Now that high school students have submitted their Early Decision (ED), Early Action (EA) and BS/MD program applications, they might be wondering about the timeline for their admissions decisions. Securing an acceptance into a top school or program can provide a sense of relief to both students and their families as they navigate this stressful process. When a student applies under an early application plan, they can face acceptance, denial, or deferral.
What An Acceptance Means
Depending on the admission plan the student applied under, it will dictate the next steps for the student. For students who applied early action, they don’t have to immediately accept the admission offer, meaning they can wait until May 1 to accept (or reject). They have time to weigh their options, and see if other acceptances roll in or if they get a better scholarship offer.
On the other hand, early decision plans are binding—students who applied ED and are accepted must commit to attending. The only exception is if the student does not receive an adequate financial aid package. However, if the aid package is acceptable, the student typically must accept the offer within two weeks and withdraw all their other applications.
For students applying to BS/MD programs, they will have applied to both undergraduate and medical school simultaneously, and these programs will typically have deadlines in November. Unless the student applied early decision to the undergraduate school associated with the BS/MD program, they will not be bound to the BS/MD acceptance and can consider other admission options.
What A Rejection Means
For rejected students, it doesn’t mean they will be rejected from other similarly competitive schools. Each school will evaluate the students independently and holistically. That is why it is always essential to have a balanced college list.
Once a student is rejected from a school, they are not eligible to reapply during this admissions cycle to that school. However, students can apply to any other school, including those with rolling, regular decision, or Early Decision II admission plans.
If a student does select an Early Decision II admission plan, they should note that the same rules apply as Early Decision—students are obligated to attend if they are accepted and can only apply to one Early Decision II school.
What A Deferral Means
Students who apply EA or ED might receive a confusing message in their inboxes: deferral. Deferral means the school will review the application again in the regular decision application pool. While it might feel like a rejection, it means the student was strong, but the school isn’t sure if there is enough room for them in their admissions class.
Students applying ED and are deferred to the admission round are no longer bound to attend if they are accepted. However, the student should take time to consider if the school is still one of their top choices and if they want to be considered in the regular decision application pool. Then, they should check what information the school wants from the student. Sometimes, schools want a letter of continued interest or a deferral letter where the student has space to reaffirm their interest in the school and update the school on their extracurricular activities or other accomplishments achieved since applying. However, if the school does not want this information, do not send a letter. Contrary to what some students might think, not following specific directions can harm their chances in the regular decision round.
What Happens Next?
For students applying Early Decision:
- Acceptance with adequate financial aid: Accept the offer, pay the enrollment deposit, and withdraw other offers.
- Acceptance without adequate financial aid: Reject the Early Decision offer and continue applying to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools.
- Rejection: Apply to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools
- Deferral: Follow the specific school’s rules for deferral and apply to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools.
For students applying Early Action:
- Acceptance: Can wait to decide by May 1 and continue applying to other schools.
- Rejection: Apply to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools.
- Deferral: Follow the specific school’s rules for deferral and apply to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools.
For students applying to a BS/MD program:
- Interview notification: Confirm the interview time as soon as the email notification is received and begin preparing for the interview.
- Rejection: Apply to other regular decision, rolling decision or Early Decision II schools and keep waiting for other BS/MD interview notifications.
Notifications Dates for Traditional Undergraduate Schools
*These dates are subject to change.
American University: ED by December 31
Amherst College: ED by early to mid-December
Babson College: ED I by mid-December; EA by January 1
Bard College: ED I and EA by December 31
Barnard University: ED by mid-December
Bates University: ED by December 20
Baylor University: ED by December 15; EA by January 15
Boston College: ED by December 15
Boston University: ED by mid-December
Bowdoin University: ED by mid-December
Brandeis University: ED by December 15
Brown University: ED by mid-December
Bryn Mawr University: ED by late December
Bucknell University: ED by mid-December
California Institute of Technology: REA by mid-December
Carleton University: ED by December 15
Carnegie Mellon University: ED by December 15
Case Western Reserve University: ED on December 2; EA on December 19
Chapman University: ED by mid-December
Claremont McKenna University: ED by December 15
Clark University: ED by late December; EA by mid-January
Clemson University: EA by mid-December
Colgate University: ED by mid-December
Colorado College: ED by mid-December; EA by late December
Columbia University: ED by mid-December
Connecticut College: ED by mid-December
Cornell University: ED by mid-December
Dartmouth University: ED by mid-December
Denison University: ED by December 15
DePaul University: EA by December 15
Drexel University: ED and EA by mid-December
Duke University: ED by mid-December
Emerson College: ED by mid-December
Emory University: ED by December 15
George Mason University: EA by mid-December
George Washington University: ED by late December
Georgetown University: EA by December 15
Grinnell College: ED by mid-late December
Hamilton University: ED by December 15
Harvard University: REA by mid-December
Harvey Mudd College: ED on December 15
Haverford College: ED on December 15
Johns Hopkins University: ED on December 15
Lehigh University: ED by mid-December
Loyola Marymount University: ED and EA by mid-December
Marquette University: EA by December 15
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: EA by mid-December
Miami University: ED by December 1; EA 1 by December 15
Middlebury College: ED by mid-December
New York University: ED on December 15
Northeastern University: ED by January 1; EA by February 15
Northwestern University: ED in December
Notre Dame University: EA on 12/15
Oberlin College: ED by December 15
Occidental University: ED on December 15
Ohio State University: EA by December 31
Penn State University: EA by December 24
Pepperdine University: EA by January 10
Pomona College: ED by December 15
Pratt Institute: EA by mid-December
Princeton University: SCEA by mid-December
Providence College: ED by December 1; EA by January 1
Purdue University: EA on January 15
Reed College: ED in December; EA in February
Rice University: ED in mid-December
Rutgers University: EA on January 31
Santa Clara University: ED and EA by late December
Sarah Lawrence College: ED and EA by late December
Seattle University: EA by mid-December
Skidmore College: ED by mid-December
Smith College: ED by mid-December
Stanford University: REA by mid-December
Swarthmore University: ED by mid-December
Syracuse University: ED by late December rolling through January
Temple University: EA by January 10
Trinity College: ED by mid-December
Tufts University: ED by mid-December
Tulane University: ED by December 15; EA by January 10
University of California: by March 31
University of Chicago: ED and EA by mid-December
University of Georgia: EA by December 1
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: EA by January 26
University of Maryland: EA by February 1
University of Massachusetts-Amherst: EA by the end of January
University of Miami: ED by mid-December; EA by the end of January
University of Michigan: EA by late January
University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill: EA by January 31
University of Notre Dame: REA by mid-December
University of Pennsylvania: ED by mid-December
University of Rochester: ED by mid-December
University of San Francisco: ED by mid-December; EA by late January
University of South Carolina: EA by mid-December
University of Southern California: EA by mid to late January
University of Tennessee: EA by mid-December
University of Texas-Austin: Priority deadline on February 1
University of Vermont: ED on December 1; EA by late December
University of Virginia: ED by December 15; EA by February 15
University of Washington: Priority by March 15
University of Wisconsin: EA on or before January 31
Vanderbilt University: ED by mid-December
Vassar College: ED by mid-December
Villanova University: ED by December 15; EA by January 20
Wake Forest University: ED is rolling; EA by January 15
Washington University in St. Louis: ED by December 15
Wellesley College: ED by mid-December
Wesleyan University: ED by mid-December
Williams College: ED by December 15
Worcester Polytechnic Institute: ED by mid-December; EA I by late January
Yale University: SCEA by mid-December
Notification Dates for BS/MD Programs:
*These dates are subject to change.
Augusta University: Admissions decisions released on April 1
Baylor University: Interview notifications sent in January or February. Admissions decisions released by March
Brown University: Early decision applicants are notified by Mid-December, Regular Decision applicants are notified by early April
Drew University: Admissions decisions released in April
Drexel University: Interview notifications are sent at the end of January
Indiana University – Evansville: Interview notifications sent by November 17, 2023. Admissions decisions are released by December 22, 2023
Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine: Interview notifications sent out on a rolling basis
Mercer University: Notified by the end of January of interviews, which are held in February. Students are notified by mid-March of admissions decisions.
Nova Southeastern University: Interview notifications sent out on a rolling basis, starting in October. Admissions decisions are released 2-3 weeks after the interview.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI): Admissions decisions released in early April
Rutgers University-Newark: Admissions decisions released in April
Saint Louis University: Admissions decisions released in March
Seton Hall University: Rolling
Sophie Davis Biomedical Education: Admissions decisions released by April 1
St. Bonaventure University: Admissions decisions released in mid-late March
Stony Brook University: Admissions decisions released by April 1
Texas Tech University: Interview notifications are sent by February. Admissions decisions released by April
The College of New Jersey: Admissions decisions released in April
Tulane University: Admissions released by April 1
University of Alabama – Birmingham: Interview notifications sent by February 15. Admissions decisions released by Mid-March
University of Arizona: Acceptances sent out in April
University of Colorado-Denver: Interviews are in early December; find out after 2-3 weeks
University of Illinois at Chicago: Admissions decisions released by April 1
University of Missouri-Kansas City: Interview notifications sent at the end of January. Admissions decisions released by April 1
University of Pittsburgh: Notified if moving forward to medical school in December
University of Rochester: Interview notifications are sent in January. Admissions decisions released by April
University of South Alabama: Notified in early February with interviews taking place in March.
University of Toledo: Decision letters are sent out 1-2 weeks after university acceptance
Virginia Commonwealth University: Interview notifications are sent out at the end of January
Wayne State University: Interview notifications are sent at the end of January, and successful applicants are notified within 2-3 weeks
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