Early Action Deadlines for Every College With EA (2023)

FAQs

Does EA increase chances of admission? ›

Generally speaking, early action programs do not significantly increase your child's odds of getting into colleges, especially at highly selective schools. They simply allow your child to find out sooner whether or not they've gotten in.

Yes, and yes. Statistics show that applying early, particularly Early Decision (ED), which is binding, can have a positive tipping effect on your chances for admission. That being said, ED or EA is not for everyone. If you are not at least a solid candidate for the school, you could be rejected outright.

Most early action and early decision notifications come out within a month or two of submission. In the majority of cases, applicants will be notified before the start of the new year. In all cases, EA and ED applicants will be notified weeks or months in advance of regular decision applicants.

The obvious advantage of early action over early decision is the opportunity it gives you to apply to, and ultimately compare financial aid packages from several schools. If you are accepted early decision, you risk missing the admission deadlines of other schools while you wait for your award package to arrive.

What About Early Action? Applying EA may or may not increase your chances of admission, but it can't hurt unless you need: more time to write a really great application, higher test scores, or to count senior year grades. If you need more time to do these things, you may want to apply Regular Decision.

Early action often does not offer a higher acceptance rate but provides the benefit of learning early what the admission decision from the college is. On the other hand, students often do benefit from getting their application in early.”

One step better than a rejection is a deferral. Students should think of deferral as a 'maybe'. Sometimes early admission college applicants are neither accepted nor rejected.

Early decision plans:

You can apply to only one early decision college. If the college accepts you and offers you enough financial aid, you must go to that college.

A deferral doesn't automatically mean that you are rejected. Each university handles deferrals differently: Some colleges—like Georgetown University—defer everyone they don't accept during the early application rounds.

Most schools' Early Action deadlines are in November, typically the 1st or 15th. Another popular Early Action deadline is December 1st. Again, each school's deadlines vary. The earlier deadline schools usually send out their decisions mid-December – January.

Which Ivy Leagues have early action? ›

Harvard University, Princeton University and Yale University have Early Action programs that allow students who are admitted early to also apply to other schools.

Can You Apply to Multiple Schools Using Early Decision? No. Since Early Decision is binding, you cannot, in good conscience, apply to more than one school using this method for college applications. If you do and are caught, it could result in both schools withdrawing their offers of acceptance.

But what happens if you've applied to college as an Early Decision or Early Action applicant? Most colleges will still want to be sent grades from your first quarter of senior year. However, their decision to accept or reject you into their institution will have already been made based on your grades from junior year.

Is early decision better than early action? Yes and no. ED is more binding than EA—it assures what school you'll attend if accepted, limits how you can apply to other schools, and creates uncertainty in financial aid.

Early decision is in most cases binding. However, if you have a good reason for backing out of an early decision offer, like a drastic change in finances or an extreme life change, the school will often let you leave without penalty.

The main drawback to early action is that only a few institutions, including Harvard, MIT, Princeton, and Yale, offer early action. Selective colleges can safely provide this option because they know you will probably accept their offer even if it's not binding.

With so many qualified candidates now applying through early decision programs, it's easy to see why colleges are apt to favor them. In fact, at many schools, early decision applicants are accepted at rates 10-12% higher than regular decision applicants.

The greatest advantage for students applying ED II is that it can improve their odds of admission. Applying ED or ED II won't help you get into a school that you're not qualified to attend, but it can put you ahead of the hundreds – or thousands – of regular decision applicants with similar credentials.

However, it's only when complete high school transcripts are sent to them. In the meantime, the admissions officers decide based on junior year grades or first-semester senior year grades. Having good second-semester senior year grades can secure one's admission.

With EA, an admitted applicant is under no obligation to attend. However, data shows that those admitted via non-binding EA are often more committed to the university and are ultimately more likely to enroll than someone admitted in the regular round (who is likely applying to a dozen other schools).

How many colleges should I apply to? ›

There is no magic number, but five to eight applications are usually enough to ensure that a student is accepted into a suitable institution (depending, of course, on the individual student's record and circumstances). This number should be made up of a combination of “safety,” “match,” and “reach” colleges.

We get it: Being deferred or waitlisted isn't the response you wanted to hear. But it's better than a rejection letter—it means that your application is still being considered!

According to the university, about 15% of deferred applicants gain admission in the Regular Decision round. Yearly trends and changes to the admissions process can also affect deferral statistics.

If your college application is waitlisted, it's basically the same as receiving a "maybe" from that school. If your application is deferred, you will not receive an early admission decision. If waitlisted, agree to enroll in a backup school, but consider writing a letter of continued interest.

While there is no “magic number” of schools students should apply to, the results from Pallais' paper shows that moving from three to four applications led to impressive gains. The College Board suggests that five to eight might be enough. U.S. News and World Reports offers a range of four to eight.

Prospective students apply to around six colleges on average. Students should apply to a balanced mix of reach, target, and safety schools. Only apply to schools you could see yourself attending.

For the most part, the answer to this question is: no. College admissions officers don't have secret meetings to gossip about which of the incoming freshmen applied to their schools. They are much too busy reviewing applications for that.

The greatest advantage for students applying ED II is that it can improve their odds of admission. Applying ED or ED II won't help you get into a school that you're not qualified to attend, but it can put you ahead of the hundreds – or thousands – of regular decision applicants with similar credentials.

For many students, one of the main appeals of applying early is receiving an admission decision earlier, typically by December or January. The admission rates in the early application pool also tend to be higher, even though the pool is typically more competitive than the regular round.

But what happens if you've applied to college as an Early Decision or Early Action applicant? Most colleges will still want to be sent grades from your first quarter of senior year. However, their decision to accept or reject you into their institution will have already been made based on your grades from junior year.

Should you apply to college early action? ›

Applying early can be a good idea if you're sure about which college you want to attend. That means you've researched its programs and, if possible, visited its campus. But think twice about applying early if: You want to compare admission and financial aid offers from several colleges.

Early decision is in most cases binding. However, if you have a good reason for backing out of an early decision offer, like a drastic change in finances or an extreme life change, the school will often let you leave without penalty.

Although the Early Decision 2 admission rate is not as high as Early Decision 1, it can still provide a hugely beneficial bounce. Be careful, though: not all schools that offer ED1 also offer ED2. Be sure to research in advance what schools have an ED2 option, or check with your college counselor.

Can You Apply to Multiple Schools Using Early Decision? No. Since Early Decision is binding, you cannot, in good conscience, apply to more than one school using this method for college applications. If you do and are caught, it could result in both schools withdrawing their offers of acceptance.

Early decision is binding - meaning you promise you will attend if you are accepted - but there is one exception: financial reasons. If you receive your offer and cannot afford the cost, you can let the admissions office know and continue applying to other colleges.

However, it's only when complete high school transcripts are sent to them. In the meantime, the admissions officers decide based on junior year grades or first-semester senior year grades. Having good second-semester senior year grades can secure one's admission.

In most cases, you can apply early action to as many schools as you want. Early action is a non-binding application, and you're free to turn down any school you apply early action to and get accepted by. However, a small number of schools have restrictive early action policies.

Particularly at more competitive colleges, admissions departments are increasingly looking at first-semester grades from the twelfth grade. If there seems to be a “slack off” in the senior year, some colleges may even rescind an acceptance letter—or put an application on hold until performance improves.

Most colleges will ask for the fourth year, but they typically use the grades from the first three years to determine admission. Arguably, the most critical year for grades is the 3rd year, or junior year, because these grades are the most recent and will give colleges the best picture of a student's abilities.

Junior Year is the Most Important

While all the years of high school are important, junior year is definitely one that stands out for many reasons, and for college-bound teens, it may be the most important year of their high school career.

Which Ivy Leagues have early action? ›

Harvard University, Princeton University and Yale University have Early Action programs that allow students who are admitted early to also apply to other schools.

There is no magic number, but five to eight applications are usually enough to ensure that a student is accepted into a suitable institution (depending, of course, on the individual student's record and circumstances). This number should be made up of a combination of “safety,” “match,” and “reach” colleges.

No, in theory, admission officials will not know if you applied via Early Decision or Early Action to another college.