You may wish to apply under an early application program. Typically, these applications must be completed by November 1 or 15, and a decision reaches you in December or January. You may also want to apply Regular Decision, in which case the application is typically due January 1 or 15, and your decision reaches you early March through early April.  Talk to your college counselor about these options! 

For every application you complete, there will be deadlines to which you must adhere in order to become a candidate for admission. They are defined as follows:

Regular Admissions:

The student applies by a certain deadline, usually between January 1st and March 1st, and is notified of a decision on or shortly after a specific date, most often between early March and early April.

Early Action:

The Early Action (EA) deadline is usually between November 1 and December 15,  and the student is typically notified of a decision (Admit, Defer, Deny) in December, January, or February. Admitted students are not bound to attend.

Early Decision (and Early Decision II):

The Early Decision (ED) deadline is often November 1 (ED II is often in January), and the student is usually notified of the college’s decision in December or January. One of three decisions is rendered: Admit, Defer, or Deny. 

A student who receives a fall admit to an ED application is bound to attend the college and must withdraw any other active applications. Applications that are deferred are simply put back in the pile and looked at again with the regular pool of applicants. If deferred, they are no longer committed to attending the college should they be accepted later in the year (seniors, please refer to the "I'm Deferred--Now What?" document in Canvas). Some colleges have a policy of denying Early Decision applicants not chosen early, rather than deferring them to the regular pool. While an outright denial can hurt, it does relieve the anxiety of having to wait for a decision, and it helps to clarify choices moving forward.  

A student may submit only one Early Decision application at a time. However, several institutions have ED I and Early Decision II (EDII) deadlines; the latter are designed to attract students not ready to apply in November and applicants who may have been denied or deferred from another college earlier in the year. Early Decision candidates must be ready to apply to other colleges immediately in the event that they do not receive an acceptance of their ED application.

While it is tempting to see only the strategic bump suggested by Early Decision admission statistics, it is important that students recognize the choice they are making by applying ED.  If admitted, students are bound to attend, so the BB&N College Counseling Office does not advocate submitting an Early Decision application unless the student is absolutely sure that the college is THE top choice. 

Every year, we hear students say, “I know I am applying Early Decision somewhere, I just don’t know where yet.”  Using an Early Decision application ONLY as a strategic maneuver to get into a college earlier is fraught with potential difficulty. When students use ED only as a strategic maneuver, it can lead to matriculating at a school that students later might find is a bad fit, and ultimately might lead to a transfer process that is stressful for all.

“Rolling” Admissions:

Colleges that use rolling admission will review a candidate’s credentials shortly after they are received (usually not before the end of the first high school marking period of the senior year), and will notify the candidate of the decision within a few weeks. The student generally does not have to tell the college whether they will be attending until May 1. As a rule, the stronger the student, the earlier they may receive a letter of acceptance. 

Note that in these competitive times, many rolling admissions institutions become more selective as the year goes on. It may be best, therefore, to apply early in the year. Always check with your counselor about timing.