Is ED ever beneficial? Forum

[vanwinkle]

And if OP wants peace of mind they should retake and go up a few points and feel good knowing they have a chance at getting in everywhere and substantial scholarships at many schools.

There's little "peace of mind" in retaking if you're not confident you can get a higher score. I know that a lot of people think retaking is the ideal answer, but if OP can get into one of CCN now, and they're comfortable with that, why not just go ahead and do it?

I know Columbia is basically not an option... they seem extremely LSAT-heavy in their admissions. I like NYU because I'd be able to commute from home, but if Chicago is the least focused out of CCN on high-end LSATs (still an uphill battle for me, I know) maybe I should use my binding ED on them instead of NYU? All of this is important strategically--I don't want to be that foolhardy guy who sits back thinking he'll get a T-14 just to get closed out.

I don't think the difference between NYU and Chicago is that great in terms of your chances, and if you'd prefer to go to NYU, then it just makes more sense to ED to NYU. And they certainly could accept you, based on your numbers, especially if you already live there and can use that as part of your explanation for why you want to go there.

With your numbers you should not get "closed out" of the T14. There are other options if that's what you're concerned about. UVA accepts ED applications until March; if you applied ED to NYU and got rejected, you'd still have time to send an ED application to UVA afterward. Or, you could just wait a year and try again.

[Dany]

If you would like to ED to one of CN, my biggest piece of advice would be to visit. I would not lock myself into a school (which I am almost certain is the case for you since I think you'd get either ED) without seeing it first.

But again, I still wouldn't ED in your shoes. I know that being uncertain about what's going to happen is scary, and there were plenty of days where I wished I would have applied ED to better my chances and find out earlier. If you truly want CCN, are okay with paying sticker, and want to ED, that's a fine decision. But don't let it be your decision just because you're nervous. There is always the option to reapply if things don't shake out the way you want them to, but I'm betting you'll do fine the first time around.

[Dany]

And if OP wants peace of mind they should retake and go up a few points and feel good knowing they have a chance at getting in everywhere and substantial scholarships at many schools.

There's little "peace of mind" in retaking if you're not confident you can get a higher score.

I know that, but OP didn't make that clear until the second post about a retake. The first post made it seem like he/she just didn't want to put in the time for a retake, which was what my advice was based on.