What are the advantages to submitting your complete application in August vs October/November? I have read constantly that many people have already submitted their applications or are waiting on one last piece. I’m curious to know if early filing would give a huge advantage in the selection process. Or would it be better to take another month to train for the CFA, take a couple more weeks to double and triple check your essays, etc. I’ve heard the admissions board won’t start looking at files until the October time frame. Let me know your thought...
I think the key is starting your application early. If you have your application ready, why wait? Get it in.
If you haven’t started, it might be late already.
If you start early, you have time for unknowns like can’t get recommendations, can’t find BGO, school lost your transcript, missed ACT/SAT exams or not happy with the results and need a retake, long wait for DODMERB appointments/results, busy senior year with sports and other activities- less time for a stellar application. You should start your application fall/winter jr. year with SAT/ACT exams, talking to your teachers about recommendations, securing the recommendations before the jr. year is over.
About applying early:
I might be completely off, but i believe in numbers.
like with any workload in any job field with limited resources- this fraction should apply to the rolling admission process:
application review time (time/application)=admission meetings (time)/applications (count).
I assume the Aug-Sep time frame is pretty light with completed applications. When the numerator stays the same (review time), and the denominator increases (applications), the value of the fraction decreases (review time per application). If you are a stellar applicant, your application most likely won’t be overlooked even when thousands of other applications on the table. If you are an average one, you might want the admissions took a good look and didn’t miss any accomplishments.