<p>Hey , so I am a freshman and my dream schoo lis Yale, Home of the Bulldogs :)
I hope you can give me any advice about what I can do to get accepted, and what to work on for the next few years , takign the PSAT next year!
I am a member of FRENCH CLUB, STUDENT COUNCIL, AND A THEATHER CLUB.
I do not have any executive positions and will not have any till junior year because I wasnt there for elections. I also rannked in the top 20 of this french contest in my state. I don't do much community service , but im trying to get into it. I am also in an AP class as a freshman and will take the exam as a sophmore and 3 honors classes, I am on the honor roll , but for second honors.
Thanks for your help in advance and no negative comments please.</p>
<p>Getting to know what Yale (and Harvard’s) Admissions Office looks for from a prospective applicant.
[Q</a>. and A.: College Admissions - Questions/Answers Blog - NYTimes.com](<a href=“http://questions.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/17/qa-college-admissions/]Q”>Q. and A.: College Admissions - The New York Times)
[HARVARDDEAN</a> - The Choice Blog - NYTimes.com](<a href=“http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/harvarddean/]HARVARDDEAN”>harvarddean - The Choice Blog - The New York Times)</p>
<p>although yale is an awesome school with great academics and a great reputation, and I am in no way discouraging you from having yale as your dream school, i suggest that you also take the time to look at other colleges, not only because so many people apply to yale and therefore the acceptance rate is really small, but also because you may find another school that you might find is a better match for you, for whatever reason. Don’t have tunnel vision when it comes to college applications, because if you are disappointed with the decisions that come back, your college experience could potentially be tarnished. </p>
<p>all the same, you are just a freshman in high school. you have about 2.5 years of mental maturity ahead of you before you start applying to college. instead of trying to find a formula to get into yale (there is no such formula, btw) you should find your passion and immerse yourself in it. Colleges prefer that you have a passion for something rather than just plodding through high school with generic extracurriculars. Have fun in high school , while also challenging yourself. Don’t take AP classes because they “look good” on college apps. take the AP class because you actually like the subject and because you want more in-depth knowledge about it. (I’m sure that other CCers will disagree vehemently with me on that score)</p>
<p>[What</a> Does Yale Look For? | Application to Yale College | Freshmen | Office of Undergraduate Admissions](<a href=“Home | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions”>Home | Yale College Undergraduate Admissions)</p>
<p>Crazyy, I agree with you completely, but do have one thing to add to your point</p>
<p>You said “dont do generic ECs” which is an excellent point, but you failed to really define what generic means… In my opinion, there is no such thing as a generic EC; the whole theory behind ECs is that they arent generic, they are what people seeking further knowledge, experience, etc go for.</p>
<p>So, I like the comment about not doing things just cause you think they look good, and the comment about taking APs for the knowledge not just the credit, but for you ECs dont worry about looking “generic”. Follow your interests and it should be just fine in the end.</p>
<p>Pls refer Jeffrey Brenzel’s comments on ECs.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Thanks JLS parent, definitely a better explanation than mine!</p>
<p>Thank you, thatguy100! It’s your comment to lead me finding a better explanation.</p>
<p>What a wonderful Yale community with excellent Yale students and graduates, and Yale parents.</p>
<p>HAHA. My comment lead you to find a “better” explanation :P</p>
<p>Nice, Im gonna take that as a compliment. lol</p>
<ol>
<li><p>PSAT as sophomore does not matter at all…it’s practice for PSAT as junior which (literally) only matters for National Merit; colleges don’t care.</p></li>
<li><p>Please don’t stress about this yet. Just do what you love and then revisit this topic in two years when it’s time to visit colleges. Between now and then relax and enjoy high school – worrying about college this early will only make you miserable.</p></li>
</ol>