33 Institutions Reported Their Early Admission Results

This post was originally published on the College Kickstart blog.
Since December, there has been a steady beat of early admissions results rolling out of colleges. The sigh of relief coupled with shouts of joy can shatter eardrums miles away when a senior is accepted to their top choice schools via early decisions.
On that note, we’d like to share the early admission results from these 33 institutions: Boston College, Bowdoin, Brown, Colorado College, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Davidson, Dickinson, Duke, George Washington University, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Harvard, Harvey Mudd, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Middlebury, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Pitzer, Pomona, Princeton, Stanford, Tufts, University of Georgia, UNC Chapel Hill, University of Pennsylvania, University of Virginia, Vanderbilt, Williams and Yale.
Some Early Admissions Context for Juniors
We’ll let you in on a big secret: early admission. Did you know that early admission can help skew odds in your favor by simply applying 45-60 days early?
At College Kickstart, we track early admission statistics and find early admission opportunities that are appropriate for you.
The concept of early admission is simple: you apply early, you hear back early. Not all schools offer early admission, but those that do will typically offer some combination of the following three options:
- Early Decision (ED), which is binding if you’re accepted
- Early Action (EA), which is non-binding
- Restrictive Early Action (REA) is identical to early action, but with added restrictions on where else you can apply. Some institutions call this Single Choice Early Action.
Colleges love early decision, because it’s binding, but from your vantage point it only makes sense if you’re certain the school is for you. In contrast, early action nearly always works to your advantage because there’s no obligation to attend. Either way, the key insight is that schools typically admit early applicants at a higher rate than those applying regular decision.
Why?
Every year, colleges compete to attract talented students to their respective institutions. So when a talented applicant demonstrates interest by applying earlier than normal (early action), or commits to attending if accepted (early decision), it’s only natural for colleges to admit from these pools of applicants at a higher rate than those applying regular decision.
How much higher depends on the institution, but as you can see from the table below, it’s too big to ignore.
Class of 2019 Admission Rates
Source: College Kickstart LLC
School Category | Early Decision Admit Rate |
Early Action Admit Rate |
Regular Admit Rate |
---|---|---|---|
Top 20 Liberal Arts Colleges | 37% | Not offered | 18% |
Ivy League | 23% | 17% | 7% |
Top 20 Non-IvyUniversities | 31% | 32% | 18% |
So be sure to pay attention to early admission opportunities as you finalize your list. If you’re a competitive applicant, it can be a terrific way to skew odds more in your favor.
Class of 2020 Early Admission Results
College Kickstart LLC
Institution (Plan) | Applied | Admitted | Rate | Link |
---|---|---|---|---|
Boston College (REA) | 8,600 | 2,700 | 31% | Link |
Bowdoin (ED1) | 614 | 207 | 34% | Link |
Brown (ED) | 3,030 | 669 | 22% | Link |
Columbia (ED) | 3,520 | Link | ||
Cornell (ED) | 4,882 | 1,337 | 27% | Link |
Dartmouth (ED) | 1,927 | 494 | 26% | Link |
Davidson (ED1) | 458 | 207 | 45% | Link |
Dickinson (ED1) | 251 | 220 | 88% | Link |
Duke (ED) | 3,455 | 813 | 24% | Link |
George Washington (ED) | 1,373 | 841 | 61% | Link |
Georgetown (REA) | 7,027 | 892 | 13% | Link |
Georgia Tech (EA) | 14,861 | 4,424 | 30% | Link |
Harvard (SCEA) | 6,173 | 918 | 15% | Link |
Harvey Mudd (ED) | 464 | 77 | 17% | Link |
Johns Hopkins (ED) | 1,929 | 584 | 30% | Link |
Middlebury (ED) | 954 | 398 | 42% | Link |
MIT (EA) | 7,767 | 656 | 8% | Link |
Northwestern (ED) | 3,022 | 1,061 | 35% | Link |
Pitzer (ED) | 423 | 117 | 28% | Link |
Pomona (ED) | 914 | 177 | 19% | Link |
Princeton (SCEA) | 4,229 | 767 | 18% | Link |
Stanford (REA) | 7,822 | 745 | 10% | Link |
Tufts (ED) | 2,070 | 663 | 32% | Link |
University of Georgia (EA) | 14,516 | 7,500 | 52% | Link |
UNC – Chapel Hill (EA) | 19,682 | 6,948 | 35% | Link |
Notre Dame (REA) | 5,321 | 1,610 | 30% | Link |
UPenn (ED) | 5,762 | 1,335 | 23% | Link |
Virginia (EA) | 16,768 | 5,203 | 31% | Link |
Vanderbilt (ED) | 3,400 | 800 | 24% | Link |
Williams (ED) | 585 | 246 | 42% | Link |
Yale (SCEA) | 4,662 | 795 | 17% | Link |
Need some help with a college application? That’s what we’re here for!