At some of the country’s most elite schools, it’s fashionable to be late. Harvard shocked the higher education community earlier this month when it announced it was going to drop its early admission program for students applying next fall, saying it put financially needy students at a disadvantage. Princeton quickly followed suit, and yesterday, the University of Virginia announced it was eliminating early admission. Early decision has been a way for students to secure a seat at the school of their choice ahead of classmates, and for schools to lock in top students for their freshmen classes. Binding early action, for most colleges, requires the student to attend once accepted. Schools usually honor each others’ binding early action — if you renege at one school after committing to attend, it creates a bad image for other potential suitors. But once a student accepts a binding offer of early admission, he or she loses the chance to compare financial aid packages from other colleges. And, for some students, being admitted before the end of the senior year of high school takes away incentive to keep grades up until graduation. Carnegie Mellon University has higher tuition but a smaller student body than Harvard. Mike Hall, associate director of admissions, said the school does not plan to change its binding early-decision policy. He estimated that about 20 percent of students enroll at CMU are under early decision. “I think we all understand that a $46,000-a-year education is not to be undertaken lightly, so the first thing we do is offer students an early financial aid estimate,” Hall said. About two years ago, Hall said, CMU decided it would guarantee to meet the full financial need of early-decision students, as determined by the federal financial aid formula. And, even if admitted early, students are required to submit final senior grades to CMU. “We expect a little bit of senioritis, but if there’s a serious drop, we do reserve the right to revoke early-decision admission,” Hall said. Is there a penalty for backing out after accepting an offer of early admission from CMU• Hall said the school doesn’t hunt students down but will renege offers if it finds out the student has active applications at other schools. “It doesn’t happen all that much, maybe two or three students each year,” he said. For Duquesne University, the number of students who take advantage of the school’s non-binding early admission is small — about 3 percent of applicants, said Paul-James Cukanna, director of admissions and enrollment research. “If a student decides he doesn’t want to attend, it may mean the fit is not right for the student,” Cukanna said. Duquesne really doesn’t push its early-decision option, Cukanna said. Some schools see early application as a signal that a student really wants to attend, and therefore, might offer the student less aid, he said. When Harvard and other “Ivies” do away with early admissions, Cukanna said, it affects those schools less than some of the second-tier schools. “It’s not going to impact Harvard’s demand, but for some schools, it can impact their enrollment.” The University of Pittsburgh uses rolling admissions; there is no deadline. The same is true for many local schools, including Point Park University, Downtown and Chatham College in Shadyside. Michael Poll, vice president for admissions at Chatham, said the school explored the idea of early admission but ultimately decided against it. “Early decision takes the stress off for some students, but if finances are an issue, it puts students at a disadvantage,” Poll said. “We have a lot of older students, who tend to apply later, and need more flexibility with scheduling decisions.” How early can you apply? All information is for full-time in-state undergraduate students for the 2006-07 school year. Some schools have programs for which tuition and fees vary. Allegheny College : Binding early decision. If accepted, students are expected to enroll and withdraw all other college applications. Tuition and fees: $28,300. Chatham College : Rolling admissions. Students who register after the designation open enrollment period, which varies by term, are charged a $150 fee. Tuition: $24,014. Fees vary by program. Carnegie Mellon University: Two application deadlines for binding early decision: Nov. 1 and Dec. 1. Certain programs are ineligible or might be eligible under one deadline but not the other. If applying under early decision, students are expected to enroll if accepted, may apply to only one college within the university, and must be 17 or older. Once accepted to CMU under early decision, students are expected to withdraw any applications to other schools. Tuition and fees: $34,768. Duquesne University : Early action deadline of Dec. 1 for the most competitive programs, including pharmacy and forensic science. The early decision deadline is Nov. 1, and is intended for students who are planning to apply only to Duquesne. It is non-binding. Tuition and fees: $22,665. Grove City College : Half of its freshman class annually is accepted under early decision. While students are allowed to submit applications elsewhere, once accepted under early decision, students must withdraw applications to all other institutions and submit no additional applications. Tuition: $10,962. Fees vary by program. Point Park University : Rolling admissions. Tuition and fees: $17,770. Robert Morris University : Rolling admission. Tuition: $16,290. Fees vary by program. University of Pittsburgh : Rolling admissions. Tuition and fees: $12,138. Washington & Jefferson College : Early decision. If accepted, students agree to withdraw all applications to other colleges. The school’s early action plan is non-binding and allows students to be notified before the regular decision deadline. Tuition and fees: $28,080.

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