<p>Should an applicant be one of the best in order to appy EA? Yale is my first choice and I will certainly not be the greatest applicant they have ever seen. My gpa is around a 3.79 and I haven’t taken the SATs yet but I did take two SAT II’s and got a 760 and a 680 (will re-take this one). I just want to know if I should use my EA there or apply EA to some other school that I have a better chance at. Does it look good in general that I used my only EA to apply there which might help later in RD? Thanks.</p>
<p>EA would boost your chances tremendously. Frankly, it wouldn’t hurt to try for Yale–why not?</p>
<p>Single-choice EA is offered at S, Y, and H. “normal” EA is offered at Chicago, Gtown, MIT, Caltech.</p>
<p>When you say “boost your chances tremendously” does that mean admissions knows I am using my only EA on their school and I must really want to go there? Or is there other reasons? And yes, it definitely would not hurt. I am dying to go there!!! So, it is okay if I would not be the top applicant? I still would have a shot?</p>
<p>EA won’t make you a candidate if your stats won’t get you there otherwise. It will give you a tip between two otherwise equal candidates. If you think you could get in RD, and are completely sure it’s your first choice, then go for it. After you subtract recruited athletes, high URMs, high legacies, and major hooks (world class recognition), the odds are no better and maybe worse than RD. In truth, unless you can raise your GPA (or your rank is top 5), and you can find a 2350+ SAT and 3 SAT IIs over 750, it’s a major reach. Boston hurts because they see so many applicants from that area, and most are excellent. If you’re unhooked, I wouldn’t do it. Go look at who got in on prstat#s site.</p>
<p>Would doing research at a major institution be a good enough hook?</p>
<p>It depends on the research. Are you nationally recognized for it? Published in a major journal? Is it your’s, or are you working with a prof? Intel award winner? There are a lot of people that are doing pretty amazing things. Can you stand out?</p>
<p>I am not personally recognized but the professor I am working with is. And the work will probably be published by next year.</p>
<p>It will help, but probably not considered a major hook. I’m not trying to criticise or dash your hopes. I watched this process all year with my D. Our process ended well, but there were so many great kids that were disappointed. Do a search for frecklybecky. Your stats sound similar, except her research was in the Yale med school labs, which her dad ran. She was rejected. She was also a major voice hook.</p>
<p>Okay, I see. So what is a good hook then if you aren’t an Olympic athlete or haven’t ended world hunger?</p>
<p>It’s hard to invent one. It takes passion for something and the talent to make it big. Raising $50K for your favorite charity would be good. Setting up a new charity, getting it really off the ground, and having it make a real difference in people’s lives would work. Being a published author (real, not vanity press)…in other words, it has to be you. D established an elementary home work help program in her school system. She not only established and ran it, she also did her time tutoring as well. It was a minor hook as it was local. She had other minor hooks as well, and top grades, top SATs, NMS, etc. She was deferred EA and finally accepted RD. She will attend H.</p>
<p>So is this pretty much everyone at top schools (besides athletes, legacies, etc.)? Everyone does huge stuff like this?</p>
<p>Not necessarily, but it is much harder for the basic great student with nothing to differentiate them from the 20,000 other great students that applied to Y this year for 1310 slots. Remember the acceptance rate is 9.1% or so. If you can’t differentiate, you become part of the lottery for the 4% shot at the slots that are left after the hooks. Look at the 1600 SATs that got rejected. Do apply if that is where your heart is. Just don’t put all your eggs in that basket, and don’t get hurt if it doesn’t happen for you. There are other great schools out there. Find 9-10 where you can be happy. Visit them all if possible. Make sure at least 2 are in the range where you are nearly guaranteed to be admitted. Several should be schools where your stats place you above the 50% mark. The rest can be your reaches, the dream shots. I’d advise your EA be a school where you have at least a 50% chance to get in. That takes some of the pressure off of April 1.</p>
<p>Go over to the parent’s board and read “If I knew then what I know now” thread.</p>
<p>I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up but Yale was definitely the place I felt at home. Most other schools did not even compare (didn’t even like Harvard and Brown as much). Thanks for the advice.</p>
<p>EA’s not going to give you an enormous push, even if you’re a borderline admit. Take it from someone who had national recognition in two areas, strong leadership, mid 1400 SAT and equivalent scores, only ok grades, and a recruited brother/full professor at Yale as father. </p>
<p>My advice would be to apply ED to another school. Those places can see how enthusiastic you are by ED’s binding commitment. Borderline candidates who clearly have at least something special to offer get an extra push. Good luck.</p>
<p>And haha bandit_TX, I just read up and saw that I’ve been recommended. Alas, here I am retelling the story.</p>
<p>Hi Becky. Glad to see you around. Go Michigan!!</p>
<p>One girl I know passed up Yale for Michigan.</p>
<p>If you want to go to Yale, apply to Yale. Dont apply ED somewhere you might not want to go as much just because you think you will get in-I almost did that. It would have been the biggest mistake of my life.</p>
<p>EA, of course, would not entail the same risk.</p>