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Early Action and Early Decision Policies for the Top 50

Whether you have a dream school in mind or you want to get the stressful college application process out of the way as soon as possible, applying early action and early decision are great options for students who feel confident with their application components and are willing to commit to a school. The difference between early action and early decision lies in the nature of the commitment. When you apply early decision, you sign a binding agreement - you’re choosing to commit to the school if you're accepted. Early action on the other hand is nonbinding. If you’re not ready to sign the dotted line during the November deadline, a lot of schools - particularly liberal arts colleges - offer a second early decision round in January.

It’ll probably come as no surprise to you that every school has different policies for early applications. Not all colleges and universities offer early action - some have two early decision options, and some offer no early application route at all. To guide you through the rules at the top schools, I’ve outlined the early action and early decision policies at the top 50 national universities and liberal colleges with their deadlines, as well as the trends across different schools and how much of a difference applying early can make to your college application.

Table Key

• Early action (EA) - Nonbinding admissions process for students to apply to college earlier than the regular deadline, usually in November of senior year. Students receive admissions notifications in December, and if accepted, are not required to commit.
• Early decision I (ED I) - Binding admissions process for students to apply to college earlier than the regular deadline, usually in November of senior year. Students receive admissions notifications in December, and if accepted, are required to commit.
• Early decision II (ED II) - Binding admissions process for students to apply to college closer to the regular deadline in January. Students receive admissions notifications in mid-February, and if accepted, are required to commit.
• Restrictive early action (REA) - REA is process more restrictive than early action but less committal than early decision. Students can apply only to their single-choice EA institution in the early round, with exceptions. Students can’t apply to any ED school, but can apply to other EA schools. 
• Single-choice early action - Nonbinding process for students to apply to their top institution. Students cannot apply to other schools EA or ED.
• Regular decision - Vast majority of students apply regular decision, usually in January, and are notified in late March or early April. Students have no obligation to commit if accepted.

Now that you’ve familiarized yourself with the terms, let’s look at the early application policies at the top schools around the country. The table has been updated to reflect changes for the 2020-2021 cycle implemented due to COVID-19.

Early Action and Early Decision Policies for the Top 50 National Universities

Listen to Ben Schwartz, a Former Assistant Director of Admissions at Dartmouth College, talk about the different policies and the advantages of applying early in our podcast here:

Early Action and Early Decision Policies for the Top 50 Liberal Arts Colleges

Trends Across Schools

Most of the schools on the two lists offer early action and early decision programs. The University of California schools do not have early admission rounds, but their regular applications are due on November 30, which is earlier than regular decision dates for most schools. Princeton, Harvard, Yale, and Stanford offer restrictive early action, which despite being nonbinding, does not allow students to apply to other schools early - with a few exceptions.

Another notable trend lies in the fact that early action applies mostly in the case of national universities, while early decision II is offered mostly by liberal arts colleges. Wash U, Boston College, Boston University, Emory, Brandeis, Case Western, RPI and Northeastern are the top national universities which offer ED II. Sewanee, Centre, Colorado, Soka and the University of Richmond are liberal arts colleges with early action options. This statistic makes sense since national universities are larger and receive a lot more applications. Because liberal arts schools have fewer spots, they are more interested in students who are 100% willing to commit, and thus offer two different options for binding early decision.

Advantages of Applying Early Admission and Early Decision

Since you’ll be going up against a smaller application pool no matter which school you apply to in the early round, you have a greater chance of admission into a college, even just statistically speaking. Of course, you need to have excellent grades, test scores, extracurriculars, and essays to compete against the best students across the country. But historically, the acceptance rates at top schools have been significantly higher in the early round than the regular, as shown by the table for Ivy League colleges below:

Schools use early action and early decision admission numbers as ways of estimating the yield of incoming classes. Since colleges know students applying early are likely or formally bound to commit, early applicants are more likely to get accepted. The early action and early decision rates are inflated by legacy students and recruited athletes. Keep in mind that the recruitment process for athletes is an entirely different one, as they are usually in touch with coaches who then relay the information to admissions officers.

It’s clear that schools are able to admit a greater percentage of students who apply in this round. But, you shouldn’t just send a half-polished application for hopes of an admissions boost. Most students who apply early typically have their act together. You will be competing against students confident in their grades, scores and extracurriculars. If you submit a mediocre application, chances are you will not fare very well. If you apply EA, and you’re a mediocre applicant, colleges won’t accept you knowing that you’re a mediocre applicant and that they can’t count on you for yield. Sometimes for ED, even it’s not in the best state, students rush to finish their application to their dream school to increase their chances and hoping for a miracle. This strategy isn’t a sound one.

But, if you think your profile is solid, your application is ready to be sent, and you are 100% sure what your top choice is, why not apply ED? If there’s a liberal arts college you really want to go to but your application is not up to the mark in November, you can always apply ED II.

Applying early action and early decision to college not only increases your chances of acceptance, but if you’re accepted, you don’t have to submit regular decision applications! Of course, you should continue working on RD applications until you hear back to prepare for all outcomes. But once you’ve been notified, you’ll have a giant responsibility lifted off your shoulders. Plus, you’ll be able to save time and money.

Disadvantages of Applying Early

Applying early decision isn’t an ideal option for everyone - it has its downsides. Since it’s binding, once you’re accepted, you won’t be able to explore other options or know whether other schools might make better financial aid offers. If you’re not 100% ready to commit both mentally and financially, don’t take the plunge! Moreover, you’ll need to have everything in order and ready to go 2 months earlier. If stronger second quarter grades could benefit your profile or you’re waiting to achieve something major before January, hold back on early decision.

Although early action may seem more beneficial and appealing with not fully committing, EA has its own disadvantages. For example, if you’re applying to a school which has both ED and EA, such as Colorado College or the University of Richmond, admissions officers are more likely to consider you more seriously if you apply ED. You might apply EA to keep your options open, which they could see as a sign of a student who’s not likely to commit if they are accepted.

The idea of choosing a single college when there are so many options to explore can seem scary. But, with thorough research and an examination of majors and departments, student groups, and facilities offered by a campus, you might find a school that is the perfect fit for you early in your college search. If that’s the case, why wait until the regular decision? Look at the early action and early decision requirements and deadlines of your choice and start preparing now. If you get college applications out of the way early, you can have a stress free last semester of high school, and that is a win.