Applying Early Decision vs Applying Regular Decision

Answered

The main difference between early decision and regular decision is when the applications are due and how binding they are. Early decision (ED) is binding - if you apply early decision and get accepted, you have to go to that school and you can not apply to any other school and have to rescind your application to any other schools you applied to. The benefit of early decision is that you will be guaranteed a seat in the class if you get accepted and you don't have to decide in March and April on where you want to go. You can apply ED to one school and one school only because it is binding and if you try to apply to any schools after you were accepted in ED, your counselor will make it basically impossible for you to do so. For regular decision, you can apply to as many schools as you want (but don't go overboard) and none of those applications are binding, so you get the choice on where you want to go after getting the acceptance letters. If there is a school you ABSOLUTELY KNOW you love - you researched a lot, you visited the campus, you don't have any doubts about your decision - you can decide if you want to apply early decision (if the school offers it, not all schools have early decision as an option), but remember, it is binding.

Applying early decision means that you will have to submit your application earlier (usually by November 1) and that you must attend that college you applied early decision to if you are accepted. There aren't any extra requirements for applying early decision besides the fact that you can't apply early decision to any other school other than the one you're absolutely sure about. Applying early decision lets a school know that you are intent on going, and will in most cases increase your chance of admission, since schools like to keep their yield rate (the percentage of students that enroll in an institution after being accepted) high.