princeton vs. yale

f.scottie
Fri, 28 Apr 2006 16:06:18 +0000

i don’t know why fight me over every fact, X. in yale’s last year with a binding ED program, it received 2,611 early applications; in its first year with a restrictive SCEA program, it received 3,928, an increase of more than 50%. that same year, princeton had a 23% drop in early apps, with many would-be early applicants taking the non-binding option at yale or stanford (stanford had switched from ED to SCEA at the same time as yale, and it experienced a similarly large surge in early applications). surely you can appreciate that not everyone is comfortable with the binding nature of ED, and as a result SCEA draws more applicants.

as for your question, crimson, i guess the princeton admissions office (despite its change in personnel and certain processes) continues to think that ED serves it well, as an institution. i strongly disagree and have argued for SCEA (or even open EA, however unrealistic) on this very forum. the office has, however, recently retained some sort of education consulting firm to evaluate its admission program, and it could conceivably make the switch next year if it likes what it hears about the likely outcome.

http://www.yaledailynews.com/article.asp?AID=24210

http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=127990 (#14-15)