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 Grinnell have already filled over 60% of their incoming classes by January (after ED II evaluations have concluded). On the other end of the spectrum, University of Virginia only fills 25% of their class through ED; Northeastern sits at a mere 23%. 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 2021-22 Common Data Set (CDS) forms.

Table updated October 2022

InstitutionTotal Admits (Freshman)Total Enrolled (Freshman Yield)Early Decision AdmitsRegular Decision AdmitsED Admits (as % of total admits)ED Admits (as % of incoming class)
Agnes Scott College11353012711082%9%
Allegheny College35214088034412%20%
American University125942365673119215%28%
Amherst College1224514213101117%41%
Babson College1801650276152515%42%
Bard College30964724030561%8%
Barnard College119276042976336%56%
Bates College126755333892927%61%
Beloit College22062901121951%4%
Bennington College829138298003%21%
Bentley University5674101928253925%28%
Boston College758725161260632717%50%
Boston University14129401018771225213%47%
Bowdoin College82251726355932%51%
Brown University25681705884168434%52%
Bryant University514267114749953%22%
Bryn Mawr College1334422159117512%38%
Bucknell University38861027468341812%46%
Carleton College1389555235115417%42%
Carnegie Mellon University44531896592386113%31%
Case Western Reserve University9193160631888753%20%
Centre College16903556416264%18%
Chapman University9115164511989961%7%
Claremont McKenna College63335820043332%56%
Colby College1407667332107524%50%
Colgate University3015887494252116%56%
College of Charleston155902464194153961%8%
College of the Holy Cross2786819296249011%36%
College of William and Mary6386168258158059%35%
Colorado College1564619309125520%50%
Connecticut College314649220629407%42%
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art3361914129512%21%
Cornell University585237181930392233%52%
Dartmouth College17501221669108138%55%
Davidson College114554732282328%59%
Denison University2689654304238511%46%
DePauw University36835007736062%15%
Dickinson College306164623528268%36%
Drew University28243595327712%15%
Drexel University285222832370281521%13%
Duke University30851580852223328%54%
Elon University138591590221136382%14%
Emory University43641494844352019%56%
Fairfield University7073125619968743%16%
Florida Southern College65717925165201%6%
Fordham University269802861201267791%7%
Franklin and Marshall College289850925226469%50%
Furman University51196539250272%14%
George Washington University135392563646128935%25%
Gettysburg College349662325632407%41%
Grinnell College110847128882026%61%
Hamilton College1320533267105320%50%
Harvey Mudd College47322510436922%46%
Haverford College95141119875321%48%
High Point University8951144166082917%46%
Hobart William Smith Colleges254636718223647%50%
Ithaca College104511163116103351%10%
Kalamazoo College26663826126052%16%
Kenyon College277850825225269%50%
Lafayette College3366782330303610%42%
Lake Forest College28084162027881%5%
Lawrence University21794004521342%11%
Lehigh University61381370815532313%59%
Loyola Marymount University8727160624884793%15%
Macalester College246660114823186%25%
Marist College6943127217167722%13%
Miami University-Oxford265714509451261202%10%
Middlebury College1601602425117627%71%
Mount Holyoke College207760815119267%25%
Muhlenberg College279045018226087%40%
Northeastern University1382945041014128157%23%
Northwestern University332120861105221633%53%
Occidental College248453520922758%39%
Ohio Wesleyan University27104034326672%11%
Pitzer College67335716650725%46%
Pomona College77145120556627%45%
Providence College6453103227861754%27%
Ramapo College of New Jersey485887110647522%12%
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute9539132241391264%31%
Rhodes College302559214828775%25%
Rice University28021217478232417%39%
Rochester Institute of Technology1543833531322141169%39%
Rollins College409454924638486%45%
Santa Clara University9095155340286934%26%
Sarah Lawrence College25934387025233%16%
Scripps College87232810976313%33%
Skidmore College3419717388303111%54%
Smith College1917676307161016%45%
Southern Methodist University8333156835079834%22%
Southwestern University24283541424141%4%
Spelman College56737949455792%12%
St John's University-New York20143270343201001%2%
St Lawrence University295060222327278%37%
St Olaf College307375516829055%22%
St. John's College28612072792%6%
St. John's College514140184964%13%
St. Mary's College of Maryland22213815421672%14%
Stetson University84836378983941%14%
Stonehill College471265211345992%17%
SUNY College at Geneseo6723100115465692%15%
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry14672876913985%24%
Swarthmore College101345423477923%52%
Syracuse University2348937531113223765%30%
Texas Christian University106062555407101994%16%
The College of New Jersey6444147443060147%29%
The College of Wooster400857510039082%17%
The University of the South250847413923696%29%
Trinity College2145571318182715%56%
Trinity University324666314331034%22%
Tulane University of Louisiana438520271209317628%60%
Union College351356517633375%31%
University of Denver144401602135143051%8%
University of Mary Washington41186297240462%11%
University of Miami120362759978110588%35%
University of North Carolina at Asheville371460232833869%54%
University of Pennsylvania330423381183212136%51%
University of Puget Sound44374095343841%13%
University of Richmond4015871400361510%46%
University of Rochester7924162160373218%37%
University of San Francisco15867144778157891%5%
University of Virginia-Main Campus99513886960899110%25%
Ursinus College31584338030783%18%
Vanderbilt University33681624901246727%55%
Vassar College2193676301189214%45%
Villanova University61621768768539412%43%
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University2374667791278224685%19%
Washington and Lee University124848427497422%57%
Washington University in St Louis437319701098327525%56%
Wellesley College1343606253109019%42%
Wesleyan University2540910494204619%54%
Wheaton College (MA)27604589526653%21%
Whitman College309547715329425%32%
Willamette University29212591329081%5%
Williams College109957423886122%41%
Worcester Polytechnic Institute6679141018964903%13%

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