<p>How important is the "how did you become interested in Yale question?"? Is this like Yale's way of finding out why you think Yale is great, or is it just for marketing purposes? Also what aspects of Yale did you all focus on? Thanks for any replies.</p>
<p>If I recall correctly, I believe this question had a 3 line answer. Naturally, it's much less important than your Common App. or Yale Supplement essay. My guess would be that it's more for marketing purposes than anything else. You're not meant to give a detailed explanation of what you like about Yale, just a small glimpse.</p>
<p>i got deferred and all I said was that the research opportunities were limitless</p>
<p>I said I loved Connecticut.</p>
<p>That's all you put? Isn't there a 50 word maximum, that I would assume we're supposed to get somewhere near?</p>
<p>No, that's not all I put. The other stuff was filler stuff like, "WOWWWWW, the programs are so good; I'll have lots of opportunities to pursue __<em>, _</em>, etc."</p>
<p>i said i liked their cathedral library thing.</p>
<p>At one of the information sessions, I asked my regional admissions officer and he said that the question does have some weight. Meaning, don't just BS something. I think that a lot of the question has to do with making sure the applicant looks beyond the "Ivy League" image and has really looked into Yale. It's sort of their form of what is known as Demonstrated Interest. Give it some thought and put down something unique, meaningful, and YOU! Every part of your application, whether 500 words or 50, should reflect upon you and you should treat as equally important.</p>
<p>p.s. I wrote about President Levin's financial aid announcement</p>
<p>I just put that my pastor's wife told me about a new financial aid initiative at Yale, and i did some research on the school, and i absolutely fell in love with it. (i got in)</p>
<p>I said I got great vibes.</p>
<p>I said I didn't think I would fit in, but I knew I could stand out. :D</p>
<p>I thought the question asked, "How did you become interested?" not "Why do you want to attend?".</p>
<p>I pretty much just tried to keep it as genuine as possible even though I was tempted to BS it. I agree with chocolategirl01: BSing may have gotten you through high school but it's not going to get you into college--be yourself. Don't say what you think they are going to want to hear. As gross as it may seem, I mentioned College Confidential as a resource that sparked my interest to apply. I was embarassed to admit it, but it was true. It was me.</p>
<p>This reminds me of one of my friend's senior quote:</p>
<p>"Sometimes the beauty of the world is so overwhelming, I just want to throw back my head and gargle. Just gargle and gargle, and I don't care who hears me, because I am beautiful."
-Jack Handey</p>
<p>Ah I wish that could be an essay question.</p>
<p>I visited Yale when I was in sixth grade (it was for my sister, a sophomore). I was amazed by the campus, etc. Long story short, I fell in love with everything the tour guide said before I knew what Ivy League meant.</p>
<p>I talked about a 2 hour convo i had with two Yale Alums</p>
<p>lol i wrote about the FDA and how any school that supports dueling with foam swords is a good school for me.</p>
<p>I wrote about my tour guide who had us sing "Oh what a beautiful morning" on the most disgustingly rainy early morning of the year. Pretty much sums up why I fell in love with the people there.</p>
<p>Oops, I didn't explain why I like Yale. I just told how I got interested in it (my visit and my interaction with alumni and undergraduate students). Is this a bad response? I think it's too late to change it because I already submitted it. I hope it won't hurt my chance :(</p>
<p>It was a small question, so I don't think it would matter, hairypotty. (I feel weird calling you that :p)</p>
<p>lol...I was mocking Harry Potter (I admit I'm not his fan), so I changed his name into "hairy potty."</p>
<p>Your answer to this question is more important than people think. Also, no appreciable difference, as far as the reader is concerned, between "How did you become interested?" and "Why do you want to attend?". You can combine both notions in your response - no harm done.</p>