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New Early Action Admissions Options Popping Up Across America

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It started in Texas, gained traction in Florida, and has now spread to the Pacific Northwest. “It” is the advent of new Early Action admissions plans for high school seniors applying to college.

When a high school senior applies to a college or university “Early Action” it means he or she is submitting his or her application by a specific early deadline (usually in October, November, or December) and will in turn receive an admissions decision earlier than when that college or university releases its admissions decisions to students who apply “Regular Decision” (which is usually associated with a January or February application deadline).  When a student is admitted “Early Action,” the student is not committed to enroll at that college and has until May 1 of his or her senior year in high school in order to decide where to matriculate.

In March, The University of Texas at Austin announced the introduction of a new Early Action program for first-year applicants. This optional early deadline will require application submission by October 15, with a guaranteed decision communicated to first-year applicants by January 15. The regular deadline for first-year applications will remain December 1 and come along with a guaranteed decision communicated by February 15.

University of Florida then announced later in March that for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle it would also begin offering first-year applicants the chance to apply Early Action. By adopting the Early Action plan, potential first-year students who submit their applications by November 1, 2024 and submit all required materials will be notified on January 24, 2025 of their admissions status with UF.

“The University of Florida draws elite students, and this initiative is an important opportunity for our university and our students,” UF President Ben Sasse said at the time of the announcement. “Not only will it help UF attract the best minds, but it will also identify and reward students who are bold enough and determined enough to challenge themselves here in our rigorous academic environment.”

“Early Action will provide more certainty to selected students by notifying them of admission decisions earlier,” said Mary Parker, vice president for enrollment management at UF. “We appreciate how stressful it can be to plan for college. This plan will help reduce stress for aspiring Gators and their families; allowing more time to prepare for their time at UF – such as looking into housing and financial aid options.”

Not to be outdone by its neighbor just to the north, University of Central Florida announced in late June that it too would offer an Early Action admissions plan for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle. Under UCF’s new plan, first-year applicants who wish to apply Early Action for the Summer 2025 or Fall 2025 term must submit their application by Oct. 15, 2024 and all required application materials must be received by November 1, 2024. Those first-year applicants who meet these deadlines will receive a final admission decision or deferral for additional information on November 15, 2024.

“Transitioning to this early action and modified rolling admission process reflects our commitment to providing prospective Knights with a clear and timely admission experience, while maintaining flexibility for those students who prefer a rolling process,” said Alicia Keaton, interim associate vice president for enrollment planning and management at UCF. “We understand that the college application process can be stressful, and this change will allow families to operate on a timeline that works best for them, helping them to better plan for their future.”

Florida State University already offers an Early Action admission option for first-year applicants as long as such applicants are Florida residents. UF’s and UCF’s new Early Action plans are open to all first-year applicants, regardless of state of residency.

Yet, it’s not just public universities joining the Early Action bandwagon. Gonzaga University, a private Jesuit university in Spokane, Washington, also announced in June that it would start offering Early Action for the first time during the 2024-2025 admissions cycle.

Gonzaga’s Early Action deadline is set for November 15, 2024, and Early Action decisions are anticipated to be released in late December 2024. Gonzaga will still have a Regular Decision deadline of February 1 to provide some applicants the opportunity to include more senior year grades for admission review. Students applying under the Regular Decision deadline can expect decisions by early March 2025. In addition, all applications to Gonzaga’s nursing program must be submitted by the Early Action deadline of November 15. Applications received after this date will be considered for the nursing waitlist.

“Gonzaga University is committed to supporting our prospective students by providing processes that fit their needs,” said Steve Keller, senior director of Undergraduate Admission. “These application options benefit students wishing to lock in college decisions early, as well as students waiting to include information that could enhance their profile in the admission review,” Keller said. “We’ve found that they appreciate this flexibility and we’re pleased to reflect the needs and expectations of today’s applicants.”

The formal start of the 2024-2025 admissions cycle for first-year applicants is increasingly recognized as August 1, as this is the date each year when the Common App, the application used by over 1,000 colleges and universities, goes live for students applying for first-year admission for the following August or September.

University of Florida Shares 2022-2023 Admissions Statistics

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Gainesville, Florida is home to University of Florida.

University of Florida (UF) received nearly 67,000 applications during the 2022-2023 admissions cycle, which represents a slight increase over last year.

According to Charles Murphy, UF’s Director of Admissions, offers of admissions were made to approximately 15,600 students to start on campus in the Summer B or Fall term. Admitted students had the following middle 50% ranges on the still-required SAT or ACT:

GPA: 4.4 – 4.6 (UF’s weighted recalculation)
SAT: 1340 – 1490
ACT: 30 – 34

UF is one of just a handful of major American research universities that are still currently requiring submission of the SAT or ACT as part of the undergraduate admissions process.

In addition, approximately 2,800 students received an offer to UF’s Pathway to Campus Enrollment (PaCE), 650 for Innovation Academy (IA), and 1,100 for a state college partnership program.

UF is located in Gainesville, Florida, a vibrant college town that offers a wide range of cultural and recreational activities. The city is surrounded by numerous state parks and springs.

University of Florida is consistently ranked among the top public universities in the United States. It offers over 100 undergraduate majors across a wide range of disciplines, and it’s a major research institution; undergraduates have the opportunity to work alongside faculty members on research projects. The university is home to more than 150 research centers and institutes, and it consistently ranks in the top in the nation for total research funding.

In addition, UF offers over 1,000 student organizations and clubs, including sports teams, music ensembles, theater groups, and academic organizations. This provides ample opportunities for students to get involved and pursue their passions outside the classroom.

What are the pros and cons of UF vs. FSU?

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FSU vs. UF

Today’s reader question comes from Jasmine in Miami:

Question: Even though I’m a life-long resident of the state, I am scrambling the differences between University of Florida and Florida State University in my head. Can you give me a summary of differences/pros and cons of attending University of Florida vs. Florida State University?

Answer: The University of Florida and Florida State University are both well-respected public universities in the state of Florida. Each university has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, and the choice between the two may come down to personal preferences and individual needs. They have both become more popular since the COVID-19 pandemic, as more Americans are interested in moving to and living in Florida than ever before.

Pros of the University of Florida:

  • Large and diverse campus: UF has a large student body and a diverse range of academic programs, providing students with a variety of options and opportunities.
  • Strong academics: UF is known for its strong programs in a variety of fields, including the sciences, engineering, business, and liberal arts.
  • Extensive research opportunities: UF is a leading research university, and students have access to a variety of research opportunities both within and outside of their academic programs.
  • Location: UF is located in Gainesville, a college town with a vibrant cultural scene and plenty of opportunities for recreation and entertainment.

Cons of the University of Florida:

  • Large size can be overwhelming: With such a large student body, UF can feel impersonal or overwhelming for some students.
  • Crowdedness: The size of UF also means that classes and campus facilities can become crowded, especially during peak times.

Pros of Florida State University:

  • Strong sense of community: FSU has a strong sense of community and student life, with a variety of clubs, organizations, and events for students to get involved in.
  • Excellent programs in specific areas: FSU is known for its strong programs in certain areas, such as music, theater, and criminology.
  • Beautiful campus: FSU has a beautiful and well-maintained campus, with a variety of recreational facilities and green spaces for students to enjoy.

Cons of Florida State University:

  • Limited academic options: FSU is a smaller university, which means that students may have limited options in terms of academic programs and course offerings.
  • Less diverse student body: FSU may not be as diverse as other universities, both in terms of its student body and its academic programs.

Ultimately, both the University of Florida and Florida State University are excellent institutions, and the choice between the two may come down to personal preferences and individual needs. It’s important to consider factors such as academic programs, campus culture, location, and available resources when making a decision between the two universities. I strongly recommend that you speak at length with your school’s college counselor or a college admissions consultant to better gauge whether both, one, or neither of these universities is a good fit for you.

When it comes to admissions, do note that both UF and FSU are considered competitive universities, and getting admitted to either one can be challenging for many high school seniors. The admission process takes into account a number of factors, such as academic performance, test scores, extracurricular activities, and essays.

University of Florida to Finally Accept Common Application

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Gainesville, Florida is home to University of Florida.

Charles Murphy, University of Florida’s Director of Freshman and International Admissions has made news that is sure to boost University of Florida’s first-year application numbers, make UF more selective for first-year applicants, bring smiles to the faces of high school counselors across the country, and keep high school seniors on edge later into this upcoming year’s admissions cycle.

“Starting with the 2019-20 application cycle, the University of Florida will accept both the Common Application and the Coalition Application. As you likely know, we have exclusively taken the Coalition Application the last few years, and look forward to continued partnerships with Coalition for applications and programming aimed at promoting access and student success. We are still finalizing some internal logistics with the Common Application, so you will not yet see this information updated on our admissions website or the Common Application’s website. However, that information will be updated as soon as possible once everything is finalized.” Murphy shared.

Murphy went on to add that starting during the 2019-2020 admissions cycle, UF’s admissions notification date will move back to the last Friday of February, which for the upcoming admissions cycle is February 28, 2020. In recent years, UF has notified applicants of their admissions decisions in early February. According to Murphy, UF already enjoys “consistent year to year increases in application volume,” and with the acceptance of the Common App, UF will certainly need the extra weeks in February to review what will surely be the biggest increase in applications UF has experienced yet based on how other colleges’ first-year application numbers have increased after joining the Common App.

UF’s one first-year application deadline of November 1 will remain the same as in past years. High school counselors have not so much enjoyed having their students apply to UF in recent years, as the university has most recently been a Coalition Application exclusive college, which means it accepted no application other than the Coalition Application. The Coalition Application, while a good idea in theory (it was created to promote equity and access and to serve as a strong and more user-friendly counter balance to the Common App), turns out to be an increasingly wretched application in practice, as its functionality and usability has taken a nose dive with each passing admissions cycle. This is saying a lot because the application was never as user-friendly as behemoth competitor Common App (approaching 1,000 members) or the small but seamless Universal College App (in an inexplicable funk with only ten members). In fact, the Coalition Application is so horrible to use from the perspective of applicants (I had one student fly into an uncontrollable rage this past year when trying to navigate her Coalition Application, while another student I was working with at one point pushed his chair back from the computer where he was working on the Coalition Application and proceeded to just look out into the distance in what seemed like a catatonic state for at least four minutes after becoming completely stupefied by the application’s interface) that I purposely won’t link to it in this article for fear that doing so would encourage students to use it. High school counselors have been increasingly befuddled by how to advise students to navigate the Coalition Application, which seems filled with trap doors, dead ends, and missing links.

Sadly, University of Maryland, College Park and University of Washington will remain Coalition-exclusive colleges for the upcoming admissions cycle. Meanwhile, University of Virginia and Dartmouth College have quietly made clear that they will stop accepting the hot mess that is the Coalition Application for the 2019-2020 application cycle, though both institutions did not use those words – or any words, actually – in making the change.

With so many colleges now accepting the Common App for first-year college entry admissions, UF can expect a lot more unserious apps coming its way, which, trust me, is just fine with UF because it will allow UF to increase its selectivity (UF will get to reject a higher percentage of students than ever before) and perceived prestige (though prestige, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder). It will also allow UF to turn away more Florida residents who often get to attend the institution for little out-of-poket money because of Florida’s generous Bright Futures scholarships, which are funded by players and addicts alike of the Florida Lottery.