Does early admission increase my chances of getting in?

Hey everyone, I'm a junior in high school and I've been considering the early admission process for some of the colleges on my list. I was wondering if applying early can actually increase my chances of getting accepted? And if so, is it significant enough to make it worth considering? Thanks in advance!

Hello! Applying Early Decision (ED) or Early Action (EA) can indeed boost your chances of admission, especially when it comes to more selective schools. The increase in your chances depends on the college, but on average, applying ED can result in a 1.6x or a 60% increase in your chances of admission to super selective schools. For example, if your chances were 4% before applying early, that would bump your chances up to 6.4%, which is a meaningful increase of about 2.4 extra percentage points.

Applying EA also boosts your chances, but the effect is smaller since you're not obligated to attend if accepted, so colleges don't see the same yield benefits as they do with ED applicants. It's important to note that the increase in your chances becomes less pronounced at less selective schools.

It's worth considering ED or EA if you have a clear top-choice college and feel confident that you can put together a strong application by the early deadline. However, you should also factor in other aspects, such as financial aid considerations and whether or not you want to compare offers from multiple colleges. Good luck with your college applications!