So my son (a rising senior) has a list of nine colleges he wants to apply to. I would classify them as two reaches, five matches, and two safeties. Finances are not an issue/concern.
His very favorite school (definitely a reach, but not a fantasy) does not have ED - - only has EA and SCEA
His second choice school does not have EA, but does have ED
Five of the nine have EA.
There seems like three potential strategies he could take.
Apply SCEA to his favorite which means no other early applications to demonstrate his desire to attend
Apply EA to the five schools that permit it
Apply ED to his second choice school (a reach, but he is legacy) and EA to the other five schools as backup
I will probably let him decide the approach, but just wondering which of these strategies is the welfare maximizing one!
With 1 and 3, it seems it would increase his chances of going to his #1 or #2 schools.
With 2, it seems as though the second semester could be a lot more relaxing as some of his safeties are in there.
If he goes with option #3 and he gets in ED to his second choice school, then he is required to attend. Will he be OK with that?
In some SCEA cases, you are allowed to apply to other schools, which you’re probably aware of: This is what the Yale website says:
“If you are a Single-Choice Early Action applicant to Yale, you may apply to another institution’s early admission program as follows:
You may apply to any college’s non-binding rolling admission program.
You may apply to any public institution at any time provided that admission is non-binding.
You may apply to another college’s Early Decision II program, but only if the notification of admission occurs after January 1. If you are admitted through another college’s Early Decision II binding program, you must withdraw your application from Yale.
You may apply to any institution outside of the United States at any time.”
Also from the Yale website:
“Apply for Single-Choice Early Action if you want to receive a decision in mid-December and you are confident of the credentials you will be presenting to the admissions committee early in your senior year. An Early Action applicant must meet the same criteria for admission as an applicant in the regular pool. A thoughtful college search and a careful assessment of your readiness to present a strong application as early as November 1, are key. Candidates who need more time, for whatever reason, will be better served by our Regular Decision process.”
Whatever the SCEA college is for your son, though, you should be fully aware of their individual rules and requirements before he decides what to do.
Thanks so much, Tiggy, for your response and thoughtful guidance. The SCEA option as outlined by this particular school only permits EA applications to an in-state public university. Unfortunately, my son’s list doesn’t include any in state public options, and there isn’t one he would like to attend. So basically, if he does SCEA, and he doesn’t get accepted, we are waiting til March to find out any news. I’m not sure I can stand it, lol.
He really likes his second choice school a lot, and he’s spent the most time there since his brother attends. So I know he would be happy there if he were to get in. The only damper might be if he then got into his #1 school as well. That’s why I’m so unsure about how to advise him.
I guess in the end it’s a very personal choice. I just was hoping to maximize his chances of getting into one of the top two schools, and my intuition says that #3 is the choice that would create the highest likelihood for a favorable outcome at a reach.
I would say apply SCEA to his #1 school! It’s really scary (I know I’ve been conflicted about whether I should apply to my top school SCEA) but in the end if that’s his #1 school he shouldn’t apply ED to another school. But in the end it will be a personal decision for your son, good luck!!
Of the 5 schools that do EA, how many are safeties? I don’t think applying EA to a safety is really necessary. A main reason for submitting EA is because the acceptance rate is a tad higher in EA and ED. For a safety, RD would be just as fine.
I agree that its a personal decision, but if it were me, I’d go with option 1. It gives your son an opportunity to apply to EA II and RD for the other schools on the list. Personally, I don’t like ED because it’s binding.
Sometimes, public schools often offer merit scholarships on a rolling-basis. I’m not sure if that applies to some of the safety privates on your son’s list, but it sure would be worth it to check and see, and so you may want to EA there. Although your son may be able to pay full, it sure would be nice too if he could receive a handsome scholarship.
One other thing that you may need to consider is scholarship deadlines. Two of D’s schools have Nov dates for scholarship consideration so we are moving those up for that. If you apply SCEA I don’t think you can do that.
As for not applying to the safety until the end - I guess that’s one strategy. I am having D apply to her safety early. I think this takes some of the stress off the rest of the process, knowing that no matter what happens, that one is in hand.
@amarylandmom Waiting is the hardest part for our kids (and us parents, too!) After thoughtful reasoning, I’m sure you will all decide what is the best option.
My youngest daughter applied ED to Cornell and it all worked out great for her and she was so happy to not have “admission” stress in 2nd semester. My oldest D applied RD to Carnegie Mellon and it was a long winter waiting for the end of March to come!
@hiimjoe, of the five EA schools, one is the #1 reach choice and two are safeties. I just feel like it would be so nice to have one acceptance in hand by the end of the first semester. as @TiggyB62 so astutely points out, the stress of the waiting gets to me! However this son is quite laid back so it probably won’t bother him! I have been through this before with a son who did ED2, and by the end I just wanted the whole thing to be over! Which is why these other thoughts are helpful . . .I don’t want my son to do anything he doesn’t want to do, but he is also not the most decisive guy!
@me29034, I don’t think my son will qualify for merit or certainly not much! But totally agree on the idea of knowing he is in somewhere is very appealing!
@PartyNextDoor, he has one big public, but it is out of state. Do those give merit to out of staters? His test scores are not special so I feel like merit money won’t end up driving the decision.
I am 5 years past kid 1’s college application and 2 years pre kid 2’s application. So I have some distance from the moment…
Full disclosure Kid1 did not apply anywhere ED, but did apply to an EA school so knew in December she was in somewhere. Did it hurt not to apply ED? Who can say. She was waitlisted at two “match” schools that might have admitted her, but in the end she had plenty of great choices, chose one, loved it and is a loyal alumna happily launched.
I know how easy it is to get caught up in these “strategic decisions” but I would caution you that no one really knows how much of a bump SCEA or even ED gets you. I would agree that it is really nice to know early on in the process that you are in somewhere that you like, but honestly, with a good selection of schools you like, he will get in somewhere. You just need some patience. I would not just grab ED school because you can unless a) he really does want to go there and (OK some strategy, but a) here is primary) b) the school fills a majority of its slots ED and c)the schools legacy advantage only works ED.
If it were me, and the kid didn’t have a clear preference for first choice, I’d go with some EA options and then apply to the rest regular decision. If the EA stuff doesn’t pan out, then re-think. It is really tough to live through December when all his ED friends will relax, but come March, it’s also really nice to have some choices and compare offers…
Tulane? It says that applying SCEA over EA shows a higher level of interest, which it considers, though probably more important for an “overqualified” applicant than one for whom it is a reach.
I am a parent of the senior as well. DD will be using strategy #2. We think strategy #1 is too risky. Her first choice is a SCEA school with a single digit admission.
I would not do number 2 unless a lot of the EA schools are safety. If they’re reaches like Caltech, Chicago, MIT, then writing all those essays before the deadline will kill him.
SCEA is good if he has a good GPA and does not need the extra ‘boost’ from senior year grades.
ED is not good for a school that is not his first choice. Would you want him to go to his second choice school knowing that he may get in his first choice during the regular round?
EDIT: I advise applying 5 EA as it seems a lot of them are his safety schools. SCEA at HYPS does not give that much of a boost and HYPS stress so much that the people who get in early would have gotten in regular as well.
Having a bunch of acceptances before Winter Break will sure feel a lot better than a deferral or rejection from HYPS (big possibility since those 4 schools are just so competitive).
Thanks so much for these insights!! I especially like hearing from those facing a similar quandary. Just to clarify, we are not dealing with the most selective category of schools. I can only imagine how much harder that would be. That being said, I love my son’s options . . .even the safeties are places I can totally see him thriving. He has strong grades, weak test scores, and is very easy going and will probably embrace wherever this process leads him without looking back. I am the one who is over thinking here I am sure, but my oldest got in his top choice, the aforementioned #2 choice of my younger son, (by the skin of his teeth), and he is so happy there. The reaches being considered are in the top 50, but the rest are below that. @ucbalumnus great detective work!
If the #1 is an EA school, I’d go with Option 2. I guess I would not advise a student apply ED to any school other than #1 (because he might get in and then what?). DD definitely liked knowing before Christmas she was accepted at several schools. EA success made senior year a lot less stressful.
Thanks @SlackerMomMD! I appreciate the input. I also feel that having some EA options secured would be so nice. Also worried he might simply get deferred at choice #1 whether SCEA or EA, and that would really be miserable.
I am a little gun shy at this point because the process with my older son was very convoluted and not really good at all. The outcome was good (fortunately), but the path was ridiculous. Trying to create a smoother path this time, but don’t have a good experience to rely upon.
I do feel our college list is much more realistic for this son and that he will have more admissions accordingly - - but perhaps not to the reach schools. Fingers tightly crossed on that one!
@amarylandmom, good thread and lots of thoughtful comments – truly, this thread is CC at its best and you are a gem, too, with your appreciative comments and positive attitude.
I’m in the camp that says your DS should go SCEA at his #1 (Tulane) instead of ED at Bucknell (which I am thinking is where your DS1 goes). You’ve said DS2 is easy-going and would bloom where he is planted (should he not get into his #2 at all b/c he didn’t go ED) and he has a thoughtful and realistic list, so I’d try to channel his calmness and let the process unfold.
If SCEA does not work out for him at Tulane, he can include in one of his Bucknell essays that Bucknell is his first choice, and you could ask his college counselor to convey that to the Bucknell admissions committee (this is where the responsiveness of college counselors in private schools makes all that tuition worth it). I just hate to see kids living with “what ifs” when their first choice scenario is a good possibility – not a pipe dream as with some of the lottery schools.
My DD is a rising senior and we’ve done this “bird in the hand” matrix as well - a complex calculus due to legacy status at both her #1 (SCEA) and #2 (ED) choice schools.
These things tend to work out. We try to be realistic optimists in our family while also stressing the importance of resilience when life doesn’t unfold exactly as hoped, so going to, say, the #8 school on her list of 8 will not be a tragedy under any stretch of the imagination.