Results/Help me decide: Free WashU vs $20k/year Yale [Engineering, AFROTC]

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Continuing the discussion from Should I EDII to WashU or gamble on Ivies [TX resident, 3.97 GPA, top 10% rank, 1580 SAT, engineering, <$20k, has portable AFROTC scholarship]:

Hi again all!

I wound applying RD to 18 schools, and have received results from all but Duke.

My results

MIT: Rejected
Harvard: Rejected
Columbia: Rejected
Berkley: Rejected
Stanford: Rejected
Rice: Rejected
Tulane: Rejected
Case Western: Accepted, full ride
Grinnell: Waitlist

Duke: Awaiting decision

Johns Hopkins: Accepted

WashU: Accepted, full ride

Yale: Accepted!!!

Carleton: Accepted
Trinity: Accepted, full ride
RPI: Accepted, full ride
WPI: Accepted
Union College: Accepted, full ride

Thanks once again for the advice on my last thread (above), I’m so glad I decided not to EDII.

From all of my results, I’ve narrowed it down to going to WashU for free or paying room and board at Yale, and I’m feeling very conflicted but all in all grateful to have this problem. I’m visiting both schools in April to get a feel for campus/culture.

Key facts about me and my situation:

  • I have an AFROTC HSSP Type 1 scholarship. It covers tuition at both schools.

  • At WashU, my package makes it effectively fully covered (including room and board).

  • At Yale, I’d still need to pay room and board out of pocket (travel to both schools is on me).

  • My family could pay for Yale, but not without flinching. They wouldn’t have to change lifestyles, but it wouldn’t exactly be pocket change.

  • Intended majors

    • WashU: Systems Science & Engineering

    • Yale: Most likely Mechanical Engineering

    • I want to minor in something in the humanities or business

  • AFROTC:

    • WashU: Cross‑town with Det 207 at Saint Louis University (short commute, but still off‑campus, meaning I would be commuting multiple times/week for PT and classes.

    • Yale: Det 009 is on campus; no commute.

  • Long‑term plan:

    1. Commission and serve ~4 years as an Air Force officer (likely acquisitions/ops).

    2. Get an M7 MBA (HBS/GSB/Wharton/Sloan).

    3. Move into corporate strategy / operations / Private equity ops / C‑suite

What I’m trying to understand from people who know these schools or pathways:

  • As a launching pad for M7 MBA + post‑military leadership, how do WashU vs Yale actually compare in the real world?

  • Does the Yale undergrad name materially improve my odds for M7 and long‑term leadership vs WashU?

  • How different are the alumni networks and recruiting for consulting/finance/strategy roles once I’ve already got several years of AF officer experience on top?

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Congrats on such fantastic results.

That you weren’t sure b4 is reason enough not to use ED. Too many do and the get stuck.

What wonderful opportunities.

Is your family willing to afford Yale? If you went to WUSTL, could you convince them travel is on them? It’s likely cheaper and easier to St. Louis but they have discount airline Avelo that flies to Texas (if I recall, that’s where you’re from) from New Haven.

I think you can achieve your goals from both - and I’ll take it further - both (and many more) will get you into a top 7 MBA. U Chicago, as an example, is represented by 286 schools - just think about that. Could you name 286? There’s only 635 students in the program.

Yale is no doubt the bigger name with more heft through life (bragging rights) but it’s going to be your military experience which highlights your leadership strengths and gets you into a top school - like so many others there from various backgrounds.

So pick where you’d feel best - and go from there. Wash U will have more accredited academic breadth in engineering but doesn’t sound like you’ll need it.

Bottom line - heads, you win, and tales you win.

Best of luck.

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Congrats!

I’d attend Yale with on campus ROTC program.

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I got a full-time MBA from one of the schools you listed. The Yale undergrad name would not materially improve your chances in my opinion. MBA is more about what you do after you graduate than where you went to undergrad. Two of my most successful friends from that program went to URI and Clark undergrad. Crushed it in the classroom and are crushing it now. There were people from Harvard, Yale and Princeton, of course, but less concentrated than you would think. And there was WashU representation as well.

I’ve said elsewhere that McKinsey’s Global Head of Strategy and Corp Finance went to WashU (and didn’t get his MBA from any of the schools you listed), and I can tell you that the folks I know who went to WashU have been incredibly impressive and successful.

Don’t make the call trying to game B-School admit probabilities.

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