The last few years in college admissions have seen an increasing number of Early Decision and Early Action applicants.  Although we will have to wait a few months for official data from colleges, anecdotal evidence from my colleagues and clients indicates that college admissions deferrals to the Regular Decision round are increasing. 

A few examples are eye-opening.  USC, which does not offer Early Decision, admitted 6% of its Early Action applicants and deferred the rest – all 94% of them – last year.  See Opinion | The Cynical Reason College Applications Are Surging – The New York Times (nytimes.com).  This year saw the same story – USC only admitted 7% of its Early Action applicants.  See Acceptance rate expected to drop to 9.2% – Daily Trojan.  Clemson deferred almost 60% of Early Decision / Early Action applicants. 

Widespread college admissions deferrals appear to abandon a key premise of Early Action – to provide students with early decisions on their applications.  But wait – there’s more.

When colleges place students on waitlists, students hoping to be admitted from the waitlist are advised to send in a LOCI (“letter of continuing interest”).  Now a few colleges appear to be requesting a LOCI from students who are merely deferred.  For example, USC and Michigan suggest that deferred (or “postponed”) students reaffirm their interest in being considered for admission.  See I Was Deferred to Regular Decision – FAQ (usc.edu); Postponed Applicants FAQ | University of Michigan Office of Undergraduate Admissions (umich.edu). 

This is an odd development.  Students who take the trouble to apply early — much less Early Decision applicants who commit to attending if admitted – are unlikely to forgo a second round of selection.  The University of Michigan states that it provides this avenue to express interest because anxious students were sending all sorts of materials after being deferred – this way, the university controls what it will receive.  Perhaps, but a simple statement prohibiting LOCIs after deferral would suffice.  Expect to see more of this next year.

The good news for deferred students this year is that they may have a better chance of admission than in previous years. Fewer slots filled in early rounds means more available for those who have been deferred.