Why Did You Choose Yale?

Colleges & Universities Yale University
1

<p>No bashing please. Let’s hear from recent admits (or parents for your kids) why you chose Yale. If you turned down other “elites” it might be interesting to see that info. I’ll start for my D.</p>

<p>Other schools D visited and considered were (in the order of preference): Brown, Stanford, Harvard and Princeton. </p>

<p>A couple of points 1) my daughter went to visit Yale before BullDog days so the activities she participated in were not “staged” for her. 2) D is a “people person” and her connection with the students and other admits is a huge factor for her. 3) With the schools D was considering, there really was not a question of the “quality” of the academics. It was more important that she got a feeling that admin, teachers and students care about her and support her. </p>

<p>Here are things she thinks have greatly influenced her decision:</p>

<p>Yale created an enthusiastic online EA community where admits bonded early
(Well,Yale created the discussion board, I have a feeling that the admits created the enthusiasm)</p>

<p>Yale regional admission rep and financial aid people showed lots of love, enthusiastic welcome and fantastic financial aid.</p>

<p>Felt safe on campus</p>

<p>People were friendly; not just students. The shuttle driver, Issac the panhandler, the weird “healer” dude that hangs at Starbucks etc. D’s impression of New Haven is that it is friendly and down-to-earth </p>

<p>Parties were fun, energetic, but responsible – D did not feel pressure to drink (I’m not saying she didn’t drink, but I’ll leave the “Buttered Nipples” out of this.)</p>

<p>Residential Colleges – she loved the rivalry and revelry amongst the colleges. D participated in “Wet Monday” a water fight between JE freshmen and a rival dorm.</p>

<p>Spontaneous campus centered fun! Lots of it. </p>

<p>Her freshmen roomies were very different from each other, but obviously love, enjoy and support each other. </p>

<p>Food was good. “Berkeley rocks”</p>

<p>Campus is old and beautiful (that’s big for Californian’s I think)</p>

<p>Although D felt she was among very gifted and intelligent people, she never felt intimidated. She felt she was part of the community.</p>

<p>D’s overall feeling about the students she met ( and I think there were many more introverted students she did not meet.) is that they 1) are bright and not full of themselves, 2) are quirky and a bit nerdy, 3) see humor everywhere, 4) are tolerant and care about others, 5) are enthusiastic, engaged and love learning. </p>

<p>Truthfully, I have no doubt that my daughter would have found a place to fit at any of the schools she was considering (but I cried when she told me to stop talking about Brown.) It’s just that Yale made it very clear to her that she will fit and thrive there. And that’s what it’s really about.</p>

2

<p>YoMama, I just wanted to say that this is a great post (and thread) - focusing on the positive attributes of Yale, of which there are many, without feeling the need to contrast the supposed deficiencies of any other school. It sounds like Yale was definitely the right choice for your D. I wish her well there. :)</p>

3

<p>In the previous two years’ experience with SCEA (and the OPs daughter applied SCEA to Yale) between 88-89% of early admits to Yale and Stanford matriculated, while between 91-92% of early admits to Harvard eventually matriculated.</p>

<p>The bottom line: SCEA is a phony “reform”, as those applying early utilizing this device virtually all enroll at the school that accepts them early. Whether this is because the schools are given 3 1/2 months of “exclusive negotiating rights” in order, hopefully to allow the kid to fall in love with the school that “gave her her first kiss,” with other suitors denied access in the meantime, is anybody’s guess.</p>

<p>Personally, I think it has essentially the same fringe benefit for the schools that so-called “binding ED” has … the kids are held off the market in a “no poaching” pen through the critical period, and the dangers of losses via cross-admit appeals are minimized, as intended. Thus even the fullride financial aid package from Princeton at the RD stage came too late to sway the OP’s daughter, who was already betrothed!</p>

<p>The typical 97-98% yield on ED admits is not that much higher than the roughly 90% yield on SCEA admits.</p>

4

<p>Byerly please. Over the last year or so that I’ve been here at CC I have found many of your posts informative and helpful. Obviously Harvard-biased but that’s OK. There’s a place for that, like maybe on the Harvard board? How 'bout starting a thread for recent Harvard admits “Why I Chose Harvard”? That way, anyone considering Harvard in the future can find helpful information in the obvious place, rather than sprinkled in inappropriate threads. I’m not saying that your comment is inappropriate it’s just that it is not really related to the topic.</p>

<p>This is a thread for Yale admitted students or their parents to post their reasons for choosing Yale. That’s all. Peace out.</p>

5

<p>Its the same as ED but with half the acceptance rate.</p>

<p>: (</p>

6

<p>I respectfully disagree with your personal definition of “the topic” , YoMama. And I certainly find any claim that my comment is “inappropriate” somewhat odd.</p>

<p>All I am saying is that “dog bites man” is not news, YoMama; nor is “early admit sticks with the school that gave her her first kiss.” </p>

<p>Virtually every SCEA or ED applicant who is admitted winds up attending that school, either because: </p>

<p>(1) he or she was predisposed to “love” that school even before the application process began, or because -</p>

<p>(2) the process (intentionally) stacks the deck in favor of the early school by granting it an extended period of “exclusive negotiations” during which it may attempt to woo the admit with t-shirts and baubles, flattering phone calls, free trips to campus for “special” visits, etc/ etc.</p>

<p>This is not a “biassed” observation either, since it is as true of Harvard, Stanford, Princeton, Penn etc as it is of Yale - although Yale certainly fills a higher fraction of its class from the early pool than any other school in America, and it’s paying off for them with a goosed up yield rate.</p>

7

<p>That’s a very cynical response to a set of observations that almost everyone who visits Yale for an extended period of time has. Probably why Yale has by far the most applications relative to its size of any university.</p>

8

<p>“It was more important that she got a feeling that admin, teachers and students care about her and support her.”</p>

<p>YoMama-My daughter, now a junior ( RD admit), sensed early on that the students were a friendly and supportive group, and she has not been disappointed. But what has really surprised her the most was how supportive the professors have been; helpful, accessible, eager to get to know students and offer their advice and insight.
There are so many avenues if a student is looking for guidance. Once a student declares a major, the whole department is there for them. </p>

<p>Summer study and travel abroad opportunities, paid for by the college, are there for the taking. Mine has received grants for two summers to study and do research simply by applying for them. </p>

<p>The week before finals, one of her profs approached her to talk about her senior thesis for next year, which she said was very productive and provided her with a lot of ideas and some direction in how to choose a thesis and advice on getting it published. This conversation was initiated by the Prof, not by her, and it’s not the first of such invitations. From the beginning of her time at Yale, she has felt visible and important. While attention of this kind might be expected at an LAC or in an honors program somewhere, it isn’t something she expected necessarily at Yale.</p>

<p>There are so many worthwhile and fun activities that the hardest thing is limiting your involvement so you don’t get too crazy trying to do everything. By the third year it seems that the kids do kind of settle down with two or three activities that they put a fair amount of time into, and at the same time they are beginning to make decisions about their future and focusing on their major.
The time goes by so quickly! Yale will leave it’s mark on my daughter - she’s a different person than she was when she entered- most of all a more worldy and confident one.
Your daughter has a wonderful experience ahead! She’ll love it.</p>

9

<p>I chose Yale because they reached out to me more than any other school. Letters, postcards, phone calls, etc. Our peer in Cambridge seemed a little snobbier to me and more focused on grad students than I wanted, so I didn’t end up applying there. Also, Yale gave me more financial aid than other schools. Yale was also prettier to me and more into traditions than other schools.
Yay underrepresented minorities.</p>

10

<p>Hm. I will do my best to make sure this doesn’t become some sort of manifesto.</p>

<p>The residential college system is amazing. It seems like it really works - there is such a sense of community at Yale. I don’t think I’d get lost, and I don’t think I’d ever be worried that the higher ups at the University didn’t care about me. And of course, the rivalries among the colleges are amazing, as are the themed parties each college has.</p>

<p>I really dig the Yale Political Union - I remember visiting the Conservative Party’s debate (apparently they’re philosophically conservative, not politically), and the topic was “Man is a religious animal.” The debate started at 8, and when I had to leave at 11, it was still going strong. It was phenomenal discussion. On a similar note - I’m very interested in politics, and Yale seems like the gateway to the US government.</p>

<p>I love that everyone at Yale seems to bleed Eli Blue. If they love Yale so much, and if they’re so happy, I’m thinking that is a pretty good indicator that I will be as well.</p>

<p>Directed Studies, Directed Suicide, I don’t know. But I want in. I will never be as pretentious as I know I can be until I can quote Heidegger. More seriously, 6 seminars a week with full professors as a freshman?? It’s like a gosh darn liberal arts school!</p>

<p>The faculty are some of the best minds in the country.</p>

<p>I feel like Yale cherishes its undergrads.</p>

<p>I love the architecture. Harry Potter jokes aside, I feel like I’m going to be going to school at a castle. A castle with super-sweet dorm rooms.</p>

<p>The students at Yale are simply top-notch. They’re so darn bright, really motivated, but they’re laid-back and super friendly as well.</p>

<p>So, needless to say, I cannot wait.
All the best,
DMW</p>

11

<p>The castle analogy definitely applies. When I stayed at my host’s dorm in Ezra Stiles during BDD, there was literally, yes, a moat, surrounding the Stiles building. The only thing missing from the scene was a drawbridge, but I’m sure there’s one too, I just didn’t get around to finding it.</p>

12

<p>Byerly: This was an extremely nice thread…until you ruined it…again. I started reading, and I agree with cosar, this thread is better than the other recent thread. Geez, Byerly. Can’t you let us enjoy this time of peace and calm on this thread?</p>

13

<p>Why did I not choose Yale?</p>

<p>Because I chose Dartmouth of course. Who in their right mind would go to Yale? George W. Bush, that’s who, Can anyone here actually say they want their name attached to that train wreck? I didn’t think so!</p>

14

<p>D is a rising senior at Yale. She fell in love the first time we visited the campus. It was a close call between Yale & Brown. She’s had some wonderful experiences and some not very good ones, but I’ll focus on the positives. </p>

<p>Residential college - she loved the residential college and has made some great friends in her college. When we started looking into colleges, she was very particular that she wanted a racially integrated campus, not merely a diverse one. At Yale she has made friends with people from different backgrounds. </p>

<p>The intellectual environment. D was talking with a professor who moved to Yale from a top public school. The big difference between the two schools, she said was in the academic preparedness of the student body. Whereas in the state school only a handful of students did the readings before they came in to class, at Yale almost all the students came prepared and this led to lively discussions. Class time was spent going beyond the readings, instead of just repeating what was in the material. </p>

<p>Accesible professors and TAs, who are willing to meet and discuss papers and assignments and read drafts. </p>

<p>A wide range of extra curricular activities. Resources for internships and a great alumni network. </p>

<p>It is a rigorous academic environment and has challenged D to push herself. She has taken academic risks and has come out the better for it. </p>

<p>Would she choose Yale if she had to do it over agin - Yes. But there are things that she would do differently.</p>

15

<p>As a Yale freshman next year, I’d love to hear what your D would have done differently had she the chance to repeat her experience at Yale. :)</p>

16

<p>Darthmouth-
Yeah, let’s overlook the hundreds of other successful, great Yale grads.
George W. Bush was a third generation legacy. Prescott Bush went there, George Bush went there, Dubya was going to go there.
It’s not like Dubya went through the super-competitive process we go through today. He was a legacy, he was destined to go there. Sure he was a frat boy, but it’s not like much was expected from him academically, he was well-off. It’s not that Dubya was not “in his right mind”. It’s that the Bushes had a legacy going at Yale and he was the next in line. Furthermore, Dartmouth itself has Bush connections. Look back to George Bush '18. I guess people both not “in their right minds” chose our universities.</p>

17

<p>I guess so.</p>

18

<p>I wrote this to someone explaining why I chose Yale over Harvard, so maybe I can give some insight. </p>

<p>well here are several reasons, and some are really random and arbitrary, but hey, they’re reasons.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>first of all, impressions i get make a big difference. yale seemed like they really want you there, and i mean everyone, from current students that i will probably never be friends with to admissions officers who knew my name to the dean of admissions. also, yale had “Bulldog Days” while Harvard called theirs the “April Visiting Program”</p></li>
<li><p>along that same line, yale seems like it would be more fun. harvard was also amazing, but i like how yale has hammocks and a random tire swing in the middle of old campus.</p></li>
<li><p>better food</p></li>
<li><p>better housing</p></li>
<li><p>the prospect of doing directed studies</p></li>
<li><p>i like the location, actually. first of all, i mean, when you’re at a place like yale or harvard, you’re not going to want ot leave campus constantly because you’re bored. you’re with the best students in the world studying with the best professors with the best resources and the most interesting shows, etc. so the city of boston became less of a deal to me. and, new york is really close. i like how the yale kids stick together-anyhow, i mean, let’s not forget that college involves some studying, so i don’t feel like i’m going to get bored</p></li>
<li><p>people! better looking, haha. also, seemed like there were a lot less pretentious people and people who were just getting involved in politics-type stuff just to get famous/powerful. it seems like the kids are a lot like me–dorky, but also know how to have fun</p></li>
<li><p>another reason is this. when i was at yale, i would ask them why they chose yale over other places (including harvard). most everyone had really thoughtful answers, and kept going on and on how it’s the best choice they’ve ever made. i really didn’t hear of anyone being unhappy (i’m sure there are some, but probably not too many). at harvard, when i asked them why they picked harvard over yale, most of them didn’t even consider yale or considered that a “duh” question–pick harvard because it’s harvard.</p></li>
<li><p>this is a tacky reason, but honestly, i don’t want a harvard stigma following me around. that sounds lame, but when i thought about it, almost all the harvard people i met were just a little too proud of the school for me. i mean, even at the alumni meeting for harvard (i got in there EA), nobody really came up and said hi to me, and when i tried to introduce myself, most people were really cold. yalies don’t seem like they’re cocky about yale, they just love the place.</p></li>
</ol>

19

<p>The overwhelming majority of common admits choose Harvard over Yale, and have done so for many years.</p>

20

<p>I know, and Harvard is a wonderful school…it was really hard to turn down. I just think Yale was better for me.</p>