Early Round Results of Class 2023!

Over the winter holiday, the Class of 2023 received early round offers from several universities around the world! Many of these universities, including research universities, liberal arts and women’s colleges, are among the most selective in the world, with some rejecting over 90% of their applicants.

Eight students were accepted through the binding Early Decision application plan in the United States to the following universities: Barnard College, Bates College, Colgate University, Columbia University, Northwestern University, Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, University of Chicago, and Wellesley College.

Students also received early offers from universities in other countries. The full list can be found below.  

What is the Early Round?

Every university may have its own deadline and timeline, but many universities offer both an early round and a regular round for applications. For most universities, decisions for early round applications are released in December and January. Regular round decisions are typically released by March or April.

The Early Round strategy

80% of the Class of 2023 has submitted at least one early application somewhere in the world. There is a lot of excitement and speculation around receiving an early offer and it may seem like an easy decision to submit an early application. However, there are some things to consider carefully before deciding to submit an early application anywhere in the world. 

Grades:

If you have high predicted grades or a transcript with high grades overall, you might be a strong candidate for an early application. Students with strong IB predicted grades could receive “rolling” conditional offers from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada as early as November or December if they apply in October. For students who need more time to improve their grades, they may want to consider applying later in the year after they have had more opportunities to demonstrate improvement.

Finances:

Some universities have earlier application deadlines for scholarship consideration. If this is an important factor, students may decide to apply earlier so that they have more time to compare financial aid packages from different universities.

Chances of Admission: There are advantages to applying to an early round, but it can be very competitive. In the US Early Decision round, the acceptance rates might be higher, but these candidates are often the best of the best. Don’t waste an application just because the early acceptance rate looks higher – you also need to evaluate if you will be a strong applicant in an already competitive group.

Commitment:

Some universities require a commitment or a quick decision in exchange for an early offer. In the United States, an offer in the “Early Decision” round is binding. This means if a student is accepted to their Early Decision university, they are obligated to attend. In Hong Kong and the Netherlands, students may only have a few weeks to accept their offer and enrol before the offer is given to another student. Students who apply to these types of programs should be 100% sure that they would attend these universities, should they be accepted. Sometimes, students who apply early to multiple countries do not choose a binding admissions program such as Early Decision so that they can leave their options open for longer. 

DCB's Early Round university offers

Below is a list of all university offers as of 3 January 2023. More decisions will be released periodically throughout the rest of the academic year.