The Ivy League will notify applicants of their admission to college on April 16 next spring, a month earlier than last year, and will move up to May 1 the date by which candidates must reply.

The latter date, about a month earlier than this year's deadline, has also been tentatively accepted by Radcliffe and the other schools in the Seven College Conference. At the same time, Radcliffe will send out its acceptance certificates on April 24.

About 200 College Entrance Examination Board member schools are expected to use the earlier notification date next year. It is hoped the change will end the cut-throat competition practices of some colleges, which currently require their candidates to accept or reject admission before the Ivy schools have mailed admission certificates.

Hurts Smaller Schools

Most admissions experts, here and in other colleges, feel that the late reply date has hurt smaller, less prestigious schools far more than the academic giants.

Before the small schools began demanding early replies, they often found themselves stranded with many openings and not enough time to fill them.

Moves Admissions Calendar Up

In addition to moving the whole calendar of admissions procedures up a month, the College will ask secondary school seniors to take CEEB Achievement tests in December or January instead of in the customary March.

Although Fred L. Glimp, Dean of Admissions, favors the new date, he warned against pushing it back any further. The new deadline for applications for both Harvard and Radcliffe will be January 1.