<p>Hi! As a class of '11 yalie, i can tell you that lots of people on campus are excited that in a little over a day there will be several hundred new prospective yalies! As a former SCEA applicant, i can also understand how anxious many of you are right now. So before you log on to admits.yale.edu and get what you may think is the most critical result of your life up to this point, i wanted to share some thoughts. </p>
<p>Yale was my absolute first choice when i applied early action. I wanted to be in the northeast, the campus is beautiful, the residential college system really does work (ie, i don't want to imagine what this semester would have been like if i didn't have berkeley, but that's beyond the point of this note), and as much as i hate to admit it, the huge endowment and name are big selling points. Yale also has its share of flaws, and if you have a romantic notion of a perfect life following your admission (as i did), you've been misled. </p>
<p>I don't mean to tell you that you shouldn't be excited about tomorrow. Yale is a great college and you've accomplished something very difficult if you're accepted. What i do think you should know is that i've often thought i could have been just as satisfied, if not more satisfied, with a different college experience. Yale isn't a perfect place, and yale isn't "the one." So if tomorrow at fiveish (for the most eager among you, i believe you could access the results at around 4:15 last year) you don't see a big blue screen with a bulldog replacing the A in YALE, know that life is not over. Know that for most of us there really is no "one," and that your college experience will be what you make of it. Know that my sister, who is every bit as smart as i am but went to a college that US News and World Report ranks below their top fifty liberal arts colleges, had a more satisfying college experience than i've had this semester. Know that Yale is a great place with interesting people and lots of options, but know that there are lots of great places with similar resources. Know that four years from now, you're only going to have had one college experience and the quality of that experience is mostly dependent upon the attitude with which you approach it. </p>
<p>So for those of you who do see the bulldog tomorrow, know this: you are very lucky. Visit Yale, live our lives for a few days, and decide if this is the right place for you. The large majority of you will come to that conclusion, and that's a testament to the magic of Yale. For those of you who don't see that bulldog, it's imperative that you embrace what i could not: If you had a realistic shot at Yale, you're in very good shape and will be admitted to many other colleges, likely including several of Yale's peer schools. What's more (and more important), wherever you end up, your experience is contingent upon your outlook and actions more than anything else. There is no "one", and the one you choose is just as likely as anywhere else to be the absolute best experience possible for you. </p>
<p>Best of luck, wherever tomorrow takes you. </p>
<p>~A bulldog '11</p>
<p>PS: On a personal note, in writing this letter i overcame the lingering doubts i used to have about choosing Yale over Harvard. As a loyal Yalie, i encourage all of you to make the same decision :-P</p>