My daughter was accepted to both Yale (SCEA) and Harvard (RD). Her preference is so far leaning towards Yale due to their strong music scene, atmosphere, and overall undergraduate focus. However, hearing back from Harvard has made the decision much tougher, especially since there was a substantial difference between the two financial aid packages. From what I have been reading on the boards, it appears that the cultures of the two schools are different, Yale being more laid-back and collaborative than Harvard. We will be revisiting both schools and she will be attending both Admitted Students’ Days. We have forwarded a copy of Harvard’s Financial Aid award to Yale, hoping that they will match it, but we have not heard back yet. My daughter has been reaching out to students at both schools, in hopes of making an informed decision. Any opinions, thoughts, and experiences will be greatly appreciated as she makes her decision.
Congratulations to you and your daughter! I posted this on anther thread today, don’t know if you’ve read it: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/1760673-rank-harvard-yale-and-princeton-in-terms-of-international-vibes.html#latest
@gibby I’ve copied and saved many of your comparisons of Harvard and Yale—thank you so much for writing them! There are many important differences between these two schools, and I personally would much prefer my son choose Yale (or Stanford, or Princeton) over Harvard. I even played both episodes of “Ivy” for him, hoping he’d see the light. But so far no, so it’s up to Yale’s Bulldog Days and Stanford’s admitted students weekend to outshine Visitas….
@planner: Invited weekend days, whether they are at Harvard or Yale or another college, are IMHO like “dog and pony shows” – everyone is trying so hard to make their campus seem fun and exciting that it’s often difficult to see though all the smoke and mirrors. My son didn’t apply to Stanford, and he wasn’t accepted to Harvard (even though his sister attends there), but he was accepted to YP. We were able to re-visit each school after he had attended invited weekend days, when it was quieter and we could walk the campus, talk to the students and professors, eat in the dining hall, get a feel for the students and the campus tone without all the hoopla. I would encourage you and your daughter to do the same if at all possible.
Old article, but still relevant http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2003/11/20/the-cult-of-yale-bfor-god/
My son attends Yale and has some friends and acquaintances at Harvard. We have discussed the relative merits of both schools, especially as regards campus life.
After he visited H during The Game, he and his friends returned to Y agreeing that they were happy to be at Y, and that their friends at H (whose floors they slept on) didn’t seem that happy. In return for the hospitality, many of the H kids visited Y for a weekend. My son heard of a few H kids who said that they much preferred life at Y (his H host/Y guest emphatically so), and wished they had gone in that direction.
Small sample size, campus life focused rather than academic differences, self-selection in the cohorts, etc. Anecdata, granted, but I’m personally happy that S is at Yale, and have been ever since the first time I walked on campus and noticed how the majority of kids had smiling faces.
Thanks, @gibby and @prefect. I’d seen that article too, as has my son—it, along with everything else, convinced me, but not him. I definitely agree about these admitted students’ events, and I’ve done my best to warn him that they’re not representative of the day-to-day life he’d experience at any of these places. Basically, they’re marketing ploys. But I do understand that they’re also fun, exciting events, as well as opportunities to meet potential future classmates, so there’s some value to them. And my son has visited all his schools before, though during the summer.
Thanks @prefect, I had not seen that before. I am deciding between Yale and a very good scholarship opportunity at Penn (so excuse the crashing of this HY post), but as I explore the residential life offerings at Yale, my mind is nearly made up to attend Yale even before Bulldog Days. The quality of life is very important to me.
Thanks, @IxnayBob—I didn’t see your post earlier when I was writing/posting mine. This afternoon we asked our son to make the choice he would make today (not binding, of course), before attending Bulldog Days, Stanford’s admitted students event, and Visitas, and he did. That way at least he and we will have something to refer back to if he’s overly swayed by the excitement of one or more of these events.
@tcb152 - PM me if you want to. I am an alum and a freshman parent. I think you should be more proactive than just sending them the Harvard award. Call them and talk to them. Look at some of my back posts and you will see how I got my D’s award reduced by $13,000.
I just answered a post about the Yale versus Harvard culture on another thread so I won’t repeat it here… So check that too. What a choice to have and I can honestly say that whichever one she chooses will be great. Just make sure its the right one for her.
My d presented YALE financial aid office her offer from Harvard and Yale matched it without any problem. She did this in person at BDD. We got an email the same day and are assured a written offer is in the mail.
@Susmomsie: Be sure to ask Yale Financial aid for a “side letter” stating that if your family’s income remains the same, then your daughter will receive the SAME PERCENTAGE of aid in her sophomore, junior and seniors years as she is now getting in her freshman year. Without a side letter, Yale is not guaranteeing to match Harvard’s aid for all 4 years of her education!
@gibby thank you! Will do!