2014 SCEA hopefuls?

Lanaesque · 05-24-2009, 04:40 PM

It might be a little early, but I’ve noticed a lot of people are already starting/working/finishing their applications. I’ve always been more of a wanderer on this site, but since we’re the next generation- why not start collaborating now? I think I fell in love with Yale through college videos. That’s probably not the most reliable source, but the more I’ve researched it the more wonderful it seems. I’m pretty sure now I’m applying for SCEA in November, even though my chances are pretty slim. Who else is in potential 2014 crowd here?

chair2 · 05-24-2009, 05:10 PM

me! me! me! i'm almost for sure doing scea.

i don't know how much of a chance i have (mid 2200 SAT--second attempt's CR score seemed like a freak accident struck, and overall, unfortunately, it barely showed improvement--and a low 3.8 GPA albeit at a super tough private school). i'm hoping they love the artistic type, though, because if i ever get in that'll probably be why.

Lanaesque · 05-24-2009, 05:38 PM

haha, you're better qualified than me. I'm taking the june 6 SAT. Not taking the SATs earlier was probably one of the worst decisions of my life- if I screw this one up then I can basically kiss Yale goodbye, or applying to SCEA anyway. Plus my activites are all over the place, which doesn't really look that good despite leadership positions. When you say artistic, do you mean in drawing and sculture and concrete art- or like theatre? I think Yale's pretty interested in that area

chair2 · 05-24-2009, 05:47 PM

i don't think you really need to be concentrated in one area. like if i had to categorize my activities, i'd group them into arts, athletics, and then international/culture-related thing clubs. and by arts i mean the fine arts--there's sort of a discussion going around this board about whether or not artists are "recruited" in the sense of an athlete but not actually given the same large benefit. i really do hope they are.

but about scea, from my experience from classmates and these boards, the people who i see get in scea are mainly URMs, recruited athletes, and the stellar applicants. by stellar the yale admissions committee directly see that they can offer something (hopefully art skills! lol). at least that's what happened at my school this year. the kid that got in scea was stellar in the political field (some pretty impressive ECs centered around it, he's sort of known for that type of thing) and then the a few other well-rounded kids were deferred then accepted.

Lanaesque · 05-24-2009, 05:59 PM

In that case I'm crossing my fingers for a deferral? Who knows the process- I've looked through the SCEA2013 stats and some of them are just talented in areas that are not related to sports or ethnics, though a lot of them RA/URM/etcetc. If you're amazing in art I'm sure they'll definetly look into that. I've got a lot of theatre experiance, but then again Yale probably gets tons of applicants who've been in major productions. I'm just hoping drama paired with well-rounded stats will push me over the line.

I got too excited when I got the perspective student letter from them some weeks ago; eventhough I've heard basically everyone gets them. But hey, it was still a letter from Yale =D ...I think I read it like 5 times over

Breuer2014 · 05-24-2009, 06:09 PM

I think I'm doing SCEA, though I'd likely be deferred. 34 ACT, 4.0 UW, 8 AP classes, top performances in a bunch of Economics competitions, and a boatload of political involvement. Ultimately though, I'm not a valedictorian, not a URM, not an RA, and so I'm likely out of luck. But I'm trying!

Demiitasse · 05-24-2009, 08:04 PM

I live 20 minutes away from Yale (I absolutely am in love with Yale. No where else comes close at all.) and I'm definitely going to apply for SCEA. Hooray for double legacy!

dirdir · 05-24-2009, 08:13 PM

I'm still deciding between Yale or Stanford SCEA, though I'm leaning towards Yale since I've heard of of all the deferrals Stanford has given out. Any advice anyone has, considering I've visited Stanford but haven't yet seen Yale (impossible for me to get there from the west coast)? I'm just brainstorming essay ideas now.. sigh next year will be hell

Smile614 · 05-24-2009, 11:27 PM

MEEEEEEEEEEEE.

I'm super excited. hahah. No joke. When I got that Yale letter for prospective students, I freaked out...even though it's no big deal. I keep it on my desk for motivation. hahah. Oh boy. I'm a pretty average applicant, mid 2200s SATs (retaking in Oct), decent ECs, good grades. Let's hope we kick some butt on those essays!

I'm 99.99% sure...unless something happens unexpectedly?

Hey. Question. When are yall starting those application essays? As soon as they're posted July 1st? Or have you guys already started? ..or are you waiting until school starts again?
annnnd. When are you guys getting recommendations from teachers? I think I should start doing that next week since APs are over and school's about to be out. Just to give them a heads up..even if they don't start until next year. Or should I wait until next year so I don't seem like I"m rushing them..?

Thanks guys!
ahhhh this is so exciting.

amciw · 05-24-2009, 11:39 PM

Don't forget to take subject tests along with the original SAT.

pnthrs11 · 05-25-2009, 12:25 AM

I'm most likely applying scea too... good luck to everyone

Lanaesque · 05-25-2009, 01:04 AM

Hey, we've got future 2014 students here. it's gonna be a long road until dec 15 xD

@dirdir, same here. I've visited Stanford,being on the west coast, it was gorgeous but I don't think I'm even going to apply there. I'm not a very math/sciency person and it was utter stanford slaugher this year. we had people get into harvard and princeton that got outright rejected from stanford.

Smile: we just had a college project at school that required three basic essays, so I've got three really rough drafts. I'm probably rewriting them anyway. I don't know if Yale is the same, but with the Harvard app they give you a couple choices and then the option of picking your own subject- so it's pretty much out there.

I haven't started on any SATs; but I'm taking the one on June6 and then doing the subjects in november, which is the last testing date for scea. which basically means I don't get to retake anything. I've been studying like crazy but it doesn't seem to do any good, I'm not improving. How else do you study for the SATs besides taking practice tests?

Oh, and Question: did you guys generally do better or worse on the real test compared to the practice tests?

chair2 · 05-25-2009, 01:17 AM

do we really have to wait for yale to release its essays? i mean, they have the "why yale?" one, and their supplement was something like write whatever you want, right? and then the commonapp essay has the same options every year. i'm not sure about other colleges, though.

amciw · 05-25-2009, 04:54 AM

You should take the subject tests in October, not November. As for the practice tests, I scored a best score of 2230 on my practice tests, and then received a 2350 on the real test. They should help you get acquainted with the questions and get a general sense of your score range, but the they do not portend your exact score because they cannot replicate the exact conditions of taking a real test. Even if you try to replicate such conditions, you'll find you can't, because there is no way you can make the practice test count the same as a real test in your mind. Therefore, just take the tests, read prep books if you are really concerned (go to the SAT prep subforum if you want better advice on this), and then take the test. What score ranges are you talking about? Is it 1900-2000, or 2200-2300?

Demiitasse · 05-25-2009, 08:19 AM

We really don't need to wait for Yale to release essay questions; you can start now, and if their question is a little different, you can just rearrange/recycle your previously written essay(s). :]
I have a giant felt Yale banner hanging about my bed for motivation lol. It's helpful when you're working late into the night and wondering "whyyy I am doing this?" haha.