Northwestern ED Acceptance?

Yo, I'm really interested in Northwestern and want to apply ED. Is there a significant advantage to applying early decision? How many people typically get in through ED? Thanks in advance!

Hey there! Northwestern is an excellent choice, and applying Early Decision (ED) can indeed give your chances of admission a boost. While the exact numbers may vary slightly from year to year, in recent applications cycles Northwestern's overall acceptance rate has been around 7%, while the ED rate has been around 22%.

This bump occurs for a few reasons. First, applying ED demonstrates a high level of enthusiasm for the school, which gives Northwestern admissions officers confidence that you're ready to start contributing to their school's community right away. Second, admitting more students ED boosts a school's yield rate, which is the percentage of accepted students who ultimately enroll - obviously, accepted ED applicants are contractually obligated to enroll. And finally, on a practical level, during the early round of admissions every spot in the class is open, while during the Regular Decision round some of the spots in the class have already been filled by ED applicants.

However, it's essential to carefully consider whether Northwestern is your top choice and whether the binding aspect of ED aligns with your financial situation, as you won't be able to compare financial aid packages from multiple schools if accepted. While an insufficient financial aid package is one of the few reasons you are allowed to break your binding ED commitment, this process can be stressful, and also cause heartbreak as you have to tell your dream school no after being accepted. So, best to avoid all of that if possible.

Best of luck with your application to Northwestern!