<p>Hi, I know this is question has been discussed numerous times but after reading many threads about this topic, i still have a few questions.</p>
<p>I know Yale is famous for its undergrad focus and community feeling among ivys but it is arguably still less undergrad focus and the community is still less closely knitted than some LACs. Some people say TAs are very knowledgable and are fantastic but can they really be better than a professor who has years of experience of teaching?</p>
<p>Some people choose yale over LACs for the abundant resources that yale has to offer. This is understandable for people who are interested in arts or journalism or some less popular classes. But does this abundance of resources really benefit someone who intends to take something more mainstream/popular like government,premed or economics? Yes yale has a lot a lot of resources but nobody can make use of all the resources in 4 years. Any person can only take advantage of a small small fraction of the available resources, which any LAC is also able to offer. So, is the abundance of resources really a valid reason for choosing yale over LACs?</p>
<p>So for people interested in mainstream majors, is it true that the network and prestige associated with a Yale degree are the primary reason why Yalies choose Yale?</p>
<p>*financial aid
*New haven offerings and urban feel, location, proximity to NYC
*perceived vibrancy and diversity of student body, including graduate/professional community
*access to grad/professional school resources/profs
*extensive research opps</p>
<p>Yale offers a wider “buffet” table – offerings into other fields, that many LACs can’t approach. This may appeal to the “explorer” student a bit more. That’s why I chose Yale over some other schools. That, plus the VIVID community feel of its students over other campuses I visited and was admitted to.</p>
<p>But your last question: a broad generalization – what does that answer?</p>
<p>You may like Chocolate Ice cream and I like butter pecan. So what? If you’re a student, get into schools like Y or H and a handful of LACs and then cross that bridge.</p>
<p>You will receive just as good an education at a top Liberal Arts College (Williams, Pomona, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Swarthmore, etc) as you would at Yale. If you are lucky enough to be accepted to Yale and a top LAC, you might choose Yale because:</p>
<ol>
<li>New Haven (yes, New Haven) might be more appealing than the towns of a LAC. </li>
<li>Yale’s endowment allows them to provide better financial aid than most LAC’s.</li>
<li>The Y-bomb effect is real – although not as talked about as much the H-bomb; it does open doors. After all, what employer has not heard of the difficulty of getting into Yale? So, when faced with a stack of 500-700 resumes for a job opening, an employer might go “Well, she graduated from Yale. Let’s call her in and see if we can see what they saw in her.” But, then it’s up to the student to prove their competence in the interview. And the Y-bomb effect is really only good for your first job, as your 2nd employer will be looking at your track record from your first job and not focusing on the college you attended.</li>
<li>Also, at any college, you will spend about half your time going to class, writing papers, and studying for exams. The other half of the time, you will be on your own hanging out with friends. The friendships you develop in college could mean that the guy/girl down the hall might become your spouse, your co-worker, or your future employer. [The</a> 30 Most Famous Yale Students Of All Time - Business Insider](<a href=“The 30 Most Famous Yale Students of All Time”>The 30 Most Famous Yale Students of All Time)</li>
</ol>
<p>This statement is not accurate. LACs vary like any other category of school. Some are well endowed and can offer many opportunities, others are less so and offer less than a good state flagship.</p>
<p>And an example of the FA factor that others have referred to: </p>
<p>For my D2, Y was the LEAST expensive school she could have attended, while a LAC which is in the group that gibby mentioned, was the MOST expensive school. The difference between the two was 20k/year.</p>
<p>The research opportunities and the ease of taking graduate level coursework is a big one.</p>
<p>As a science major, I started doing research the summer after my freshman year, and have been doing it ever since. I’m a rising junior, and I’ve received three fellowships from Yale, as well as an external fellowship. My PI at Yale wrote the textbook on the subject, and has published roughly 20 papers in Nature/Science. Some of my friends are working with Nobel laureates. This is my second summer abroad. </p>
<p>In addition, I started taking seminars that were cross-listed in the graduate school during my first semester of my sophomore year. I really enjoyed taking these classes because they were more mathematically rigorous than the classes purely for undergrads. I wasn’t made to feel uncomfortable in these classes and I learned a lot, some of which I’ve applied to the research I’m doing.</p>
<p>Thanks! If I’m not terribly interested in sciences/lab work, does Yale still offer more research opportunities or other types of opportunities in areas like economics and government? Are those research opportunities open to all or only for a small handful of students?</p>
<p>I would say definitely. I considered being an econ major, so I know a bit about that - Yale definitely has summer research opportunities in economics. There’s also the option of doing a combined BA/MA. Yale also has some strong graduate programs and professional schools in these areas, so you can take cross listed classes. Some majors that might interest you include PoliSci, Economics, Economics and Mathematics, Ethics, Politics and Economics and Global Affairs. There’s a range of majors because Yale is large enough (and importantly, has the financial resources) to offer a lot of classes. </p>
<p>Yale also has a lot of links for internships, and has a series of its own internships, called “Bulldogs in [insert city]”. Some of these internships are abroad, and if you apply for an unpaid internship abroad and receive financial aid, you can be fully funded through Yale’s ISA program (funding does depend on your level of financial aid, but sometimes there are additional scholarships).</p>
<p>In addition, Yale has extensive fellowship programs for East Asian languages, which might be useful if you’re considering going into government. The Light Fellowship isn’t super competitive (they award about 150 fellowships each year - I only know of one person who was waitlisted but then they received a spot but I’m sure people were less vocal about applying), and fully funds a summer/semester/year of language learning in Korea/Japan/China.</p>
<p>Also, on the topic of community feel, Yale is large enough so that if you don’t click as well as you’d like with people in your residential college, you can still feel part of a tightly knit community elsewhere. I know/recognize most people in my year (I think?) but I feel strongly a part of two communities in particular, and within these communities, everyone knows everyone. Yale’s size isn’t large enough to get lost but it’s large enough to find the community that best suits you, IMO.</p>