I am probably not going to be applying for environ eng for UW (it is pretty challenging), so I hope by applying to their environ sci major can give me a lil advantage.
Thank you so much for the advice!
Rice was my dream college at first, and I feel like I do have a solid understanding with their school vibe/programs and stuff, so I hope that will help with my application
the only reason imma kinda hesitating in between washu and rice is that stats wise, rice is harder to get in than washu (however, if I got into both, I would FOR SURE be thrilled to go to rice than washu).
yea, my fam is kinda high income, so fortunately I won’t need to bother myself about the crazy high tuition. the reason I am ed-ing is that i feel like this would be my best chance of getting into really top-tier unis (so I get all the network, internships, and opportunities)
indeed my stats and extracurriculars are okay (comparatively), but with those crazy international X first place or Olympiad winner, i dont know if i will stand out, so I want to take advantage of the higher acceptance rates during ed.
I have been volunteering in FTC events for 10 years and don’t remember this theme. Could you verify which year this was? I don’t recall any FRC theme of “zero to hero” either.
It is an inter league event
And zero to hero is the note along with the judges choice award
If your interest is in Environ Eng, I would not change to environ sci just for easier admission. FYI, S24 got accepted by uDub DTC ENG OOS with UW GPA 4.0, but less rigor, EC and award comparing with you. Good Luck.
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okie dokie!! thx a lot for the info, i will keep that in mind 
FTC is a well-known EC, especially for STEM students. When I coached FTC teams, my students applied to the universities on your list. I believe there are plenty of FTC teams in WA, so the AOs are likely familiar with the themes and awards. The way you wrote the award item is confusing in that it looked like “zero to hero” was a game theme. Also, Judge’s choice award is presented to the team not individual, so it benefits you if your contribution is outlined.
okay! got it, thank you so much for the suggestion!
Definitely do not ED2 WashU over Rice then.
So for the record, those opportunities are actually going to exist at every college you are applying to. What you are going to learn in college, though, is they don’t happen automatically. You have to do well in your classes, when relevant interview well, make a good impression on professors, and so on. So the most important thing is to choose a college where you think you will do very well, which usually includes choosing a college where you think you will be happy.
I would caution you to have modest expectations. It isn’t the same pool applying during ED and RD, and that can explain most or indeed all of the observed difference in acceptance rates. And even if it does make a difference in some individual cases, it could still make no difference at all in most cases.
Of course if you have a clear and affordable favorite, then there is not necessarily a downside. I just think it is a bit hazardous to assume it makes a significant difference for every applicant, which indeed would not make much sense from the college’s perspective.
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If envi policy or science are in the running, you need to consider the cost of graduate school as well. Especially for policy. Envi engrg you don’t really need grad school to get a good salary throughout your career. Also, if you’re thinking of policy or science, make sure you don’t take out any loans if you can help it, for either undergrad or grad school. Either of those two paths are very rewarding but not particularly well paying. (Unless you follow them with a law degree.). Speaking from 25 yrs of experience as an environmental professional. 
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Thank you so much for the thorough response. Would you mind-expanding a little bit more about your statement that ED won’t give applicants a significant benefits for most or all cases? Thank you so much!
Thank you so much for the suggestions.
My parents will cover everything in college for me, so it is very unlikely that I will have any loans on my by the time of graduation. But thinking about grad school, dont really know if I will want any more schooling by 22 yrs old. I will think more about it.
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I wasn’t either . I went to work as an entry level envi scientist right after undergrad. Got my MS in Environmental Science & Engineering going part time to Virginia Tech later on. The MS wasn’t needed right away and it was good to have some experience to verify my path before paying for grad school. Later on, for advancement, the graduate degree was helpful. For policy, I think you will also need a graduate degree to advance. But again, you can start out, try different things, and then go back once you are clear on your path. The environmental field is very broad, you’ll have many paths available to you.
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Sure.
Just to begin with, it doesn’t make much sense that a college would admit someone in ED if it would not also want to admit them RD. And if a college is not sure it would want them in RD, it can just defer them. And in fact, highly selective colleges do either defer or reject a lot of ED applicants. So basically definitionally, applying ED did not help those applicants.
Then among the ED applicants actually accepted, some are typically hooked applicants like recruited athletes and faculty kids and such. Sometimes they may be encouraged to apply ED to get the full benefit of their hook, but that really has nothing to do with unhooked applicants.
And then some of the unhooked applicants accepted in ED are just really well-qualified and really good fits, and the college would have wanted them in RD too.
OK, so applying ED probably does not actually make a difference for most applicants, particularly unhooked applicants.
However, there are a few cases where it might. Like, there is a plausible theory that some colleges identify some really well-qualified applicants as being very unlikely to actually yield if given an offer. The basic idea is they are assuming those applicants will get multiple other offers from colleges they will likely prefer.
Now, some colleges facing that situation admit them anyway, then fight for them with merit offers, honors, and so on.
But if a college doesn’t have that stuff, possibly there would be some really well-qualified applicants they would reject or waitlist in RD because their yield model was reporting far too low a chance of them actually taking the offer. And so maybe they don’t want to wait around for their offer to get rejected, they would rather give it to someone they calculate might actually accept it.
In cases like that, it could be true that applying ED will prevent a college that really likes you from assuming you would go elsewhere, such that they then admit you instead.
But again it is kinda funny to think of that as ED helping you get admitted. Sort of, but not in the sense of making the college like you better. Instead, the premise is they really liked you a lot in the first place, but will be convinced you would go somewhere else if you don’t bind yourself to taking their offer.
Anyway, just some things to think about. But the common idea that colleges would give anyone who applies ED some sort of “boost” doesn’t really make sense from the colleges’ perspective. They are still only going to admit applicants who they really like in the first place, and if they don’t like them enough, applying ED probably won’t help.
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OTOH, there’s always the throwback position which is that it’s nice to get into a school you really like, really early and have done with it. I think that’s why it’s called Early Decision 
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Exactly. The kids who got into their favorite college early and then could just enjoy the rest of their senior year were in an enviable position.
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