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The
Early Decision Admission Process: Who
Benefits?
Many
colleges offer students the opportunity to apply for
early admission, which includes both early decision
or action. Early admission programs are designed for
students who are certain of their first choice college.
The student applies in the fall (usually November) and
hears within a month. There are two kinds of early programs:
early action and early decision. Early decision involves
a commitment on the student's part - so that if accepted,
the student is automatically matriculated. Early action,
on the other hand, does not involve that commitment.
The student accepted under early action programs has
until late spring to notify the school whether or not
he/she will attend. Early decision is the more restrictive
of the early admission decisions and due to increased
use by colleges and students, should be clearly understood.
According
to the Chronicle of Higher Education (3/15/96),
more students are using early decision. Some universities
like Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, say their applications
for early decision rose by as much as 25% over 1994.
The College Board says that 470 colleges have early
decision programs, up from 400 in 1991. Many college
counselors are concerned by the rise in early decision
applications. They say that early decision locks a student
into a college choice before they can consider all the
implications of that decision. A further concern is
that early decision is used mostly by students from
wealthy families who do not need financial aid. Students
needing aid often must wait for aid offers in April
before selecting a college.
Why
do students use early decision? Some students believe
that early decision applications have an advantage as
a higher percentage are accepted. While statistically
this may be true it is often because the early decision
applicant pool is usually made up of students with more
academic merit. Some students just want to simplify
their lives by concluding the admission process as quickly
as possible, so they can focus on other priorities.
While this can make sense, it can also result in limited
financial aid options with no opportunity for comparison
with other schools.
Why
do colleges encourage early decision? The chronicle
of Higher Education states, "...aside from being
interested in good matches, there are some self-interested
reasons why colleges might want to fill their classes
this way. In most early decision programs, students
promise they will enroll in the college if they
get in. The pledge eliminates some of the guess-work
that characterizes the spring admission season, when
a college might lose to competitors half or three-fourths
of the people it admits." For colleges, early
decision responses are critical to their budget planning
cycle.
Should
students use early decision? If they clearly understand
the limitations of their decision and realize that early
decision is often more convenient to colleges than to
students, this choice may be appropriate. Do students
using early decision have an advantage over students
using the regular admission process? In the majority
of situations, experts agree the answer is no.
Article
supplied by College
Planning Network.
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