Application Rounds

Answered

This is referring to the different application deadlines that colleges offer. Though colleges only allow each applicant to apply once during the application cycle, they often provide multiple windows throughout the year where they will allow for application submissions.

First, there is the regular decision (RD) round, which is the standard application date. It is the latest deadline for all applicants to submit their applications. Different schools have different deadlines that typically are in January.

Some schools offer an early decision (ED) round that has an earlier deadline than RD. By applying earlier, applicants can gain the benefit of receiving their acceptance letter earlier. Colleges give an admissions boost and more financial aid to ED applicants as well, since they like filling up their admissions spots early and want to encourage more applicants to apply ED. There's a catch with ED though - it is a binding offer, meaning that applicants are supposed to accept it even if they get into other colleges.

One more round that some schools offer is early action (EA). It is an early round like EA, but it is not a binding offer. EA gives applicants as smaller admissions and financial aid boost than ED or even none at all - the main benefit is hearing back about your admissions decision earlier.

There are other colleges out there that have rolling admissions instead of application rounds, which means that you can apply at any time throughout the year.

Hope this helps!