Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision

Early Decision I

Apply by: November 1
Get an admission decision by: mid-December
Confirm your enrollment by: March 1

The benefits of Early Decision I:

• Be the first to know: When you receive your admission decision in December, you'll be months ahead of other applicants who are still waiting to hear where they've been accepted. Knowing sooner means less stress in a busy senior year.
• Get your financial aid offer early: You’ll be among the first to receive your financial aid offer.
• Register early for classes: You’ll be able to choose your courses in late April, well before other first-year students start registering in June.
• Choose your residence hall: If you apply to live on campus, you’ll get your first choice of the residence hall you’d like to live in.
• Roommate preference: You’ll be paired with your preferred roommate, even if your roommate does not apply Early Decision.

It’s important to know that Early Decision is a binding agreement. That means if you apply Early Decision and are admitted to USF, you agree to withdraw all other college applications and commit to attending USF. If your financial aid offer does not meet enough of your demonstrated financial need, only then can you request to be released from your Early Decision agreement.

Consider applying Early Decision I if:

• USF is your first choice (yay!)
• USF is a solid match for you (academically, geographically, etc.)
• You have a strong academic record at the start of your senior year

If USF is one of your top choices but you want to hear back from other schools (or want to weigh other financial aid offers), you should consider Early Action.

Early Action

Apply by: November 1
Get an admission decision by: mid-December
Confirm your enrollment by: May 1

As an Early Action applicant, you’ll receive your admission decision in mid-December, more than a month before Regular Decision applicants. And like Early Decision applicants, you'll also receive your financial aid offer early. Early Action is non-binding, which means that if you are admitted to USF, you still have several months to let us know whether or not you will attend.

Consider applying Early Action if:

• USF is one of your top choices, but you want to compare other admission or financial aid offers before making a final decision.
• You have a strong academic record at the start of your senior year

Early Decision II

Apply by: January 15
Get an admission decision by: mid-February
Confirm your enrollment by: March 1

The benefits of Early Decision II:

• Be the first to know: When you receive your admission decision in February, you'll be months ahead of other applicants who are still waiting to hear where they've been accepted. Knowing sooner means less stress in a busy senior year.
• Get your financial aid offer early: You’ll receive your financial aid offer prior to students applying for regular decision.
• Register early for classes: You’ll be able to choose your courses in late April, well before other first-year students start registering in June.
• Choose your residence hall: If you apply to live on campus, you’ll get your first choice of the residence hall you’d like to live in.
• Roommate preference: You’ll be paired with your preferred roommate, even if your roommate does not apply Early Decision.

It’s important to know that Early Decision is a binding agreement. That means if you apply Early Decision and are admitted to USF, you agree to withdraw all other college applications and commit to attending USF. If your financial aid offer does not meet enough of your demonstrated financial need, only then can you request to be released from your Early Decision agreement.

Consider applying Early Decision II if:

• USF is your first or second choice
• USF is a solid match for you (academically, geographically, etc.)
• You’d like more time to prepare and submit your application
• You’re applying ED I to another school and want to hear back from them before making a decision

If USF is one of your top choices but you want to hear back from other schools (or want to weigh other financial aid offers), you should consider Early Action or Regular Decision.

Regular Decision

Apply by: January 15
Get an admission decision by: mid/late March
Confirm your enrollment by: May 1

If you're admitted, you'll have over a month to let us know whether or not you will attend.

Consider applying Regular Decision if:

• You feel like you can submit a stronger application in January than in November
• You want to compare other admission or financial aid offers.