By Alan Yost
The fall is a season when many high school seniors are faced with the difficult decision of whether or not to apply to a college early decision. Most high school seniors apply to colleges and universities during the late fall and winter of their senior year, and admissions decisions are typically made during the winter through spring. More selective colleges usually do not notify applicants of their status until April. Many college coaches and student-athletes prefer to wrap up their college search ahead of schedule, and therefore they take advantage of the early admissions process. The early admissions process allows students to receive earlier notice of admissions decisions than regular applicants. There are two main types of early admissions programs: early action and early decision.
Most selective colleges offer an early action or early decision program (Harvard and Princeton do not). Early application has benefits; it shows the coach that a student-athlete is highly committed to their university and it also allows the student to find out his or her status before regular applicants. Some college coaches apply pressure to top recruits, with the hopes that these student-athletes will apply early and commit to their institution. Many of the colleges that offer an early admissions program are Ivy League or Division III institutions, which do not participate in the National Letter of Intent. Therefore, the early application process mostly closely resembles an early signing.
Early action usually means that an applicant will find out his or her status in or around December, but they are not committed to attend the institution if accepted. Early action applications can be a great method of securing an acceptance, to ease the stress of the regular admissions period. Most early decision programs, on the other hand, bind a student to attend the college or university if they are granted admission.
It is important that students research the college website before submitting any early application, and they must always discuss their status with the coach in order to determine where they stand from an athletic perspective. NCSA recommends that student-athletes only apply early decision if they are positive the college is their first choice, because if accepted they will be legally bound to attend, and they may lose other opportunities. Early applications are something student-athletes should seriously consider if they have taken an official or unofficial visit, received positive feedback from a coach and want to end their recruiting process ahead of schedule.
