这是一本好书，不过因为出版于2004年，所以书中关于大学申请的某些数据有些过时，而这本书最大的特色也是它的数据翔实。在来回飞Boston的途中，用我心爱的kindle看完这本书，看得有些匆忙。总体来说，书的主题通过学生、招生官以及高中conseller的调查，分析大学申请中的Early action 以及Early admission利弊，总体结论是早申请有利于提高学生申请大学的acceptance。从现在的申请形式看，一般高中生可能都会进行早申请。
    书的第一章——the history of Early Admission，介绍Early admission的历史，这是一个对大学相对更有利的招生制度。第二章是介绍各种Early action的形式和意义；第三章描述不同学校在对待Early action有不同的游戏规则；第四章分别以典型的私立高中choate以及公立高中的学生申请为代表，分析早申请的各种结果；第五章是基于各种数据的分析，甚至得出早申请相当于将自己的SAT提高了100points。个人认为这是基于本书写作时期的数据分析得出的结论，到现在无论是高中还是学生自己都比较了解早申请的规则时，可能早申请的效果有所改变。第六章分析大学、高中conseller以及申请学生的策略，大学应该是早申请的最大受益者，在早申请中高中conseller与大学的良好沟通有的时候会促进某一学生的acceptance，对学生来说早申请是他们向reach university,同时这个reach university又是他的first-choice表达自己的热情的好机会。第七章在基于前面研究的基础上试对学生是否应当早申请提供建议，不过这个可能也会因为近几年申请形式的变化而发生了变化。
    摘录书中的几段话：Simply stated, early plans are wonderful options for students who have found a perfect fit between themselves and a particular college. If you are absolutely positive about which school you want to attend, consider applying for an Early Decision.
    另外书中关于对申请者进行早申请的一些建议：1）. Take the decision seriously. Before deciding to apply early, you may have to balance your interest in different colleges with your likely admission chances and then decide whether the commitment required by Early Decision suits your prospects, your personality, and your purse.2).Start the process early. Starting learning about colleges and meeting test deadlines early,then you make sure to have enough time to digest information, to reflect on your perferences, and to do any further research you may need.3).look for a good academical and social match.4) Be honest with yourself about your qualifications and learn as much as possible about your chances of admission at various colleges.5).Understand your "hooks" and their potential affects on your likelihood of being admitted at each of the colleges to which you are interested in applying.Each applicant has different strengths and weakness, and each college has different institutional priorities. The key is to find those institutions that you have to offer.6).Determine if you have a perfence for a particular school where you are a competitive applicant. If you do, then make that your target school, and plan to apply early there;7) If you do not have a target school for an early application, then lay out your options carefully, including the possibility of applying Early Action or Early Decision. You should determine whether the advantages of applying early outweigh the disadvantages of doing so for you.8).The guidelines above apply to financial aid application ad well. Our unequivocal advice is to research the financial aid policies of your top-choice colleges before making any decision on applying early. Your need to know about financial aid options, or desire to bargain with colleges, may prevent you from having a target college. If it does, you should only consider applying early to one or more Early Action colleges.