Hi, I was admitted to Princeton early, but after much thought, I’m increasingly aware that Yale may be a better fit. When I apply, should I contact an admissions officer and tell him/her of my admission to Princeton and that Yale is my new first choice?
It is unlikely to win a lottery twice…particularly given the fact that these two schools talk to each other.
^^ Please ignore the advice of a 17-18 year old who is also applying to college.
First, it’s called collusion when colleges “talk to each other” and it’s against US federal law. So, it doesn’t happen, and when it does, it makes headlines and people lose their jobs: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1027628736531063280.
Secondly, many students are cross-admitted to HYPSM et al. So it’s not unlikely. My son was admitted to Yale and Princeton, for example. That said, every college has their own institutional needs and often times what one college is seeking another finds meh. So just because you were accepted to Princeton doesn’t mean you will also be admitted to Yale (or HSM et al)
I would NOT mention anything to Yale about your acceptance to Princeton, as it’s not going to move your application forward and it may even elicit a response from someone in Admissions going “This kid is kind of flaky and can’t make up their mind. Yesterday it was Princeton, today it’s Yale, tomorrow who knows what it will be. Let’s put this kid on the waitlist to see how seriously he wants us.” That’s not what you want to have happen!
@gibby Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply that I would contact Princeton admissions. Should I contact Yale admissions and tell them of my admission to Princeton and interest in Yale? Would that make me seem more likely to attend?
@college61728 I would say no. Yale admissions will assume you applied early somewhere, and, if you’re application is in the range where they would consider accepting you, they will assume you were accepted on your early application elsewhere, but would prefer Yale. No need to belabor the point.
Nooooooooooo, as it could have the opposite effect.
Under no circumstances would I mention anything to Yale about your acceptance to Princeton, as it’s not going to move your application forward and it may even elicit a response from someone at Yale Admissions going “This kid is kind of flaky and can’t make up their mind. Yesterday it was Princeton, today it’s Yale, tomorrow who knows what it will be. Let’s put this kid on the waitlist to see how seriously he wants us.”
That’s not what you want to have happen! Keep Princeton in your back pocket and DO NOT mention your acceptance to Yale or another other college. In fact, when you apply RD to other colleges, some interviewers asks student’s questions they should not but often do. I’ll use Yale as an example. Your Yale RD interviewer might ask:
- If Yale is your first choice college, why didn’t you apply early?
- Did you apply early to another college?
- Were you accepted early to another college?
My recommendation is that if an interviewer asks those kind of intrusive questions you tell a “white lie” and say “I didn’t apply anywhere early, as I felt my essays were not quite ready and wanted more time to work on them.” Practice saying it aloud to yourself, so you can be confident and sincere in your tone.
I thought the same thing as @gibby when I first read this. Why the hell would you contact Yale and tell them you’ve been admitted to Princeton.
I believe the theory/thinking goes like this: “If one super-competitive college accepted me, then clearly a peer school would want to know that so they can really super-duper consider accepting me too.” Or, “If Princeton thinks I’m good enough, perhaps you should too!” A college application take on lowering the information costs for another institution, I guess. It’s a very common misconception. So, don’t do it. I’ve never heard of it helping, but I have heard of it hurting (no pros to this, only cons).
Congrats on Pton!
Depending on the relationships they have, though, your GC might be talking to Yale and/or Princeton. You might want to look into that.