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The counterargument against ED’s escape clause is reasonable. However, your conclusion–that it’s a “stupid” practice–is not reasonably applicable to all cases.</p>
<p>I reference my own situation again: my parents were willing to pay as much as they could afford, period, for me to attend Swarthmore because it was also THEIR first choice. My mother said explicitly, when she OK’ed my ED application, that she was willing to pay 5k/year more for Swat than for Pomona, a comparable school but much farther away geographically–she was willing to pay more for the privilege of having me close to home. And if Swarthmore had NOT worked out, I would have declined with no regrets and attended a school that my family could afford after RD decisions.</p>
<p>Any FA ED applicant should be fully aware of the “risk” that their ED school will be unaffordable, as might comparable schools in the RD round. If you are concerned about regret due to a “better offer,” then you shouldn’t apply ED. Think of it another way: if you were accepted to every school on your list with “affordable” FA packages but Barnard was the MOST expensive on the scale of “affordable,” would you still choose to attend? Would your family be willing to make that sacrifice?</p>