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Should You Apply Early Decision?

Applying early can mean an answer by December, but early decision is a promise to attend. Here is how the three ways of applying differ, six questions to ask yourself before you commit, and what the early decision agreement asks of you.

Early Decision, Early Action and Regular Decision

Early decision (ED)
Apply early, often by November 1 or 15, and hear back by mid-December. It is binding: if the college admits you, you agree to attend and to withdraw every other application. You may apply early decision to only one college. Some colleges also offer a second round, ED II, with a January deadline, which is binding in the same way.
Early action (EA)
Apply early and hear back early, but nothing is binding: you can apply early action to several colleges and still have until May 1 to choose. A few colleges offer restrictive or single-choice early action, which limits where else you may apply early, so read each college’s rules.
Regular decision (RD)
Apply by the regular deadline, usually in January, and hear back in the spring. Not binding, and it leaves time to compare every offer, including financial aid, before deciding.

Should You Apply Early Decision? Six Questions

Think of one college. If you can answer yes to all six, early decision may be right for you; a single no is a reason to consider early action or regular decision instead.

  1. Question 1

    1.Have you researched this college, and the others you are considering, well enough to know it is your first choice?

  2. Question 2

    2.Have you visited, or otherwise gotten to know its classes, students and admissions office, well enough to be sure?

  3. Question 3

    3.Do its academic programs, activities and campus life match what you want from college?

  4. Question 4

    4.Has your family looked at the cost, used the college’s net price calculator, and agreed you could attend without comparing financial aid offers from other colleges?

  5. Question 5

    5.Have you talked the decision through with your family and your school counselor?

  6. Question 6

    6.If this college admits you in December, would you be glad to withdraw every other application?

Answer all six questions to see where you stand.

Consider early action or regular decision for now.

At least one answer is no. Look at the question again: research, a visit or a conversation about cost may turn it into a yes before the deadline. If not, early action keeps an early answer without the commitment.

Early decision may be right for you.

You have answered yes to all six. Read the agreement below with your family, and keep working on your other applications until you hear back.

What Applying Early Decision Gains and Gives Up

Advantages

  • An answer by December, and with it the rest of senior year without waiting.
  • Fewer applications to write if you are admitted early.
  • At many colleges a larger share of early decision applicants is admitted than of regular applicants, though the early pool is often a strong one.
  • It tells your first-choice college, plainly, that it is your first choice.

Things to weigh

  • A binding commitment, made before you have seen any other college’s answer.
  • Only one college can be your early decision college.
  • No chance to compare financial aid offers before you commit.
  • Deadlines fall early in senior year, so fall grades and late test scores may not be part of your application.
  • A deferral or a denial in December can be discouraging; plan your regular applications regardless.

If You Apply Early Decision

Do

  • Read the early decision agreement that you, a parent and your counselor will sign, and make sure all three of you understand it.
  • Talk about cost as a family before you apply, not after.
  • Withdraw your other applications promptly if you are admitted.
  • Ask to be released only if the financial aid offered makes attending genuinely unaffordable.

Don't

  • Apply early decision to more than one college.
  • Send an enrollment deposit to more than one college.
  • Tell more than one college that it is your first choice.
  • Overstate your activities or let anyone else write your essays.
  • List a major you do not intend to pursue in the hope that it helps you get in.

Every college sets its own deadlines and rules for early applicants, so check each one's admissions website. An Elite Prep counselor can help you decide where, and whether, to apply early.

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