USC adding early decision — could this make regular admission harder?

Colleges & Universities University of Southern California
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USC emailed college counselors and other groups today that it’s launching a binding ED option for almost all majors starting with Fall 2027 applicants. ED applicants need to apply by Nov. 1, 2026 and will receive a decision by mid-December. Just keep in mind that “binding” means if you’re admitted, you’re committed to attending! EA and RD will remain the same.

There are exclusions, though. From the email: “Early Decision will not be available for the USC Kaufman School of Dance, USC Thornton School of Music, or the USC School of Dramatic Arts, whose programs will continue to be considered for admission and scholarships through the Regular Decision deadline of December 1.”

My son got into Marshall ED (Business Admin) in mid-December as part of the pilot ED program, and at the ED Admitted Students Welcome event on campus last weekend, the Dean of Marshall and USC President hinted that this was being expanded.

Hope this is helpful for future Trojans!

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You can read more about this here:

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Gift article. Has a handy table showing % of class each school admits via ED.

Edited to add a couple of points specifically from the article:

At USC, early applications that don’t make the cut will automatically roll into the school’s “regular decision” pool.

What makes it harder for regular applicants to get into schools with early admission is not just the number of colleges that offer it. It’s the growing portion of each freshman class that is taken up by early admits, which leaves fewer open spots for students applying in the regular round.
“This is a megatrend,” said Allen Koh, chief executive of Cardinal Education, a college consulting firm in Palo Alto. “The game theory of college admissions has changed quite a bit” since the explosion of early decision

At USC, Brunold said he expects to fill 35% to 40% of freshman seats through early decision when the program debuts next year.

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Nice to see some transparency with ED percentages.

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Admission to the University of Southern California is about to change as USC joins a national “megatrend” transforming how selective colleges accept students — and potentially making it harder for many to get in.

For the first time, USC will offer an early decision option for most undergraduate majors. The approach — long used by some private universities to lock in highly interested students early in the admission cycle — is gaining popularity and taking up a larger share of freshman classes across the country.

Under this system, students can apply to multiple colleges, but only one through early decision. At USC, applications that aren’t admitted early will roll into the regular decision pool.

You can search the share of freshmen enrolled through early decision at any U.S. college here. (gift link)

Early decision is also binding. While students can sometimes back out for financial reasons, colleges value early decision because it gives them near certainty that those applicants will enroll.

But critics say that early decision tends to favor wealthier applicants, since they don’t need to compare financial aid offers from multiple schools. USC’s early deadline will be Nov. 1, with decisions released by mid-December — before most financial aid packages are available.

“My advice to students is simple: Only apply early decision if it’s your clear first choice and financially viable,” said Adam Nguyen, founder of Ivy Link, an admissions consulting company.

Some critics have even challenged the system legally. A recent federal lawsuit described early decision as limiting competition by preventing students from comparing offers across colleges.

What may matter most for applicants is how early decision impacts their shot at getting in, either via the early decision round or regular decision.
USC is already highly competitive, with an acceptance rate around 10%. If a significant portion of the class is admitted early, the odds for students applying through regular decision could become even more difficult.

Curious what others think:

  • Does this make applying early decision more important at schools like USC?
  • Is this trend fair to students who need to compare financial aid?

Thanks for reading. You can check the San Francisco Chronicle’s definitive guide to California colleges here.

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To answer the question in the title of the merged thread, if they are looking to admit 35-40% via ED, if this is higher than current EA admit pool then yes it will make RD harder - is there data on what % they typically admitted EA?

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For class of 2029 there were about 3500 EA admits USC expects 10% acceptance rate for Class of 2029 - Daily Trojan

out of 9,345 total admits(for fall 2025). So ~37% of the total admits were in EA.

It’s important to note that even though USC is adding ED, they are also keeping both EA and RD. I would expect RD acceptance rates will decrease, and those admits even more limited to those who fulfill the remaining institutional priorities.

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This means that an ED or EA deferral from USC provides the least possible information, since a deferred applicant could be (from USC’s point of view) either an obvious reject or a borderline applicant who has a chance of RD admission.