<p>Generally the consensus is that you should be of conservatory level, or else it might hurt your application. At least that’s what Yale’s website seems to suggest about talent/level of performance. </p>
<p>I once read a statistic about how 60% of orchestral musicians were choosing between top conservatories like Julliard, Curtis, and Ivies such as Yale, so the competition is pretty brutal I would say.</p>