<p>I think we are ascribing too much motive to the OP’s “friend.” His list, and his strategy with EA, is no different from that of thousands of other kids. To suggest that he is more concerned about being able to “one-up” his classmate rather than do what he thinks is best for his future is silly. Not to mention, I don’t see anything wrong with NOT going with an EA choice. Kids can do a lot of growing up between fall and spring of senior year. What seems important now might not in a few months, especially when the excitement of getting into his top schools subsides and he has to decide where he wants to spend the next four years. Yes, Harvard gets the overwhelming majority of kids it admits (I believe it’s 75% or so), but there is still that chunk that says “thanks anyway” and goes elsewhere. Maybe the friend is one of them.</p>