As a junior who has just recently begun serious work on college hunting, I can tell you firsthand that it is far from straightforward. The sheer amount of factors that go into finding a suitable college are almost sickening, what with majors, tuition, financial aid, community, internship opportunities, location, and everything in between. However, throughout my time searching through higher education of all shapes and sizes, one specific statistic stuck out to me: early action and early decision opportunities.
WHAT IS EARLY DECISION?
The processes of early action and early decision for college are relatively new ones. The idea is fairly straightforward: if you are committed to a college, you can apply early and get a response early, knowing whether you got accepted months before regular decision applicants would. The idea of this early response is growing in popularity, with about 450 of US higher education institutions offering some sort of plan for early action. And understandably so. Being first in line for admission to your dream university is something that every student wants. Unfortunately, however, early action plans have a dark side, a binding agreement that guarantees a student an early response, so long as they attend the college if they are accepted: the early decision.
EARLY DECISION, OR DANGEROUS COMMITMENT?
Many soon-to-be college students, myself included, find the commitment of early decision quite appealing. Filing for early decision would mean that we’d be the first ones considered to join the freshman ranks, which in turn means that we’d have a better shot at getting in where we want to go. And it’s true: early decision applicants have up to a 60% higher chance of admission in comparison to their regular decision counterparts. With a deal like that, why wouldn’t everyone apply ED to their top choice?
Unfortunately, while early decision sounds pretty straightforward, tuition costs and financial aid raise some concerns for many families. If you sign on the dotted line and that college accepts your application, you are obligated to void any other applications and attend the school you decided on. This, of course, also means that you can only apply early decision to one college. While that may not sound terrible, especially if you are really committed to the college you are applying to, only having one application hurts a family’s ability to compare different possible financial aid plans and payment options. Needless to say, this issue affects low-income and minority students most, since less wealthy families can’t afford to gamble on a good assistance deal, especially when the cost of college is increasing almost eight times faster than wages. This causes two big issues for lower income families:
1) Unfair Disadvantages to Underprivileged Students - Because of the financial issues that applicants face, higher income families get a huge boost when it comes to choosing ED. Studies have shown that ED applicants are three times more likely to be white students than students of color. This, combined with the disadvantages that students of color already face (proportionally lower SAT scores, poorer quality institutions in communities of color, an admissions system that already rewards affluent students, etc.) results in more white, wealthy students being admitted to leading institutions, decreasing campus diversity and discouraging lower income students or students of color from applying.
2) Worse FA Plans - Building strong financial aid programs for possible applicants is something that college admissions officers take very seriously. Although some scholarships could result in decreased profits for the institution, appealing financial aid attracts more applicants, which benefits the college in the long term. However, colleges with early decision policies are free to pretty much ignore this caveat with ED applications. Colleges are well aware of the fact that most families who apply ED are likely quite secure financially, which removes a lot of the incentive that comes with providing good scholarships and aid. Why should colleges give discounts if they can pay anyway? Depending on the school, lower income students could be offered less comprehensive financial aid plans, which can hurt their ability to afford ED plans.
2) Worse FA Plans - Building strong financial aid programs for possible applicants is something that college admissions officers take very seriously. Although some scholarships could result in decreased profits for the institution, appealing financial aid attracts more applicants, which benefits the college in the long term. However, colleges with early decision policies are free to pretty much ignore this caveat with ED applications. Colleges are well aware of the fact that most families who apply ED are likely quite secure financially, which removes a lot of the incentive that comes with providing good scholarships and aid. Why should colleges give discounts if they can pay anyway? Depending on the school, lower income students could be offered less comprehensive financial aid plans, which can hurt their ability to afford ED plans.
WANTED: COLLEGE CONTRACT BREAKER
Now, all of that sounds pretty scary, but it’s only fair that we consider the other side to this argument. Journalists and college experts bring up a very important point: technically, ED agreements are NOT legally binding. Though you do sign a contract that says you will void all other contracts and only apply ED once, you technically don’t have to. Also, applying and being accepted early doesn’t mean you owe the college money. A college can’t exactly chase you down looking for money since you aren’t using their services by not attending. Even if you’ve already voided other applications, that doesn’t mean that negotiations over tuition and financial aid are off the table. Experts argue that colleges are generally eager to find situations that work for both themselves and their clients, which means that finding a working plan is certainly attainable. Colleges will also work to make deals with you if a serious event or accident that hurts your ability to fund a degree comes up, and will usually allow you to withdraw your application consequence-free. While colleges try to make ED seem binding, they also want to make it feel like a safe decision for committed students.
So, it’s all good then? It may not be the most ethical thing to do, but you can still change your mind and leave after you apply, right? While that would certainly be nice, it’s a bit more complicated than that. Here are a couple reasons why:
1) Deposits - If you apply ED to a college and end up changing your mind about attending, you risk losing any deposit or prior payment that you have already made. Losing this deposit is not something all families can afford, which means that pulling out of a deal could hurt a student’s chances of getting in anywhere, let alone somewhere they want to go.
2) No More Chances - Even if not stated in the contract, colleges can still take action against students for breaking contract with their institution. One way they can accomplish this is by saving your name and information, and thus barring you from entry to that institution’s programs later on. A student could be turned away from future classes, programs, and even graduate courses for breaking an ED agreement.
3) Local Blacklists - The final way that colleges try to protect their profits is essentially by adding your name to a local blacklist, which other colleges can review. Every college that allows ED applications keeps a list of ED acceptances. These lists are often not kept private, and are intentionally shared with other colleges in the surrounding area. So what does this mean? It means that other colleges can see your application, as well as whether or not you held up your end. So if you try to pull out of your application, any other college that can see that list will know, and you could stand very little chance of getting into any of them. And don’t even think about trying to apply ED more than once, because if someone finds out, all of your applications could be lost.
2) No More Chances - Even if not stated in the contract, colleges can still take action against students for breaking contract with their institution. One way they can accomplish this is by saving your name and information, and thus barring you from entry to that institution’s programs later on. A student could be turned away from future classes, programs, and even graduate courses for breaking an ED agreement.
3) Local Blacklists - The final way that colleges try to protect their profits is essentially by adding your name to a local blacklist, which other colleges can review. Every college that allows ED applications keeps a list of ED acceptances. These lists are often not kept private, and are intentionally shared with other colleges in the surrounding area. So what does this mean? It means that other colleges can see your application, as well as whether or not you held up your end. So if you try to pull out of your application, any other college that can see that list will know, and you could stand very little chance of getting into any of them. And don’t even think about trying to apply ED more than once, because if someone finds out, all of your applications could be lost.
Time To Let GO of Early Decision?
Every minute aspect of the college admissions process can be argued both for and against, and early decision is no exception. It provides an opportunity for committed and organized students to move beyond the crowd of applicants and get the special consideration that they deserve. On the other hand, it acts as just another weight tipping the scales in favor of the rich, perpetuating the systemic discrimination that plagues the modern higher education system. Which begs the question: is it time to get rid of early decisions? It seems that only time and the actions that we take will tell whether early decision should be repaired, reworked, or simply removed, in order to create a fair and just system of education that will fuel the future of our society.
Isaiah Pinzino
