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[quote=Anonymous]I went to a SLAC that had ED.  My alma mater was very interested in applicants who had a strong interest in being there (a "Why X School" was a supplemental essay to the common application), because it very much had a specific vibe that wasn't for everyone--I imagine this is true of other schools on that list, since small liberal arts schools tend to appeal to a particular niche of student.  Applying ED was a signal of having a strong interest in the school.

As far as the financial aid packages go, I was told by people who worked in admissions that ED doesn't affect financial aid--they looked strictly at the expected family contribution from the FASFA in determining financial aid (there wasn't merit aid at this school).  In fact, they tended to review ED candidates more closely, because they knew that they were absolutely going to attend, so it wouldn't be a waste of time.  The school wasn't 100% need blind--they had a policy that they called "need aware"--i.e. the endowment wasn't large enough to commit to complete need blind admissions, but they did the best they could.  This mainly was an issue for marginal admits--they were more likely to admit a full pay borderline candidate or let them off the wait list than someone who needed financial aid.  The school isn't proud of this, but they don't have as deep pockets as some other schools so there has to be an element of pragmatism.

Anecdotally, I have friends who applied ED who needed financial aid and got financial aid packages that didn't appear to screw them over and were aligned with their families EFC as per the FASFA.  Obviously, they have no comparison of what the aid package would have been RD, or other schools to compare it to, so we can never know if admissions are being truthful.  Also, FAFSA's definition of demonstrated need is different from what a lot of families can comfortably pay without feeling financially insecure, so there's that.  But it definitely didn't seem like they were  totally screwed out of financial aid because they applied binding early decision.[/quote]

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