Early Decision 2: ED II Schools and Deadlines 2026-27

Early Decision 2 (ED II) is a second binding early round. You apply in early January instead of November, hear back in about six weeks (usually by mid-February), and if you're admitted you enroll and withdraw every other application. The commitment is the same as Early Decision I. Only the calendar is different. For the 2026-27 cycle, most ED II deadlines fall between January 1 and January 8.

Not every Early Decision college runs a second round, and the ones that do don't share a date. Below is what ED II is, who it fits, and a table of 19 colleges that offer it this cycle, each read from the college's own admissions page on October 1, 2026. After that: the well-known schools that don't have ED II, and which SAT and ACT dates still count.

What Is Early Decision 2?

ED II is Early Decision with a later start. You sign the same agreement, with the same three signatures (you, a parent or guardian, and your counselor), and you can hold only one binding application at a time. Vanderbilt's admissions office describes both rounds in one sentence: Early Decision I and II are "binding decision plans" for students who are committed to attending if admitted. We walk through the agreement itself, and the financial aid exit, in is early decision binding.

Colleges offer the second round because some students aren't ready in November. Boston College puts it this way: "The only difference between ED I and ED II is the application deadline." Pomona says both groups are evaluated the same way, and that ED II simply has a later calendar date.

Early Decision 1 vs Early Decision 2

If you're still deciding between a binding plan and a non-binding one, early action vs early decision covers that choice. This page stays on the second round.

ED2 Schools: Deadlines and Decision Dates for 2026-27

Every row comes from the college's own admissions site. Where a college prints only a month and day, we show it that way. Where it says "mid-February", so do we. The last column lists a test-date cutoff only if the college publishes one for ED II.

Three things stand out. First, "January 1" is only the most common date, not the rule: Johns Hopkins is January 2, a cluster of schools is January 4 or 5, Pomona is January 8 and Case Western Reserve is January 15. Second, decisions don't all land in mid-February. Rice says it releases ED II decisions by late January, and Northeastern says by March 1. Third, this is a sample of colleges we checked, not a complete list. If your school isn't here, look at its own deadlines page.

Aid deadlines sit close to the application deadline. Johns Hopkins lists January 15, 2027 for ED II financial aid, WashU lists January 11, and Vanderbilt gives January 1, 2027 as its priority date for the CSS Profile and FAFSA. For score ranges at some of these schools, see our pages for NYU, Vanderbilt, Johns Hopkins and UChicago.

Famous Schools That Do Not Have ED II

A lot of students assume every selective college has a second binding round. Many don't. On their own 2026-27 admissions pages, these colleges list one Early Decision round in November and then Regular Decision:

• Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth and Penn. Each has a November 1 Early Decision deadline and no ED II.
• Duke (ED on November 2) and Northwestern (ED on November 1, 2026).
• Carnegie Mellon. Its plans page lists Early Decision (November 2) and Regular Decision (January 4) only.
• USC, Michigan and UVA. All three list a binding Early Decision round with a November 1 deadline, and none lists a second one.

Then there are the colleges with no binding round at all. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, Caltech and Notre Dame use restrictive early action, MIT and Georgetown use non-binding Early Action, and none of them has ED I or ED II.

Who Should Apply Early Decision 2?

ED II fits three kinds of applicants.

• Your first early round didn't work out. A deferral or denial in December leaves two to three weeks before January deadlines. Harvard, Stanford and Caltech each say that an applicant deferred from their restrictive early round may apply ED II elsewhere, and Notre Dame allows ED II applications because they come after its mid-December release.
• You weren't ready in November. A stronger first semester, a December test score or a finished essay can all make a January application better than the one you'd have sent in the fall.
• Your first choice changed. Some colleges let you convert a Regular Decision application. Boston College says you may convert to ED II by emailing the signed Early Decision Agreement by January 8, and Hamilton accepts conversions until 11:59 p.m. on Monday, February 1, 2027.

It fits poorly if you need to compare financial aid offers. ED II is as binding as ED I, so you'll see one aid offer before committing. Run the college's net price calculator first.

One rule to check before you plan on ED II: your early action schools may limit it. Georgetown says only applicants it has deferred are free to apply to a binding program, so an admitted Georgetown EA student can't add an ED II application elsewhere.

SAT and ACT Dates That Work for an ED II Deadline

The December tests fit this round. Both release scores before a January 1 deadline:

The dates come from College Board and ACT. There is no ACT in November, and the late registration deadline for the October 17 ACT passed on September 29, so if you aren't already signed up for October, December 12 is your next ACT. Our SAT test dates and ACT test dates guides have the full calendars.

What the colleges say lines up with that. Vanderbilt names December 5 (SAT) and December 12 (ACT) as its preferred last test dates for ED II. Tufts says ED II applicants may take the December ACT or December SAT. Rice lists December for both tests, and Swarthmore asks that testing be complete by mid-December.

Emory is the one to read closely. Its testing page says exams for ED II "must be taken and sent prior to the January 1 deadline" and that it can't consider January exams. A December 5 SAT gives you a score on December 18, and a December 12 ACT on December 22, so order your score report the day scores come out and don't wait until New Year's Eve. Our guide to sending SAT scores to colleges explains delivery times and when rush delivery is worth paying for.

No January or February test helps here. The next SAT after December is March 6, 2027 and the next ACT is February 27, 2027, both far too late for a January deadline. For the first early round, see the last SAT and ACT dates for Early Decision.

What Happens After You Apply ED II

You get one of three answers. If you're admitted, you withdraw your other applications and pay a deposit quickly. The reply windows are short: Johns Hopkins lists February 26, 2027, and Vanderbilt, Pomona and WashU all list March 1. If you're deferred, your application moves into the Regular Decision pool. Rice, for example, says deferred applicants are considered with that pool. If you're denied, the decision is usually final for the year. Rice says denied Early Decision applicants aren't considered in Regular Decision but may apply again in the next cycle.

Because you won't hear until February, submit your Regular Decision applications anyway. Most are due in early January, the same week as ED II, and you can withdraw them if the ED II answer is yes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Early Decision 2

Is Early Decision 2 binding?

Yes. ED II uses the same binding agreement as ED I. If you're admitted, you enroll and withdraw your other applications. The accepted way out is a financial aid offer that doesn't make the college affordable.

When is the Early Decision 2 deadline?

For 2026-27 it depends on the college. Emory, NYU, Northeastern, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and Wesleyan use January 1. Johns Hopkins uses January 2. Boston College, Hamilton, Middlebury, Rice, Swarthmore, Tufts, UChicago and WashU use January 4. Boston University and Bowdoin use January 5, Pomona January 8 and Case Western Reserve January 15.

When do ED II decisions come out?

Most arrive in the first half of February. Johns Hopkins lists February 12, 2027 and NYU lists February 15, while Tufts and Bowdoin say early February. Rice says by late January and Northeastern says by March 1.

Can I apply ED II if I was deferred or rejected ED I?

Yes, at a different college. A deferral or denial ends your first commitment, so you're free to make a new one. You can't hold two binding applications at once, and a college that denied you in ED I usually won't read a second application that year: Rice and Carnegie Mellon both say a denied Early Decision applicant can't be considered in Regular Decision.

Do Ivy League schools have Early Decision 2?

No Ivy League school lists an ED II round for 2026-27. Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth and Penn each have a single Early Decision round in November. Harvard, Yale and Princeton use restrictive or single-choice early action, which isn't binding.

Can I take the December SAT for Early Decision 2?

At most ED II colleges, yes. The December 5 SAT releases scores on December 18, before January deadlines, and Vanderbilt, Tufts and Rice all name December as acceptable for ED II. Register by November 20. At Emory, make sure the scores are sent before January 1.

If ED II is your plan, the December test is your last chance to raise the score on that application. Take a free practice quiz to see where you stand, or create a free Larry Learns account for daily SAT and ACT practice on web, iPhone or Android, with 3 quizzes and 3 AI explanations a day on the free tier.