Might as well apply to Case Western EA although if one is worried about getting at all, in ED does give one an edge. Thats interesting that ED may not come with merit awards, IF thats true,perhaps it is because the family has already said they can afford Case Western or ready and willing to take loans per the ED agreement? . I tend to think its not true and the kids applying ED that have read these posts and not gotten merit awards, may not have the strongest stats to win merit awards, but I do not know.
If you cannot to pay full price for Case Western, OR unwilling to take an education loan, for sure do not apply ED. Apply EA. That still shows interest but also indicates that you cannot afford to pay cash and may go to another school for any reason, including you like it better, they give you a better award than CWRU or you just want to stay close to home, for instance. ED means you have the cash or ready to take the loans to pay for your education. Usually only rich families or families with resources or families willing to take out education loans, risk ED. I do not know any middle income families that would use ED. However low income families may be OK using ED, if they know the EFC is very low, as then the student is likely to get good financial aid. I don’t know that CWRU states that they can meet 100% of demonstrated NEED though , so this means the lower income student is ready and willing to take an education loan.