A popular college admissions practice is unjust and unwise.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/21/opinion/the-plague-of-early-decision.html
I don’t know whether it is “unjust” exactly, but if I had it to do over again I would advise my daughters to skip the Early stuff and focus on RD. For both girls SCEA turned out to be nothing but a stressful and discouraging disappointment. They both got into many fine schools in the RD round, including Ivy League schools, but in EA, no such luck. And the reason why SCEA is so destructive is because if the news is disappointing there are no acceptances coming in at the same time to counter-balance the failure and serve to prevent or at least wipe away the tears. Instead the student is left facing nothing but a long, cold winter.
Seems like the objections may not really apply (or not apply much) to non-binding non-restrictive early action or rolling admissions.
However, it should generally be expected that binding early decision will tip the admit class of a college toward higher SES, due to early decision applicants being willing to commit without needing to compare financial aid offers. This may be the intended effect when colleges are adjusting their admission procedures with an eye toward managing their financial aid budgets (without having to be need aware when reading individual applications).
Everything is “unfair” nowadays…you can pay for college? Unfair.
ED is non binding for FA purposes. If you want to “shop around” for FA, it is no different than shopping around for merit. And you can’t do that in ED either…
I think we’re going too far with all the “unfair” claims.
Bruni is wrong when he states ED hurts low income students. It gives them the best shot at the generous need based aid offered at the top privates and LAC. The middle class “donut” kids who can’t afford to be full pay and have to shop for merit are the ones hurt the most, but generally the media and eduction establishment doesn’t care about these students.
Yeah, everyone’s got a gripe and Bruni needed to say something, by deadline, I guess. D2 went in with eyes wide open, got in ED and was fine, no upheavals. Got great FA, too. And this was before NPCs. But we weren’t nutso, neither of ours was biting their nails over all this. We didn’t allow the notion of a “dream” college, but asked them to find a list of schools where they’d be happy and productive.
My kid, and most of herfriends, finished their applications by November, applying to schools with EA or Rolling admissions. Now they are enjoying their sports and activities and working a part time job, without spending the whole first semester on applications. They all have some admits so far.
I think Bruni’s a nut. ED/EA deadline is 2-3 months before RD, yet Bruni asserts:
- students will "know themselves better" 3 months later
- only privileged families can assemble scores and recommendations 3 months early.
- students "obsess" in the early round (and what?..are calm and relaxed during RD?)
- EA students have a first choice ("a glimmering prize") but in RD they no longer view some schools as more desirable than others (???)
- Early applicants are "playing a board game attaining prestige" while RD are "acquiring knowledge."
I understand that you cannot compare and negotiate FA packages Early. But with NPCs, can’t families compare beforehand and at least have a rough idea what they are committing to?
Two of my kids did ED at a target /high target and got in. It was very happy and they could relax a bit. Third kid applied to a high reach ED and was rejected. So it goes. He had a lot of work to do that xmas but all worked out well in the end.
I think ED/EA is great for some families (certainly not all) and should not demonized.
He wrote about middle income students as well.
And there are many, many, many more selective schools with early decision than there are schools that offer full rides to low-income students.
Coming disproportionately from full pay doesn’t mean a generous college won’t admit or offer good aid to low and middle income kids,in ED. IF a family knows what they can afford and has made a reasonable decision to try ED, has run NPCs, they should have an idea, no?
Of course this doesn’t work when the NPC is high and you’re dreaming, a school doesn’t offer good aid, families are under-informed. Or when there’s a reason the NPC is off or you’re looking for uncertain merit. But in those cases, one shouldn’t do ED.
If my kids were reduced to a sniveling mass of goo over the thought of getting deferred or rejected by their ED school, I would have to take a hard look in the mirror rather than blaming the schools. Secondly, there are 20 million college kids in the US and well over 19 million have no idea that they will be doomed to a life of mediocrity and meaninglessness if they don’t get into a top xx school. Such a perfect first world problem. Maybe even an Upper East Side problem. The kids in the inner city, the kids in Appalachia, the kids on the farms in the Midwest, they couldn’t care less about the unfairnesss of ED.
.I’m fine with EA, not a fan of SCEA or ED. I do think that between September and April there is the opportunity for change. My oldest had exactly the same priorities, but my youngest changed a lot. He almost applied to Vassar ED because he knew he’d get a boost, by April he thought it was too small. Both my kids got into at least one school before December which took a lot of the pressure off.
Totally agree with @mathmom that SCEA is a bad thing. But I don’t blame the schools that do it. They are getting away with it and the numbers keep going up. The problem is the kids and their families don’t do the math, don’t understand basic game theory, and keep signing up to screw themselves out of possibly better alternatives. I’ve seen so many kids burned by SCEA over the last couple years and have made it my personal mission to do everything I can to try to talk them into not signing up for such a sucker bet.
Why is SCEA a " sucker bet"?
I find the whole “applying early is so stressful” argument amusing. Down here in Dixie, the VAST majority of students go to state schools. They apply sometime between August 1 and October 31 and have their acceptances by Thanksgiving.
I remember people being incredulous that D would have to wait until February (ED2) to find out for sure where she would be going to school. They thought waiting that long was way too nerve wracking. 
SCEA is a sucker bet because by the time you factor out the athletes, legacies, and hooked kids, the chance of admittance for the average superstar is barely any better. SCEA may bump you from a 3% chance to a 4 or 5% chance. But then you miss out on any ED schools or any of the large number of great private schools with EA or early scholarship deadlines. That kid with the 5% chance at HYP maybe has a 30-40% chance of getting a large merit award at USC but can’t apply in time for the deadline. That’s a sucker bet.
So for a kid with no interest in any other ED or EA school there’s no issue? That was the situation of many family members. Couldn’t figure out why it was a problem.
Also why can’t they apply to USC? That’s not an EA school as I understand it. The school may give you an answer early if you apply by a deadline but might not. My understanding that this is not prohibited by SCEA.
Harvard comes right out and says at https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/apply/application-timeline/restrictive-early-action :
Stanford specifically states that applying to early deadlines for scholarships is allowed; HYP do not mention this.
As I said the statement about USC is incorrect. From USC website : "USC does not have an Early Decision or Early Action program. "
It should go without saying that one should only apply ED/SCEA if two conditions are met: 1) kid is SURE they’d be thrilled to attend that school and 2) family has run NPC and concluded it is affordable.
If student/family is sure of both these conditions, and has the motivation to get app prepared early, then they are entitled to the slight admissions edge and the possibility of an early acceptance.
It is hardly a plague.
@mathmom Of course sometimes kids change their minds about schools – reassessment could be between Nov.1 (Early deadline) and May 1 (decision due), or between May and September orientation, or during freshman year. It happens. I don’t think this is an argument for dismantling a system that probably 97+% of ED acceptees are very happy with.