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September 13, 2006

Harvard to end early admission

Earlier this week Harvard University announced plans to end its early admission program starting with the fall 2008 freshman class.

The idea behind the move is that early admission gives an advantage to wealthier students who are often more informed about the process and aren't concerned with committing to a prestigious school early because they don't have to compare financial aid packages. While this notion has been discussed for years, Harvard is the first prestigious university to announce an end to the practice.

Harvard doesn't require a commitment from students who apply early, so it doesn't sound like this is a big deal in and of itself. But judging by some of the comments in the wake of the announcement, many higher education officials think Harvard could set off a trend of other schools - some which do require a commitment - dropping the option.

There's also the matter of the move being a step in the direction of easing some of the application craziness that permeates high schools across the country.

Virginia Tech's director of scholarships and financial aid Barry Simmons said Tuesday that he was happy with the move.

Simmons is at a conference on access to higher education in North Carolina this week. He said the move was discussed at the conference and the general consensus is that early decision does skew in favor of wealthy students.

Although many schools allow a higher percentage of students who apply early, it doesn't affect financial aid opportunities one way of the other, he said.

"If the student is sure they want to attend one single institution, not choose to apply to multiple schools, and they're well qualified academically...it's ok," he said. It's not ok "if they're picking and choosing."

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Rhode Island native and Virginia Tech reporter Greg Esposito posts on everyday college life, trends and issues affecting the 35,000-plus students in the New River Valley and beyond.

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Tim Thornton, who is old enough to have children attending college, is still taking classes and is still fascinated by colleges, the students who populate them and the bureaucrats who operate them. His reporting beat is Radford University.

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