Early Action Deadlines For Colleges

When you start looking at application requirements for different colleges and universities, you will notice that many of them have both early action and regular decision deadlines.

As the name suggests, early action deadlines are always sooner than regular decision deadlines, which can make some students question when to submit their applications to have the best chance of admission.

While most of these colleges acknowledge that submitting your application before the early action deadline will not improve your chances of admission, there are still some distinct advantages to applying early.

This guide will explain the ins and outs of early action and some reasons why you might consider applying to college before the regular decision window.

What is early action?

If you apply early action, it simply means that you are submitting your application earlier than the regular deadline.

Typically, schools that offer early action will have early action deadlines in early to mid-November and regular decision deadlines in early January.

Because early action applicants submit their applications for review earlier, they also receive their decisions earlier. Instead of waiting until March or April to see if they are admitted, they will see their admission status in December or early January.

Applying early action is not the same thing as applying early decision. You are not bound to attend that university if you are accepted, you are just able to find out if you have been accepted earlier than other applicants.

Advantages of applying early action

Although applying early action in no way guarantees admission, there are a few key advantages to submitting your applications during this early window of time:

Less competition

When you apply early action, you will likely receive your admission decision from a college before many students even submit their application.

This means that your application will be compared with other early action applicants and not the entire pool of students who will end up applying to that college.

Even the most selective colleges and universities have a higher acceptance rate of early admission applicants. By applying early action, you are ensuring that your application is being compared with fewer applicants, which has the potential to give you a better chance for admission.

Quicker decision

When you apply early action, you will receive your admission decision early, too. This will give you more time to decide which college you want to attend, which is one of the most important decisions you will make in your life.

The national college response deadline is May 1.

If you aren’t hearing back from the majority of the schools where you apply until the spring, you may only have a month or two to compare financial aid packages, visit the schools again, and make your final decision.

Applying early will allow you to have from January until May to weigh your options and make the best possible decision for your academic future.

Scholarship opportunities

Some colleges and universities only offer certain financial aid packages and scholarship opportunities to students who apply by their early action deadline.

Look carefully at the financial aid and application requirement details when you browse the websites of each school on your list. If they tie financial aid to application deadlines, you will want to apply early.

Chances for deferment

If you apply to a college early, you could have the chance to be deferred instead of rejected.

When you are deferred, it simply means that the college has moved your application to the regular decision pool so they have more time to consider your application before making an official decision.

During this period of time, many schools allow students to send additional application materials like updated test scores, new grade reports, and extra letters of recommendation to boost their chances of admission.

If you wait until the regular admission deadline to apply, you may not have the opportunity to receive deferment status if your application isn’t up to par.