See if we have open spots!
Early Action and Early Decision deadlines will be here before you know it. If you have one school in mind that is your ride-or-die, you should definitely consider applying Early Decision to put yourself toward the front of the pack. Many schools tend to accept a higher percentage of both Early Decision and Early Action applicants than Regular Decision applicants.
Early Decision and Early Action are similar in that they both require you to submit applications earlier in the admissions season, usually by November 1, but sometimes by October 15.
The main difference is that Early Action is not binding, so you can usually apply to as many schools via Early Action as you like. (Unless any of those schools are accepting applications via Restrictive or Single Choice Early Action, which is slightly different.) Early Decision applications are binding, which means, should you be accepted, you must attend that school and withdraw all other applications.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of early deadlines to keep track of. Luckily for you, we’ve put together a list of Early Decision, Early Action, and Early Decision II deadlines so you can better organize your college application calendar. In our 20+ years of experience helping students meet their college application deadlines with winning admissions essays, we’ve found that these deadlines rarely change. We have updated this Organizer with the deadlines for the Class of 2029!
If you’re not sure how you should be using your time, you might want to consider working on your Common App personal statement, writing your supplemental essays, acquiring recommendations from your favorite teachers, creating a fantastic activity resume, and crossing your fingers (and toes)!
We hope you find our Organizer to be helpful! If you need any essay help, get in touch!
School Name | Early Decision Deadline | Early Action Deadline | Early Decision II Deadline |
---|---|---|---|
Adelphi University | December 31, 2024 | ||
Agnes Scott College | December 1, 2024 | December 15, 2024 | |
Albion College | November 1, 2024 | December 1, 2024 | |
American University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Amherst College | November 8, 2024 | ||
Babson College | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 |
Barnard College | November 1, 2024 | ||
Bates College | November 15, 2024 | January 10, 2025 | |
Baylor University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | |
Bentley University | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Boston College | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 | |
Boston University | November 1, 2024 | January 6, 2025 | |
Bowdoin College | November 15, 2024 | January 6, 2025 | |
Brandeis University | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 | |
Brown University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Bryant College | November 1, 2024 | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
California Institute of Technology | November 1, 2024 | ||
Carleton College | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Carnegie Mellon University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Case Western University | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Chapman University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | |
Clark University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Clemson College | October 15, 2024 | ||
Colby College | November 15, 2024 | January 3, 2025 | |
Colgate University | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Colorado College | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Columbia University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Cornell University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Dartmouth College | November 1, 2024 | ||
Dickinson College | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Duke University | November 4, 2024 | ||
Earlham College | November 1, 2024 | December 1, 2024 | |
Elon University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | |
Emerson College | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 3, 2025 |
Emory University | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Fordham University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 3, 2025 |
George Mason | November 1, 2024 | ||
George Washington University | November 1, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
Georgetown University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Georgia Institute of Technology | EA I: October 15, 2024 EA II: November 1, 2024 | ||
Grinnell College | November 15, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
Hamilton College | November 15, 2024 | January 6, 2025 | |
Hampshire College | November 15, 2024 | December 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 |
Hampton University | November 15, 2024 | ||
Harvard University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Harvey Mudd College | November 15, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
Haverford College | November 15, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
Hofstra University | EA I: November 15, 2024 EA II: December 15, 2024 | ||
Illinois Wesleyan University | November 15, 2024 | ||
Indiana University Bloomington | November 1, 2024 | ||
Ithaca College | November 1, 2024 | December 1, 2024 | |
Johns Hopkins University | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 | |
Kenyon College | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Lafayette College | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 | |
Lehigh University | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Macalester College | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 |
Marist College | November 15, 2024 | November 15, 2024 | February 15, 2025 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology | November 1, 2024 | ||
Miami University | November 1, 2024 | EA I: November 1, 2024 EA II: December 1, 2024 | |
Middlebury College | November 1, 2024 | January 3, 2025 | |
Mount Holyoke College | November 15, 2024 | January 3, 2025 | |
New York University (NYU) | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
North Carolina State University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Northeastern University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 |
Northwestern University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Oberlin College | November 15, 2024 | January 2, 2025 | |
Occidental College | November 15, 2024 | January 10, 2025 | |
Penn State | November 1, 2024 | ||
Pomona College | November 8, 2024 | January 8, 2025 | |
Princeton University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Purdue University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | November 1, 2024 | December 1, 2024 | January 3, 2025 |
Rice University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Rutgers University | November 1, 2024 | ||
Santa Clara University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 7, 2025 |
Sarah Lawrence College | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Skidmore College | November 1, 2024 | January 8, 2025 | |
Smith College | November 15, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Southern Methodist University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Stanford University | November 1, 2024 | ||
SUNY Binghamton | November 1, 2024 | ||
Swarthmore College | November 15, 2024 | January 4, 2025 | |
Tufts University | November 1, 2024 | January 4, 2025 | |
Tulane University | November 1, 2024 | November 15, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
University of Chicago | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 |
University of Georgia | October 15, 2024 | ||
University of Illinois at Chicago | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Maryland | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Miami | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 6, 2025 |
University of Michigan | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of North Carolina (UNC) | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Notre Dame | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Pennsylvania | November 1, 2024 | ||
University of Richmond | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 |
University of Rochester | November 1, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
University of San Francisco | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
University of South Carolina | October 15, 2024 | ||
University of Texas at Austin | October 15, 2024 | ||
University of Vermont | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
University of Virginia | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | |
University of Wisconsin | November 1, 2024 | ||
Vanderbilt University | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Villanova University | November 1, 2024 | November 1, 2024 | January 15, 2025 |
Virginia Tech | November 15, 2024 | ||
Wake Forest University | November 15, 2024 | November 15, 2024 | January 1, 2025 |
Washington & Lee University | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Washington University in St. Louis | November 1, 2024 | January 2, 2025 | |
Wellesley College | November 1, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
Wesleyan University | November 15, 2024 | January 1, 2025 | |
William & Mary | November 1, 2024 | January 5, 2025 | |
Williams College | November 15, 2024 | ||
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) | November 1, 2024 | EA I: November 1, 2024 EA II: January 5, 2025 | January 5, 2025 |
Yale University | November 1, 2024 |
As noted above, the main difference between Early Decision and Early Action is that Early Decision applications are binding, which means, should you be accepted, you have to withdraw all of your other applications and commit to attending that school. If you are accepted via Early Action, on the other hand, you are under no obligation to attend that school and can continue to weigh your options and financial aid packages.
Applying early increases your chances of admission. We even put together this dataset examining the admissions statistics for the class of 2025 to show you just how much higher your chances are of admission by applying early at ten elite institutions.
Georgia Tech, UNC, and UGA all usually have Early Action deadlines that fall around October 15. For schools with rolling admissions, you can submit as soon as applications open in August or September.