Early Decision and Early Action Acceptance Rates at Top Schools
What’s Covered:
- What Are Early Decision and Early Action?
- Does Early Decision Improve Your Chances?
- ED and EA Acceptance Rates 2024-25
- How Have Early Acceptance Rates Changed Over Time?
- Should You Apply Early Decision or Early Action?
There’s a lot to think about when applying to college. As you’re gearing up to start the process, you’re probably weighing your options and making a plan for completing your applications. One consideration is whether you’ll apply early decision (ED) or early action (EA).
Some students choose to apply ED or EA because there is an admissions advantage to doing so. But just how much of a boost does ED or EA really give you?
What Are Early Decisions and Early Action?
When you apply early decision, you submit your application well before the regular decision (RD) deadline and commit to attending that school if accepted. Today, some colleges also offer early decision II plans, a binding option with a deadline closer to that of RD plans.
Early action (EA) follows a similar timeline—students usually apply around November and find out whether they’ve been accepted, denied, or deferred to the regular pool. This plan, however, isn’t binding, meaning you’re not required to attend that school if accepted.
A third plan, restricted or single-choice early action (REA), is non-binding, but you can only apply to that school early if you apply REA.
Does Early Decision Improve Your Chances?
At first glance, it may seem that students who apply early have a significant advantage over those who apply regular decision. However, it’s important to recognize that other factors influence these numbers. For instance, students who apply ED are often a closer fit for the school’s profile, since they have identified it as their top choice.
Another important factor for colleges is being able to accurately predict their yield—that is, the percent of accepted students who end up enrolling. Having accurate yield predictions is relevant to the school’s finances as well as its standing in national rankings. Early decision applicants have essentially committed to the school before even receiving an acceptance letter, which helps the school more accurately predict its yield. This is one reason that colleges often accept so many early decision applicants.
No matter the reason, the fact remains that students who apply early do have an advantage. On average, students applying ED see a 1.6x (or 60%) increase in their chances of admission to very selective schools. This effect is lessened the less selective the school is.
Early action doesn’t offer as significant a boost as early decision, but it still does provide some admissions advantage. Single-choice or restrictive early action generally has more benefits than regular early action. For example, Yale’s restrictive early action acceptance rate for the class of 2029 was 10.82%, compared to the overall acceptance rate of 4.5%.
As you can see in the tables below, the difference between early and regular admission rates varies by school. For example, at MIT, which has a nonrestrictive EA plan, the difference in admissions rates is much less than that of Yale, which has a restrictive EA plan—MIT’s differential was 1.25% in 2023-24, whereas Yale’s was roughly 4.5%.
Early Decision and Early Action Acceptance Rates 2024-25
Not all schools publish their early decision and early action acceptance rate data. Below is a look at some of the nation’s top national universities and liberal arts colleges (LACs). The data includes acceptance rates for the 2024-25 admissions cycle.
Universities
|
School |
ED Acceptance Rate |
EA Acceptance Rate |
Overall Acceptance Rate |
|
14.4% |
N/A |
5.4% |
|
|
13.2% |
N/A |
3.9% |
|
|
19.1% |
N/A |
5.4% |
|
|
19.7%* |
N/A |
6.7%* |
|
|
23.2% |
N/A |
10.2% |
|
|
N/A |
≈15% |
12.9% |
|
|
N/A |
≈9% |
3.6% |
|
|
N/A |
5.2%* |
4.5% |
|
|
23% |
N/A |
7.7% |
|
|
16.8% |
N/A |
7.9% |
|
|
N/A |
12.9% |
11.2% |
|
|
14.2% |
N/A |
5.4% |
|
|
N/A |
7.1% |
9.8% |
|
|
27.9% |
≈16% |
16.8% |
|
|
25.2% |
N/A |
12% |
|
|
N/A |
10.8% |
4.5% |
* 2023-24 admissions cycle
LACs
|
School |
ED Acceptance Rate |
EA Acceptance Rate |
Overall Acceptance Rate |
|
29.3% |
N/A |
9% |
|
|
25.6% |
N/A |
8.8% |
|
|
27.1% |
N/A |
13.3% |
|
|
31.8% |
20.6% |
18.5% |
|
|
28.7% |
N/A |
14.5% |
|
|
46.3% |
≈27% |
28.2% |
|
|
30.5% |
N/A |
10.7% |
|
|
N/A |
N/A |
43.6% |
|
|
33.8% |
23% |
22.2% |
|
|
29.8% |
N/A |
14% |
|
|
61%* |
N/A |
16%* |
|
|
23.3% |
N/A |
8.3% |
* 2023-24 admissions cycle
How Have Early Acceptance Rates Changed Over Time?
In many cases, overall acceptance rates are declining simply because there are more applicants every year. This often also extends to ED and EA. However, as the table below shows, this isn’t true for all schools.
|
School |
Early Acceptance Rate 2024-25 |
Early Acceptance Rate 2023-24 |
Acceptance Rate 2022-23 |
|
29.3% |
27.1% |
31.8% |
|
|
27.1% |
41.7% |
47.8% |
|
|
14.4% |
14.6% |
13% |
|
|
31.8% |
35.3% |
44.2% |
|
|
19.1% |
19.9% |
21.3% |
|
|
N/A |
19.7% |
16.4% |
|
|
23.2% |
24.8% |
26.4% |
|
|
≈9% |
8.7% |
7.6% |
|
|
N/A |
5.2% |
4.8% |
|
|
30.5% |
34% |
38.9% |
|
|
23% |
22.5% |
22.1% |
|
|
16.8% |
16.4% |
18.8% |
|
|
14.2% |
14.8% |
15.5% |
|
|
23.3% |
27% |
31.2% |
|
|
10.8% |
11.1% |
10% |
Should You Apply Early Decision or Early Action?
There are advantages and disadvantages to applying ED or EA. One perk of applying early is that you’ll be able to learn your admissions decision much earlier than if you apply RD—usually in December! But on the flip side, if it’s bad news, you’ll have to deal with that disappointment while you’re finalizing your RD applications. Moreover, since ED/EA applications are due earlier, you won’t have as much time to determine which school is the best fit for you. In short, applying early is not the right plan for everyone.
We advise students to apply early if their dream school is a reach because doing so may just inch them into the acceptance pool. However, recognize that this advantage has its limitations. If the school is a far reach for you, then you’re probably better off saving your ED or REA application for another school, rather than wasting it on a college where you’re unlikely to be admitted. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t bother applying at all—but you should consider applying to another REA school or a handful of unrestricted EA schools instead.
Not sure which schools on your list are safeties, targets, or reaches? CollegeVine’s free chancing engine analyzes your GPA, test scores, extracurriculars, and more to estimate your odds of admission. You’ll also get personalized tips to strengthen your profile.
