<p>As long as you have some very strong extracurriculars, there’s a good chance you will at least be deferred. If you don’t have those, and are purely an academic type, you should probably apply to other good schools, perhaps like Harvard, which would be more welcoming of that sort. Between Yale and Stanford, however, I will say that you should just apply early to whichever you’d be more likely to attend, as simple as that. But do not understimate the effect that getting an early acceptance from some terrific universities can have on you. For one thing, it secures your future and will set you somewhat at rest. Better to do that than to take a wild gamble if you’re the kind of student Stanford is highly likely to reject.</p>