I applied to Yale regular decision and was told that I got in (over the phone by an admissions officer) today. I’m in shock. If you look at my past threads, I’m a good student but pretty normal. I don’t play a sport, no big time awards or anything. Also it was a call, not a likely letter.
She told me they looked at applications on a preliminary level and that I’ll be getting an acceptance letter in March. She said they’re telling me early so that I have more time to learn about the school, visit, etc. I asked her if this happens to a lot of kids, and she said just the top of the pool.
The only reason I could see them doing this is because I told my interviewer I got into Harvard (not in a random pretentious way; she had been mentioning harvard a few times). But that was so offhand that I doubt she wrote that in her interview report.
So is this legit? Have you heard of this happening?
I can’t say that I’ve ever heard of an admissions officer calling to let a student know that they have gotten in early, but I suppose there’s no reason that they couldn’t or wouldn’t. It sounds like it’s legit. They couldn’t call and tell you this if it wasn’t true.
So…if you aren’t sure it is legit, call back admissions and ask to speak to the admissions rep for your region. They should be able to tell you if it is true or not (you might find it is the same person you talked to, or not, but call and ask).
@Melissawilliams: I’ve never heard of this happening before, but I doubt someone is playing a prank on you. As another poster suggested, you could call the Yale Admissions office and ask to speak with the AO just to make sure. If true, congratulations! Now, you have a lot to think about and a tough choice to make!
OP it may have been offhand for you but mentioning that you got into Yale’s biggest rival may have made more of an impression than you realized at the time. Congrats on both acceptances!
Melissa: I PM’d you. For other readers, I’d guess that Melissa is about to be a recipient of a Likely Letter. Usually, Yale Admissions will telephone before the actual letter arrives in the mail.
Yeah, you definitely just received a “likely letter.” CONGRATULATIONS!! (Also as a side note for other readers: this has nothing to do with your Harvard acceptance. Likely letters go out to a few students who apply RD and who are really good applicants, regardless of where they got in early. You don’t have to get in somewhere early to get a likely letter.)
You can call the admissions office if you want, but it will be the same person that you talk to. You should also get a follow-up email or a packet in the mail soon too. Again, congratulations!
Oh Wow! Congrats @Melissawilliams Doubt it’s a prank. Just do what the above posters said to and it should prove valid. I’ve followed you from when you got accepted to Harvard and to hear this now…Wonderful! Good luck on this amazingly hard decision!!
What you got was a call before your likely letter comes (in all probability). It is legit. Congratulations!! However, trust and believe it had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with your telling the interviewer that you got in Harvard. Now, you have a choice to make. And though as a Yale grad and a parent of a freshman, I am a little biased, now that you are in both, you should take another look at them. They are very different at the undergrad level and I know kids that totally love the one they attend and could not even think of going to the other. It is a wonderful position to be in.
@Melissawilliams I got the same call yesterday! I was told that as long as I maintained my grades I would be receiving an acceptance in March, and got an invitation to join the Facebook page and all the other priveleges admitted students get. Was definitely surprised because I didn’t see myself as the type to receive a likely letter, but I couldn’t be more excited! Congratulations!
Here’s an article - from 2007 so who knows how accurate it is for 2015 - on Yale’s use of likely letters. At that time Yale sent around 120 per year (not counting likely letters for recruited athletes).
To Melissa Williams and others on this thread who received calls about likely letters of acceptance to Yale RD will you share some stats, awards, hooks that help you stand out?
To everyone who congratulated me - thank you! And congrats to you @tankfrank13! I got the official letter in the mail, so now I know it’s legit.
@123Monkey You can find full specifics in my previous posts, but in a nutshell I think being a URM with a high SAT and GPA helped a lot. I had all the leadership activities down, and they all clearly showed my passions. I think the most important reason was the essays, though. The person who called me said the committee really enjoyed reading them. PM me if you want specifics
@123Monkey
Like @Melissawilliams said a lot of my stats are in my previous posts, but there were a few things that helped me stand out. One I’m from a very rural, probably underrepresented area of the country, and I definitely capitalized on that in my essays. I had a high ACT and GPA but that’s obviously not enough to make me stand out, I was also very involved politically in my area (i.e. co-managing a senate and congressional campaign in my town), and held a few leadership positions. Again as Melissa said, my essays absolutely made the difference. From what my admissions officer said and from what was written in my likely letter it sounded like my admissions officer read my essay and application and enjoyed it so much he took it straight to the dean of admissions.
I’ve read the essays from @melissawilliams and can tell you they are some of the best I’ve ever seen on CC. She is an excellent writer and deserves spots at both Harvard and Yale.
