Anonymous wrote:So withdraw ED for financial reasons. They don’t come arrest you.

"They don't come arrest you" - this isn't how ED is supposed to work, it's a contract. Jerks who renege on ED ruin it for everyone.

ED may be on the chopping block soon, anyway. Better to take advantage of it now while you have the chance!

I think ED makes the psychological aspect of the college process so much worse. The best way to go into the process is to not pick a dream school and feel like there are many schools on the list you love and would be happy at, but ED encourages students to pick a first choice and then fixate on one first choice school. And An ed rejection can be really hard since it is months before happier news. I watched my DC’s class go through this, and several people had very unhappy and stressful senior years after ED rejection even though in the end all of these particular kids wound up at fantastic top schools.

If DS gets into his ED come mid-December he (and we) will be thrilled. It’s truly his first choice school and while he feels great about his whole list, his heart is in the ED school so there will be no buyers remorse if he gets in. If he doesn’t he has a great list that makes sense for him and his major so overall I feel good about it for him and I’m proud of his hard work.

Anonymous wrote:My S23’s classmate was rejected ED1 at U Chicago, got nervous and immediately ED2’d to Emory & got in. Shortly after, was accepted to our flagship honors program with a free ride, where their best friend was going. The family definitely had ED regret being full pay. Just something to consider!

So withdraw ED for financial reasons. They don’t come arrest you.

Anonymous wrote:One of DC’s friends is regretting it because she was steered by school counselor to change her ED school. It turned out now kids with lower stats are ED her original choice. Should stick to your guns.

She might get deferred and later accepted in RD. Happened to my nephew who got into his ED school in April but was also accepted at HYP, where he is now. Colleges play games and sometimes lose out on top candidates too.

DC was a recruited athlete at a T10, but refused to apply ED as condition for the Likely Letter. We clearly communicated with the Coach and Athletic Director that even with a LL, DC wants to keep their options open to other schools. In mid-Feb DC got the Likely Letter after applying RD in early Jan. After comparing a dozen or so offers, DC decided to attend another school with a much better fit and merit aid.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of DC’s friends is regretting it because she was steered by school counselor to change her ED school. It turned out now kids with lower stats are ED her original choice. Should stick to your guns.

This is really where ED goes off the rails. In its purist sense ED is a good thing - kids who truly know they want to attend a specific school should be able to benefit a bit from that commitment. But when strategy drives ED decisions and a counselor steers and ED application what are we really doing?

Agree and this becomes real in the Spring when students who felt pressured into EDI/EDII start to see where their peers get accepted and also see them have the experience of making a choice between several schools.

Buyer's remorse and FOMO are real. Even my kid who applied ED to her clear # 1 choice felt it. Her second favorite school was a lot more prestigious. I'm proud of her for picking the better fit, but part of her wondered if she would have gotten into the other one (it was a HYPSM where she was a double legacy and she did have the stats to be a contender).

Anonymous wrote:My S23’s classmate was rejected ED1 at U Chicago, got nervous and immediately ED2’d to Emory & got in. Shortly after, was accepted to our flagship honors program with a free ride, where their best friend was going. The family definitely had ED regret being full pay. Just something to consider!

ED2 is much much worse. Many counselors say that it's a scam.

Anonymous wrote:I thought counselor steering was just our school’s problem. The whole system stinks.

Trust Naviance data, and have faith.

My S23’s classmate was rejected ED1 at U Chicago, got nervous and immediately ED2’d to Emory & got in. Shortly after, was accepted to our flagship honors program with a free ride, where their best friend was going. The family definitely had ED regret being full pay. Just something to consider!

Actually counselor steering is a value-added service provided by mostly private schools (most public school counselors are indifferent or overwhelmed with the amount of work). Only the counselors have a 'big picture' (institutional and historical) view of all seniors' stats and class ranking, and who/how many will be likely accepted at a particular school based on previous years' stats. So it is truly a useful service -particularly those with lower stats who is unlikely to be accepted - when the counselors steer them to apply ED to other schools. After the ED round, the counselors at private schools will try to reign in top students already accepted EA at the top schools from doing another round of RD applications at other top schools for bragging rights. Hence in essence the counselors are functioning as traffic controller to optimize the school's OVERALL success in snagging as many top spots as possible. Granted it is hard for a student (with lower stats) to understand why a counselor may discourage applying to an oversubscribed perennially popular school, but it is to the their own benefit to take the counselor's suggestion seriously. It has been stated before, every year after ED rounds, there are so many postings expressing shock how competitive the field was, with only the tippy top students getting the tippy top schools.

I thought counselor steering was just our school’s problem. The whole system stinks.

Chicago is the number one destination when private school counselors start steering these poor kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:ED isn’t good for hopeless strivers. They apparently need to apply everywhere, and see where everyone else is gone.

DD has never wavered on her choice and just hopes it will all be done mid December.

Unnecessarily rude comment.

No it isn't! (DP) It's the strivers who want to play games and then have issues of "what if". Use ED for the tool it's intended (your top choice) and you will be fine.