Early Decision Enrollment
When weighing the pros and cons of applying Early Decision, most applicants focus primarily on the differential between the admissions rates of the early and regular rounds. Early Decision admit rates are typically higher, even when accounting for the fact that many athletes, legacy, and other “special” candidates are brought aboard via ED. However, another important factor that should be informing applicants’ decisions is the percentage of the total freshman class being admitted through Early Decision. For example, elite liberal arts schools Middlebury and Davidson have already filled over 60% of their incoming classes by December. On the other end of the spectrum, Carnegie Mellon only fills 22% of their class through ED; Northeastern sits at a mere 17%. The rub is that if you are applying to a school like Tufts, there are not many seats left at the table by the regular round. We hope that the following list of Early Decision enrollment data will help you make a more informed choice about when to apply to your dream school.
*Data collected from 2019-20 Common Data Set (CDS) forms.
Table updated August 24, 2020
| Institution | Total Admits | Yield (Incoming Class) | Early Decision Admits | Regular Decision Admits | Early Decision Admits (as % of Total Admits) | Early Decision Admits (as % of Incoming Class) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agnes Scott College | 1,135 | 299 | 16 | 1,119 | 1.4% | 5.4% | |
| Alfred University | 2,801 | 458 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Allegheny College | 3,237 | 500 | 15 | 3,222 | 0.5% | 3.0% | |
| American University | 6,691 | 1,754 | 833 | 5,858 | 12.4% | 47.5% | |
| Amherst College | 1,195 | 470 | 186 | 1,009 | 15.6% | 39.6% | |
| Augustana College (IL) | 3,826 | 678 | 73 | 3,753 | 1.9% | 10.8% | |
| Austin College | 2,236 | 378 | 14 | 2,222 | 0.6% | 3.7% | |
| Babson College | 1,680 | 600 | 202 | 1,478 | 12.0% | 33.7% | |
| Bard College | 3,181 | 482 | 40 | 3,141 | 1.3% | 8.3% | |
| Barnard College | 1,097 | 632 | 292 | 805 | 26.6% | 46.2% | |
| Bates College | 998 | 499 | 351 | 647 | 35.2% | 70.3% | |
| Baylor University | 15,676 | 3,307 | 489 | 15,187 | 3.1% | 14.8% | |
| Beloit College | 2,269 | 259 | 9 | 2,260 | 0.4% | 3.5% | |
| Bennington College | 817 | 179 | 59 | 758 | 7.2% | 33.0% | |
| Bentley University | 4,213 | 944 | 227 | 3,986 | 5.4% | 24.0% | |
| Birmingham Southern College | 1,821 | 332 | 15 | 1,806 | 0.8% | 4.5% | |
| Boston College | 9,679 | 2,297 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | bc |
| Boston University | 11,786 | 3,156 | 1,462 | 10,324 | 12.4% | 46.3% | bu |
| Bowdoin College | 845 | 498 | 251 | 594 | 29.7% | 50.4% | |
| Brandeis University | 3,391 | 863 | 355 | 3,036 | 10.5% | 41.1% | |
| Brown University | 2,733 | 1,660 | 769 | 1,964 | 28.1% | 46.3% | |
| Bryant University | 5,419 | 854 | 136 | 5,283 | 2.5% | 15.9% | |
| Bryn Mawr College | 1,102 | 374 | 179 | 923 | 16.2% | 47.9% | |
| Bucknell University | 3,370 | 964 | 433 | 2,937 | 12.8% | 44.9% | |
| Carleton College | 1,400 | 525 | 249 | 1,151 | 17.8% | 47.4% | |
| Carnegie Mellon University | 4,267 | 1,585 | 350 | 3,917 | 8.2% | 22.1% | cmu |
| Case Western Reserve University | 7,876 | 1,357 | 268 | 7,608 | 3.4% | 19.7% | |
| Catholic University | 4,838 | 818 | 73 | 4,765 | 1.5% | 8.9% | |
| Centre College | 1,690 | 355 | 64 | 1,626 | 3.8% | 18.0% | |
| Chapman University | 7,943 | 1,768 | 122 | 7,821 | 1.5% | 6.9% | |
| Christopher Newport University | 5,179 | 1,238 | 354 | 4,825 | 6.8% | 28.6% | |
| Claremont McKenna College | 625 | 328 | 195 | 430 | 31.2% | 59.5% | cmc |
| Clark University | 4,032 | 665 | 34 | 3,998 | 0.8% | 5.1% | |
| Clarkson University | 4,978 | 790 | 112 | 4,866 | 2.2% | 14.2% | |
| Colby College | 1,314 | 522 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Colgate University | 2,247 | 786 | 437 | 1,810 | 19.4% | 55.6% | |
| College of Charleston | 9,230 | 2,051 | 206 | 9,024 | 2.2% | 10.0% | |
| College of New Jersey, The | 6,812 | 1,605 | 428 | 6,384 | 6.3% | 26.7% | tcnj |
| College of the Atlantic | 325 | 105 | 42 | 283 | 12.9% | 40.0% | |
| College of the Holy Cross | 2,464 | 829 | 413 | 2,051 | 16.8% | 49.8% | |
| College of William & Mary | 5,532 | 1,830 | 571 | 4,961 | 10.3% | 31.2% | |
| Colorado College | 1,277 | 364 | 316 | 961 | 24.7% | 86.8% | |
| Columbia University | 2,245 | 1,392 | 720 | 1,525 | 32.1% | 51.7% | |
| Connecticut College | 2,538 | 508 | 268 | 2,270 | 10.6% | 52.8% | |
| Cooper Union | 369 | 186 | 55 | 314 | 14.9% | 29.6% | |
| Cornell University | 5,330 | 3,189 | 1,397 | 3,933 | 26.2% | 43.8% | |
| Dartmouth College | 1,875 | 1,190 | 574 | 1,301 | 30.6% | 48.2% | |
| Davidson College | 1,080 | 527 | 347 | 733 | 32.1% | 65.8% | |
| Denison University | 2,590 | 625 | 338 | 2,252 | 13.1% | 54.1% | |
| DePauw University | 3,176 | 423 | 73 | 3,103 | 2.3% | 17.3% | |
| Dickinson College | 2,574 | 453 | 193 | 2,381 | 7.5% | 42.6% | |
| Drew University | 2,805 | 400 | 83 | 2,722 | 3.0% | 20.8% | |
| Drexel University | 23,771 | 3,178 | 271 | 23,500 | 1.1% | 8.5% | |
| Duke University | 3,190 | 1,731 | 702 | 2,488 | 22.0% | 40.6% | |
| Earlham College | 1,313 | 172 | 32 | 1,281 | 2.4% | 18.6% | |
| Elon University | 8,236 | 1,659 | 329 | 7,907 | 4.0% | 19.8% | |
| Emerson College | 5,120 | 942 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Emory University | 4,682 | 1,374 | 704 | 3,978 | 15.0% | 51.2% | |
| Endicott College | 3,487 | 849 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Fairfield University | 7,035 | 1,176 | 173 | 6,862 | 2.5% | 14.7% | |
| Fordham University | 21,988 | 2,270 | 185 | 21,803 | 0.8% | 8.1% | |
| Franklin & Marshall College | 2,888 | 597 | 381 | 2,507 | 13.2% | 63.8% | |
| Furman University | 2,987 | 648 | 129 | 2,858 | 4.3% | 19.9% | |
| George Washington University | 11,019 | 2,619 | 846 | 10,173 | 7.7% | 32.3% | gwu |
| Gettysburg College | 2,842 | 681 | 268 | 2,574 | 9.4% | 39.4% | |
| Goucher College | 2,122 | 340 | 26 | 2,096 | 1.2% | 7.6% | |
| Grinnell College | 1,847 | 459 | 197 | 1,650 | 10.7% | 42.9% | |
| Hamilton College | 1,367 | 473 | 241 | 1,126 | 17.6% | 51.0% | |
| Hampshire College | 49 | 19 | 41 | 8 | 83.7% | 215.8% | |
| Harvey Mudd College | 553 | 224 | 85 | 468 | 15.4% | 37.9% | hmc |
| Haverford College | 810 | 363 | 204 | 606 | 25.2% | 56.2% | |
| High Point University | 8,423 | 1,400 | 567 | 7,856 | 6.7% | 40.5% | |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | 2,267 | 458 | 207 | 2,060 | 9.1% | 45.2% | hws |
| Hollins University | 2,311 | 185 | 10 | 2,301 | 0.4% | 5.4% | |
| Howard University | 7,578 | 1,925 | 85 | 7,493 | 1.1% | 4.4% | |
| Ithaca College | 10,326 | 3,319 | 135 | 10,191 | 1.3% | 4.1% | |
| Johns Hopkins University | 2,937 | 1,355 | 641 | 2,296 | 21.8% | 47.3% | |
| Kalamazoo College | 2,716 | 395 | 46 | 2,670 | 1.7% | 11.6% | |
| Kenyon College | 2,271 | 487 | 251 | 2,020 | 11.1% | 51.5% | |
| Knox College | 2,321 | 1,420 | 15 | 2,306 | 0.6% | 1.1% | |
| Lafayette College | 2,682 | 698 | 364 | 2,318 | 13.6% | 52.1% | |
| Lake Forest College | 2,616 | 379 | 19 | 2,597 | 0.7% | 5.0% | |
| Lawrence University | 2,150 | 386 | 35 | 2,115 | 1.6% | 9.1% | |
| Lehigh University | 5,023 | 1,406 | 765 | 4,258 | 15.2% | 54.4% | |
| Lewis & Clark College | 4,231 | 507 | 48 | 4,183 | 1.1% | 9.5% | |
| Loyola Marymount University | 8,150 | 1,467 | 168 | 7,982 | 2.1% | 11.5% | lmu |
| Macalester College | 2,129 | 502 | 167 | 1,962 | 7.8% | 33.3% | |
| Manhattan College | 6,434 | 853 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Marist College | 5,543 | 1,358 | 232 | 5,311 | 4.2% | 17.1% | |
| Miami University | 23,248 | 4,309 | 537 | 22,711 | 2.3% | 12.5% | |
| Middlebury College | 1,498 | 605 | 372 | 1,126 | 24.8% | 61.5% | |
| Morehouse College | 2,026 | 568 | 61 | 1,965 | 3.0% | 10.7% | |
| Mount Holyoke College | 1,491 | 496 | 227 | 1,264 | 15.2% | 45.8% | |
| Muhlenberg College | 2,798 | 538 | 220 | 2,578 | 7.9% | 40.9% | |
| New College of Florida | 896 | 147 | 26 | 870 | 2.9% | 17.7% | |
| New York University | 12,873 | 5,752 | 3,846 | 9,027 | 29.9% | 66.9% | nyu |
| Northeastern University | 11,240 | 2,975 | 550 | 10,690 | 4.9% | 18.5% | |
| Northwestern University | 3,673 | 2,006 | 1,096 | 2,577 | 29.8% | 54.6% | |
| Oberlin College | 2,806 | 798 | 246 | 2,560 | 8.8% | 30.8% | |
| Occidental College | 2,752 | 562 | 180 | 2,572 | 6.5% | 32.0% | |
| Ohio Wesleyan University | 2,880 | 399 | 40 | 2,840 | 1.4% | 10.0% | |
| Pitzer College | 605 | 276 | 162 | 443 | 26.8% | 58.7% | |
| Pomona College | 770 | 417 | 213 | 557 | 27.7% | 51.1% | |
| Providence College | 5,447 | 1,094 | 369 | 5,078 | 6.8% | 33.7% | |
| Quinnipiac University | |||||||
| Ramapo College of New Jersey | 4,808 | 1,003 | 141 | 4,667 | 2.9% | 14.1% | |
| Reed College | 2,295 | 394 | 108 | 2,187 | 4.7% | 27.4% | |
| Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | 8,835 | 1,665 | 553 | 8,282 | 6.3% | 33.2% | rpi |
| Rhodes College | 2,328 | 517 | 145 | 2,183 | 6.2% | 28.0% | |
| Rice University | 2,361 | 961 | 408 | 1,953 | 17.3% | 42.5% | |
| Rochester Institute of Technology | 13,964 | 2,683 | 1,154 | 12,810 | 8.3% | 43.0% | rit |
| Rollins College | 3,598 | 556 | 197 | 3,401 | 5.5% | 35.4% | |
| Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame | 1,651 | 374 | 75 | 1,576 | 4.5% | 20.1% | |
| Santa Clara University | 7,958 | 842 | 307 | 7,651 | 3.9% | 36.5% | |
| Sarah Lawrence College | 2,152 | 398 | 85 | 2,067 | 3.9% | 21.4% | |
| Scripps College | 967 | 283 | 115 | 852 | 11.9% | 40.6% | |
| Sewanee, University of the South | 2,365 | 488 | 139 | 2,226 | 5.9% | 28.5% | |
| Siena College | 6,269 | 840 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Skidmore College | 3,336 | 735 | 364 | 2,972 | 10.9% | 49.5% | |
| Smith College | 1,817 | 633 | 307 | 1,510 | 16.9% | 48.5% | |
| Southern Methodist University | 6,601 | 1,544 | 315 | 6,286 | 4.8% | 20.4% | smu |
| Southwestern University | 2,337 | 444 | 24 | 2,313 | 1.0% | 5.4% | |
| Spelman College | 3,956 | 516 | 87 | 3,869 | 2.2% | 16.9% | |
| St. Joseph's University | 6,517 | 1,103 | 81 | 6,436 | 1.2% | 7.3% | |
| St. Lawrence University | 2,968 | 605 | 221 | 2,747 | 7.4% | 36.5% | |
| St. Mary's College of Maryland | 1,366 | 320 | 34 | 1,332 | 2.5% | 10.6% | |
| St. Olaf College | 2,705 | 806 | 304 | 2,401 | 11.2% | 37.7% | |
| Stevens Institute of Technology | 4,186 | 969 | 372 | 3,814 | 8.9% | 38.4% | |
| Stonehill College | 4,712 | 652 | 113 | 4,599 | 2.4% | 17.3% | |
| SUNY, College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 1,155 | 353 | 103 | 1,052 | 8.9% | 29.2% | |
| SUNY, Geneseo | 6,831 | 1,233 | 235 | 6,596 | 3.4% | 19.1% | |
| SUNY, Maritime College | 974 | 345 | 81 | 893 | 8.3% | 23.5% | |
| Susquehanna University | 4,122 | 620 | 35 | 4,087 | 0.8% | 5.6% | |
| Swarthmore College | 1,022 | 417 | 235 | 787 | 23.0% | 56.4% | |
| Syracuse University | 15,664 | 3,600 | 1,259 | 14,405 | 8.0% | 35.0% | |
| Texas Christian University | 8,966 | 2,159 | 437 | 8,529 | 4.9% | 20.2% | tcu |
| The College of Wooster | 3,472 | 542 | 201 | 3,271 | 5.8% | 37.1% | |
| Trinity College (CT) | 2,045 | 579 | 299 | 1,746 | 14.6% | 51.6% | |
| Trinity University | 2,837 | 637 | 100 | 2,737 | 3.5% | 15.7% | |
| Tufts University | 3,404 | 1,613 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Tulane University | 5,431 | 1,821 | 720 | 4,711 | 13.3% | 39.5% | |
| Union College | 2,612 | 550 | 218 | 2,394 | 8.3% | 39.6% | |
| University of Chicago | 2,137 | 1,726 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| University of Denver | 12,345 | 1,351 | 120 | 12,225 | 1.0% | 8.9% | du |
| University of Mary Washington | 4,438 | 891 | 95 | 4,343 | 2.1% | 10.7% | |
| University of Miami | 10,557 | 2,203 | 755 | 9,802 | 7.2% | 34.3% | um |
| University of Pennsylvania | 3,446 | 2,340 | 1,280 | 2,166 | 37.1% | 54.7% | upenn |
| University of Puget Sound | 4,343 | 615 | 65 | 4,278 | 1.5% | 10.6% | |
| University of Redlands | 3,533 | 723 | 23 | 3,510 | 0.7% | 3.2% | |
| University of Richmond | 3,500 | 832 | 350 | 3,150 | 10.0% | 42.1% | |
| University of Rochester | 6,095 | 1,374 | 510 | 5,585 | 8.4% | 37.1% | |
| University of San Francisco | 14,086 | 1,293 | 68 | 14,018 | 0.5% | 5.3% | usf |
| University of Virginia | 9,778 | 3,920 | 748 | 9,030 | 7.6% | 19.1% | |
| Ursinus College | 2,792 | 431 | 70 | 2,722 | 2.5% | 16.2% | |
| Vanderbilt University | 3,402 | 1,604 | 859 | 2,543 | 25.2% | 53.6% | vandy |
| Vassar College | 2,127 | 690 | 310 | 1,817 | 14.6% | 44.9% | |
| Villanova University | 6,470 | 1,695 | 564 | 5,906 | 8.7% | 33.3% | |
| Virginia Military Institute | 902 | 447 | 267 | 635 | 29.6% | 59.7% | vmi |
| Virginia Tech | 22,393 | 7,651 | 1,275 | 21,118 | 5.7% | 16.7% | |
| Wabash College | 839 | 229 | 39 | 800 | 4.6% | 17.0% | |
| Wake Forest University | 3,717 | 1,360 | 626 | 3,091 | 16.8% | 46.0% | wfu |
| Washington & Jefferson College | 2,320 | 291 | 8 | 2,312 | 0.3% | 2.7% | |
| Washington & Lee University | 1,147 | 460 | 253 | 894 | 22.1% | 55.0% | |
| Washington University in St. Louis | 4,708 | 1,797 | 772 | 3,936 | 16.4% | 43.0% | washu |
| Wayne State University | 11,495 | 2,968 | 10 | 11,485 | 0.1% | 0.3% | |
| Wellesley College | 1,379 | 612 | 222 | 1,157 | 16.1% | 36.3% | |
| Wesleyan University | 2,186 | 771 | 409 | 1,777 | 18.7% | 53.0% | |
| Wheaton College (MA) | 2,556 | 451 | 96 | 2,460 | 3.8% | 21.3% | |
| Whitman College | 2,697 | 425 | 139 | 2,558 | 5.2% | 32.7% | |
| Willamette University | 3,095 | 371 | 20 | 3,075 | 0.6% | 5.4% | |
| Williams College | 1,224 | 546 | 257 | 967 | 21.0% | 47.1% | |
| Wittenberg University | 2,184 | 344 | 71 | 2,113 | 3.3% | 20.6% | |
| Wofford College | 2,265 | 474 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A | |
| Yeshiva University | 919 | 559 | Not Reported | Not Reported | N/A | N/A |
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