<p>If it makes you feel any better, I applied to Purdue this week as well, for the same reason (Merit elegibility). I also applied to Stanford SCEA. I believe the early deadline is for merit elegibility only, but that aside from scholarship elegibility, an app submitted today is treated the same way as one submitted three months from now. </p>
<p>I may be wrong, but I believe the important thing is just not to apply to any other “early” programs. I don’t believe Purdue will treat our apps as “early” applicants just because we wanted to eligible for merit awards; there was never any point in the app where it asked early vs. regular. I believe, as an above poster mentioned, it’s rolling at Purdue.</p>