<p>Hi. I am a parent who has been watching this thread. I have a daughter who wants to apply EA but has a 32 ACT score in an otherwise outstanding application. I have been concerned about the divergent opinions found on this forum regarding EA, and the advisability of submitting one’s application for EA with anything other than a 33 or higher. I recently saw a response which suggested that applicants who apply early, and are deferred,may receive less consideration than the new applications that arrive by 12/31. This contradicts the admissions counselor who spoke to my daughter directly about this very issue. She stated that there is no penalty for applying early but advised my daughter to wait and enter the regular admission pool. </p>
<p>In view of the recent questions about EA and the contradictory advice offered on this forum, I contacted UND admissions and asked for clarification on this issue. I was also told by someone in my area, who has ties to UND, that it is harder to get in as a woman, since UND has many fewer residence spots for women. You will see the admissions counselor’s response to that issue as well. I will post the reply below:</p>
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<p>Thank you for your e-mail. I am very glad that you contacted our office to have your questions answered!</p>
<p>Because we have not seen all of our applicant pool in Early Action, we are more conservative when making admissions decisions at this time. We typically only admit students in EA who are very strong in all six of the areas of the application that we consider (grades/GPA/class rank, rigor of curriculum, standardized test scores, extracurricular involvement, letters of recommendation, and writing). Based on our applicant pool last year and our sense of the applicant pool for this year, a student with a 32 ACT would be more competitive in regular action.</p>
<p>Students are in no way penalized if they apply during early action and are deferred. They are given the same consideration as any other regular applicant. However, we encourage students who are deferred to contact our office to see how they can strengthen their application for regular action. This varies from student to student, so it is best to hear from us what that applicant can do to increase his or her chances of being admitted.</p>
<p>I hope this helps to clarify the issue of early action. Ultimately, the safer choice would be for your daughter to wait and apply during regular action, as her chances of being admitted would be greater during this time.</p>
<p>I can assure you that we do not have different admissions standards for women. Gender is never a factor in our decision process.</p>
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<p>I hope this is helpful to those of you who are struggling with this decision. I also hope that those of you who plunge ahead and apply EA will share your outcomes with us anxious parents and students. </p>
<p>Good luck to all who wish to enter the Notre Dame class of 2015!</p>