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Is applying for early admissions for colleges, and being tied to one school, really worth it?
I'm curious to hear what people who've applied to universities via early admissions have to say about being committed. I worry about getting a better offer, possibly with more scholarship money offered, that would've been a better choice but I won't be able to accept.
#earlyadmissions #college #scholarships #committed #college-admissions #early-decision
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Kelsey’s Answer
Early admission and committing to a school is worth it if that specific school is your dream school that you want to attend more than any other school. If you do not have your heart set on a specific school, or you decision will be based on financial aid and available scholarships I would not recommend applying for early admission.
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Inali’s Answer
I applied early decision to the university that I ended up attending. My school is highly selective and I chose to apply ED to increase my chances of admission. In that regard I think it was a good decision for me. I spoke to others with similar admissions statistics who did not apply ED and were not offered admission so I do think that it was a significant factor in my offer of admission.
I do somewhat regret applying ED however because it limited my ability to compare the offer from the school I attend with other possible schools. I applied ED primarily because of the reputation of the school. I got hung up on the schools reputation and high ranking and decided to apply primarily because of that, and consequently I do not think that the school I ended up at is a great fit for me and what I want to do in my career.
With regards to the scholarship/financial aid portion of your question: at my school and I believe most other schools the "binding" nature of the ED contract is not actually as binding as they make it out to be. Most schools will let you out of the contract if your financial aid package that you are offered is not in line with what you were expecting/is not something that you can afford. If you are accepted you will have the opportunity to negotiate with the financial aid office about the money you are offered and can still choose to decline based on cost if you need to.
My advice for applying early decision is to be very clear about what you are looking for in a school. Spend a lot of time sitting with the decision and make sure that you are committing because it is what you actually want-- not because of the prestige or a slightly increased chance of admission. This is the time to be very introspective and make a careful decision. If you have doubt in your mind about your fit at a particular school I would not recommend making a binding commitment. But that being said, I think that ending up at a school that is not perfect for you is not the end of the world. Wherever you end up going to college you can choose to take advantage of the resources available and make the most of it.
I do somewhat regret applying ED however because it limited my ability to compare the offer from the school I attend with other possible schools. I applied ED primarily because of the reputation of the school. I got hung up on the schools reputation and high ranking and decided to apply primarily because of that, and consequently I do not think that the school I ended up at is a great fit for me and what I want to do in my career.
With regards to the scholarship/financial aid portion of your question: at my school and I believe most other schools the "binding" nature of the ED contract is not actually as binding as they make it out to be. Most schools will let you out of the contract if your financial aid package that you are offered is not in line with what you were expecting/is not something that you can afford. If you are accepted you will have the opportunity to negotiate with the financial aid office about the money you are offered and can still choose to decline based on cost if you need to.
My advice for applying early decision is to be very clear about what you are looking for in a school. Spend a lot of time sitting with the decision and make sure that you are committing because it is what you actually want-- not because of the prestige or a slightly increased chance of admission. This is the time to be very introspective and make a careful decision. If you have doubt in your mind about your fit at a particular school I would not recommend making a binding commitment. But that being said, I think that ending up at a school that is not perfect for you is not the end of the world. Wherever you end up going to college you can choose to take advantage of the resources available and make the most of it.