Want to submit your draft for a final polish?
Our Advisors are here to help.
So many students think that applying Single-Choice Early Action or Restrictive Early Action is basically the same as applying Early Decision—and they could not be more wrong!!
Of course, you should always double check with your top-choice school’s website regarding their policies, since some schools like to do their own thing; but overall, Single-Choice and Restrictive Early Action make it so that you cannot apply Early Action to any other private institutions. What most people don’t know is that this doesn’t limit or prevent your ability to apply Early Action to other public schools (like the University of Michigan and University of Virginia, both of which offer Early Action options!).
Furthermore, you can apply Early Action to other private schools if the timing is proven to be a necessary aspect for scholarship and/or special academic program consideration.
Additionally, many Single-Choice and Restrictive Early Action deadlines allow you to apply to other schools in the second Early Decision round. (Those deadlines usually fall on or around the same day as Regular Decision deadlines.) Some schools that have ED II deadlines include Emory, Johns Hopkins, NYU, Pomona, Tufts, Tulane, University of Chicago, Vanderbilt, and Villanova… to name just a few.
So, while these deadlines do restrict your ability to apply early to other schools, there are exceptions, and it’s in your best interest to do your research and take advantage of those exceptions in order to increase your chances of admissions at the other schools on your list!
