Are students at Yale happy?

T26E4
Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:49:49 +0000

My first thoughts on that blogger is “would she have been happy ANYWHERE?”
I agree with the basic tenet of her notes however: don’t make Yale no. 1 just because of its reputation. Check it out. Talk to students, talk to recent alumni. For me, by November of my Sr. year, I had already been accepted to a fantastic college (rolling admissions) and was going to apply to two additional top engineering colleges. A friend suggested I investigate Brown so this opened the door to my Ivy/east coast inquiries. Come Thanksgiving, I drove a friend (whom I had a crush on) to a Yale info session put on by the local Yale Club. Three students spoke (home for break). They blew me away with their energy and description of Y. They sold me. I went home and pulled the Yale app from beneath the mountain of college literature in my closet. I started on the app that night.

Once I arrived, it exceeded all my expectations. Like Cato said, there were unhappy students when I was there. I recall a young woman from rural TX who withdrew about ten days into Freshman year. Those of us who met her briefly were incredulous. But who were we to say what was right for her? I can tell you (FWIW) that New Haven were four of the best years of my life – rich in intellectual opportunities, rich social interactions which have yielded me a dozen lifelong friends, rich in self discovery and maturity.

Good luck to you!

PS: if you want some objective responses, read the “Yale Parents Thread” on this page. See what some parents are saying about their sons’ and daughters’ experiences.