What does regular decision mean for college applications?

I've been hearing about regular decision, but I'm not entirely sure what it means. How is it different from early decision or early action? Would love to understand before I finalize my application plans.

Regular Decision is one of the several admission options you can choose when you apply to colleges. What it means is that you submit your application by a specified date, typically around the beginning of the year (January 1st to January 15th are common), and hear back by late March or early April.

Early Decision and Early Action, on the other hand, tend to have earlier deadlines in the fall (generally in November) and earlier notification dates, usually in mid-December. Also, there is another significant thing to remember. Early Decision is binding, which means you commit to attend the college if you're accepted. On the contrary, Early Action and Regular Decision are not binding, so you have until May 1st to decide which college to attend from those you were accepted to.

Regular Decision allows you more time to complete your application and potentially raise your grades or add more activities on your resume. You also have a longer timeline to consider your college preferences and gather all the elements of your application. On the flip side, given that most students apply through Regular Decision, the process can be more competitive.

Remember to check each college's specific dates and requirements since these can vary from school to school.