated. Every year they would have 10+ students apply, and they would be out right rejected. Even though D2´s stats were very much above the average, D2 had to let them know that she would definitely go if accepted.

I don´t think it makes a difference to apply to top tier Ivies EA/ED, but for the next tier down, for qualified students it does help by applying ED. A school like Cornell, Penn, NU, Duke like to nail down good applicants early rather compete for them during the RD round. If an appllicant is weak, I don´t think by applying ED helps.

I have posted before that ED is a free option, people should use it wisely. People shouldn´t apply to a school ED if they have no intention of living up to the contract because it could potentially hurt future applicants from that school.

vonlost

ED applicants have generally done their homework, finding a good match. Schools know that many RD apps are throw-away, the applicants often not as serious. Better matches improve the school's stats (graduation rate, etc.).

bluebayou

That data is mostly available with a little digging. A good source is the student newspaper, which usually writes articles about admissions.

I usually agree with vonlost on this point, but only if the ED school meets full need. IMO, there is not much value in being admitted to an ED school only to have to reject their offer due to finances. It would be better, IMO, to reject them in March with other acceptances in hand; the pain to the high schooler will be lessened. Also, an ED app does preclude applying EA at a few schools, such as Georgetown or Boston College. So that becomes a downside for someone interested in those schools.

Second oldfort's point about Cornell and other highly selectives such as Duke. They love the applicant that shows them the love. Our local public usually sends 40+ RD apps to Cornell. 6-8 are usually accepted and only 1-2 matriculate. Thus, against that competition, any competitive app who ED's from our HS with good numbers has a high likelihood of acceptance.

Chargers2012

Athletes are highly encouraged to apply ED at D3 schools. My friend spoke to FA, ot a PR-read, and was ultimately accepted, albeit with NO FA at all!

Who wasn't playing fair in this situation?