D.C. universities American University and The George Washington University reported significant increases in early admissions applications this year, despite financial woes.

While Georgetown has an early action plan, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions has not seen a significant change in the number of early applicants, The Washington Post reported. At 18 percent this year, the early action acceptance rate at Georgetown is the same as last year’s.

Universities in the District are among the costliest in the nation. According to a CNN Money report, the cost of Georgetown University is $52,161 per year and the cost of GWU is $51,775 per year, second and fourth respectively nationally. D.C. college students who receive financial aid have more debt after graduation than in any state, according to a recent report published by The Project on Student Debt.

Despite these financial obstacles, universities in the District may be attracting higher numbers of students due to the “Obama factor,” according to the Post.

Three years ago, selective schools, including Harvard and Princeton, abolished their early admissions programs, citing disadvantages to students applying for and weighing financial aid options. Most schools do not inform students of financial aid packages until the spring, making binding admissions programs like early decision too risky for many students in need of financial aid.

Selective schools around the country offer early admissions programs in order to assure qualified applicants that they have been accepted months before regular decisions come out in April.

Early decision and early action allows schools to partially fill their incoming freshman class, which offers a logistical and financial benefit. Most early applications are due in early or mid-November, and students are informed of admissions decisions by the end of December.

Early decision rules state that if accepted, applicants are committed to attending the university and must withdraw all other applications

In early action, a more flexible option offered in the District by Georgetown University and Howard University, universities inform applicants of their decisions by mid-December but permit students to apply to other schools in the regular admissions cycle.

At American, 75 percent of early applicants are admitted, compared to a 53 percent regular admissions rate. GWU accepts 67 percent of its early applicants, which is significantly higher than its 37 percent regular admissions rate.

Howard saw a 13 percent increase in the number of early action applications this year, on top of an 11 percent increase in its early action applications last year. The admissions rate at Howard is usually between 47 percent and 49 percent and does not fluctuate between early action and regular admission decisions, according to Karen Ohen, an undergraduate admissions recruiter at Howard.”