This seemed to be true anecdotally to the scea school my '22 got rejected from. The kids that got in seemed to be legacy/connected from privates or wealthy W schools. And the kid who was SMOB.

But, my kid got into several T15 RD, and when they were considering the various schools, we noticed that almost all of the early admits to those schools were unhooked.

ED is great for colleges. It is all the rich kids who do not require financial aid or merit. And obviously, it is guaranteed the student will commit.

EA is great for students. Early answers with no commitment. Students can wait to compare financial statements before reaching a decision.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, for Ivy/Ivy-Equivalent applications, the last few years have been awful for unhooked kids. Some recovery during RD, but the ED round has been awful. Dramatically different from even 5 years ago -- when our older DC graduated and waltzed into a non-HYP Ivy with solid, but less than exceptional, performance at a Big 3.

There are weathly, hooked applicants who aren't dependent on financial aid offers.

No surprise here.

Regular smart kids fare well in public flagships EA/ED.

Does not being FA dependent affect the likelihood of an early acceptance? I thought most top schools were need blind. Am I missing something?

Well, ED and EA acceptance rates have dropped every year for the past four years or so, so yes, it is harder for both hooked and unhooked. Because applications had increased so much, there are also more deferrals, which aren’t captured by acceptance rate.

Ok

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the schools they applied to.

Also, depends on your high school. Not all high schools are equal in this regard.

Do you mean not all high school college counselors are equal? Can you elaborate?

I understood this to mean, that your student's success with EA/ED is dependent on the colleges they applied to and the high schools they are getting their HS degree from. You are ultimately competing for spots from others in your high school first and then the broader population second.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the schools they applied to.

Also, depends on your high school. Not all high schools are equal in this regard.

Do you mean not all high school college counselors are equal? Can you elaborate?

Anonymous wrote:Yes, for Ivy/Ivy-Equivalent applications, the last few years have been awful for unhooked kids. Some recovery during RD, but the ED round has been awful. Dramatically different from even 5 years ago -- when our older DC graduated and waltzed into a non-HYP Ivy with solid, but less than exceptional, performance at a Big 3.

There are weathly, hooked applicants who aren't dependent on financial aid offers.

No surprise here.

Regular smart kids fare well in public flagships EA/ED.

Anonymous wrote:ED worked like a charm last year for DS. His private college counselor had amazing success last year in the REA/ED rounds; she said it went better than the previous year. DON'T STRESS!

Can you share the name of your counselor?

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the schools they applied to.

Also, depends on your high school. Not all high schools are equal in this regard.

ED worked like a charm last year for DS. His private college counselor had amazing success last year in the REA/ED rounds; she said it went better than the previous year. DON'T STRESS!

Yes, for Ivy/Ivy-Equivalent applications, the last few years have been awful for unhooked kids. Some recovery during RD, but the ED round has been awful. Dramatically different from even 5 years ago -- when our older DC graduated and waltzed into a non-HYP Ivy with solid, but less than exceptional, performance at a Big 3.

depends on the stats and where they applied. Top 20 was a bust for our high-stat kid EA (didn't do ED), but they happily got admitted to colleges in Top 30.

It depends on the schools they applied to.

Senior parent. DC applying EA-Ed this year. I am nerved up, but am being told by friends that the last few years have been a total bust as far as unhooked early applicants were concerned. Is this true?