Canadian student wants to go to Yale, advice please!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>I'm a Canadian student who wants to go to Yale.
I've been trying so hard to contact (by calling and e-mailing) Yale admission office and all I could do was to leave a voice message.
I guess it's impossible to talk directly to the admission people.</p>

<p>So I just thought I could ask some people on the college discussion board.
You people seem to know a lot.</p>

<p>Okay,
I am a Canadian student from Calgary, Alberta.
I go to public school with 1550ish students including gr.10 to gr.12.
I'm in grade 11 right now, so Im a junior? right?
And I want to get into political science or international relations program at Yale.
Since SAT is not required to go to canadian universities, there isn't prep course or anything like that around.
so i'm just stuyding by myself and it's been like a month since I started it.
I am scheduled on May 2nd for the test and I'm studying like crazy for that.
I wrote diagnostic test and I got like 1800s which isn't that bad.
But as I said, I'm planning to go to yale so I'll have to pull it up to 2200s at least.
It was just a diagnostic and I didn't know anything about SAT before, I think I can get 2200 or higher.
After I write SAT, I'm going to write Biology for SAT2 and another subject which im not sure of.
And my essay is considered pretty good, and I am pretty confident.</p>

<p>SAT will go okay, but the problem is that my school mark isn't really good.
My average is high 80s. would that be enough for yale?
Canadian grading system different.
We count 80-100 as "A". So I have all A but... the thing is that it's not over 90.
I will try my best to raise my mark to 90.. But although I can get 90s my grade10 and 11 mark would just stay in 80s.
Do american universities average up all the marks I got in highschool even in grade 10?
oh, and do they also include option courses when they average up? like.. drama?</p>

<p>My extracurricular activities are...
Leadership, social amnesty club, global culture club, and I'm going to joing model UN.
I volunteer at Korean language school, World of Science, Homeless shelter, Calgary Public library, and Calgary Theatre.
I am highly committed in drama and theater. I've done 4 drama courses in school and I'm directing a show that will be performed in front of a public. And I volunteer at the theater.</p>

<p>And some other things: I speak Korean + Spanish, I have been going to school in korea from grade 1 to grade 9. So I have been going to school in Canada for only about 2 years.
And as a group, I have raised 700+ dollars for "Save Darfur" campaign, and 400+ dollars for "Water for the World" campaign.</p>

<p>AHHHHH I am soo stressed out!
I've spent like hundreds of hours online finding about Yale and I don't know anything.
I went to school guidance and they don't know any more than I do :(
Please Please Please, write me anything, any advice, please!</p>

2

<p>Consider the ACT test. Some students do better on ACT some on SAT. I would suggest buying something like the "10 Real ACTs" book and try a practice test. For 2008-2009 YALE accepted either...the ACT with writing OR the SAT with subject tests. Please review the website to be sure for next year as well. </p>

<p>Consider Yale a long shot. Almost a gamble for anyone...start developing a list of your reach, match and safety schools, if you do this with an open mind you will find many choices that will be exciting. Making Yale admittance a passion is a mistake. This is not to say you won't be admitted, just the reality that probably 93-94 of every 100 applicants will not be admitted this year.</p>

<p>Yale does consider your entire transcript as far as I know. Take the most rigorous classes available to you and do the best you can.</p>

<p>Enjoy high school, don't waste it worrying about Yale. Pay attention to your studies, push yourself, continue to enjoy the ECs you love. Spend time with your friends. Life flies.</p>

3

<p>Admissions officers from Yale and other top universities are very familiar with the Canadian grading system where 86-100 is considered an A. They will be looking at each individual mark from grades 9-12, both for electives and required courses. For a university like Yale, you basically need high 90's in most courses, 80's won't do, even though they are considered A's in Canada. They will not be averaging your marks, your school will provide a GPA (grade point average). If you look hard enough, you will find prep courses by Kaplan and other organizations in Canada but you might be fine studying on your own. Other Korean friends should be able to direct you to SAT prep classes. You need 2250 or higher for the Ivy Leagues - but even perfect scores are not a guarantee of acceptance. You might want to try taking the ACT instead of the SAT if you're strong in the sciences. That will take a bit of practice as well so you are familiar with the test before you take it. Brown, Georgetown and Tufts have strong International Relations departments as well. Find a university/college that is a good fit for you - don't necessarily go for the name brand and stress yourself out! Good luck.</p>

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<p>You'll need a high 90's average, realistically. Also, consider writing the ACT. I've heard that Canadian students tend to do a lot better on it than on the SAT. For me, I went from a maybe 35-40th percentile SAT score to 75th ACT.</p>