Early Decision II (EDII) - Consider Your Options

If your senior’s plans are set for next year, this blog post isn’t for you. But if your student is still figuring things out, they might want to think about an Early Decision II (“EDII”) application. If your student didn’t apply via ED in the fall round or you need a refresher on what ED means, please read about it here or here. The basics of fall ED and EDII are the same (and we won’t rehash those details here), but the timing of the two rounds makes the decision processes and analyses quite different. 

First, what is EDII? It’s quite similar to fall Early Decision, but later, and that timing leads to some important differences. Most EDII  applications are due around the same time Regular Decision applications are due. Not every school that offers ED offers EDII, but all schools offering it will display EDII information and deadlines on their website. The “binding agreement” is the same - a student is committing to enroll if admitted through EDII, but the later timing raises some different considerations (and brings with it some advantages).

Next, let’s talk about who might find themselves thinking about EDII.  It’s important to note that sometimes students who did not apply to any schools through fall ED decide to apply EDII.  What?!  We will explain a few ways that an EDII application might come about and how a family might weigh the options.

Greater Clarity About Priorities and Financial Reality:   Fall semester of senior year is often a time of significant growth. Students might find that their priorities and goals are more focused and that there is a school that is their number one preference. They might have received decisions from schools they applied to via Early Action and/or rolling admissions and have more clarity about their preferences, leading to a decision to apply EDII. More importantly, many families learn more about expenses and financial aid through the first semester of senior year, and might have a better sense of what they are able and willing to pay for college. This is especially true if they have filled out FAFSA and received preliminary information and/or have learned more about merit award eligibility from schools their students applied to through Early Action or rolling decisions. This financial information may make some families more comfortable with the EDII commitment. The reverse can also be true in both of these situations – a student might be even more interested in keeping their options open at this point, and a family might be more emphatic about having the opportunity to review financial packages before deciding. Just like ED, EDII is a good option for a small overlapping area on the Venn Diagram of families, and most students won’t apply through either pathway.

Second Bite at the Apple: Sometimes students who applied ED in the fall made a hard choice, choosing one school over another, and students who were denied or deferred in ED might decide to roll the dice on another preferred school in EDII. This is a good option for students and families who weighed all the considerations in the fall and determined that ED works for their family.  (Note that in almost every situation imaginable, an ED deferral decision means that a student is moved to the Regular Decision pool and is released from the ED “binding agreement,” but deferred students should make sure and read the fine print and contact an admissions officer at the school they were deferred from if they have any concern about an EDII application compromising their deferral.)

Converting a Regular Decision Application to EDII:  This last scenario can come as a surprise to some students who haven’t thought much about ED or EDII. Once the deadlines have passed, some EDII schools reach out to some Regular Decision applicants and ask them if they would like to convert their Regular Decision application to an EDII application. The decision making on this requires assessing all of the pros and cons of ED. It’s tempting to try to read the tea leaves when something like this happens. Is the school signaling that they would love to say yes to this student if the student can give them a firm commitment of attendance? And that their admissions chances would be improved? Or is the school contacting hundreds of applicants in a less targeted way? Rather than try to read the tea leaves, we suggest contacting an admissions officer at the school and asking some important questions as well as doing some research. The big question for most people would be “would this improve my chances of acceptance?” Students can find information about this in the Common Data Set (College Essay Guy posted a good guide regarding the Common Data Set) and from the school. Students shouldn’t feel awkward about asking the school these questions.  Students can also initiate this change of status on their own, and can contact admissions to ask about changing from Regular Decision to EDII. Deadlines for doing this will differ, but students interested in doing this should contact admissions about this in advance of the Regular Decision application deadline.

As we have mentioned, only a small number of seniors apply via Early Decision, and for most it is a good choice to pass on it.  If EDII makes sense for your student, remember that the deadlines often hit early in January, so make sure to carve out time for these applications over the winter break.