Legacy/Should I even bother?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>Hey guys,
I'm applying SCEA to Yale, but I'm not sure if it's really a good idea. Do I have a chance?
I have legacy on both sides of my family.
State: CT
School Type: fairly competitive public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Hooks: legacies: my aunt and uncle both were class of '80, my mom was class of '84 and went to med school there as well, and she's currently a doctor at Yale Health. </p>

<p>SAT I - best in one sitting: 2330 (760 M 770 CR 800 WR), superscore 2360 (only difference is 800 CR)
SAT IIs - 740 Lit, 800 USH
APs - 5s on Lit, French, APUSH, Bio all in junior year
GPA -3.88, should go up to about a 3.9ish with senior grades
Class Rank: umm school only releases deciles. Solidly in the top 10%, probably top 5%
Senior courseload - AP psych, AP lang, AP art history, honors choir, honors french, AP calc, APES</p>

<p>Extracurriculars:
-recreational martial arts since grade 8
- audition-only choir since grade 5, though i quit that this year and joined the school honors choir instead
- recreational piano since age 5
- National Art Honor Society, historian last year, currently vice president (we actually do things, like putting on shows and hosting "Chalkfest" and helping out at art benefits)
- Co-president of Freethinkers club (philosophy, culture, politics, basically a discussion club for any and everything)
- class council treasurer
- Leo Club (a community service club) secretary
- Environmental Club publicity secretary
-I write for several sections of the school newspaper
- 100 hours of community service, mostly from Leo Club and Environmental Club</p>

<p>Awards:
-Grand Concours 9th in state, 10th in country (grade 10), 4th in state 5th in country (grade 11)
-NMSF
-CAPT scholar (not that it matters)
-AP Scholar with Honor (not that it matters)
-National French Honor Society (I count this as an award as we don't do anything)</p>

<p>Summer programs:
-performing/ fine arts camp going into 9th and 10th
-Middlebury-Monterey Language Academy going into 11th (a French immersion program)
-RISD precollege program this summer</p>

<p>Interests: art, literature, world languages (especially French but looking to start another in college!), women and gender studies, history, lots of stuff
Recommendations should be pretty good from my APUSH and AP Lit teachers. Counselor rec should be decent. Essays should be quite good, hopefully.
Miiiiight ask for financial aid, but... probably not</p>

2

<p>What do you mean, “Should I even bother???” You’ll probably get in!</p>

3

<p>Of course you should apply.</p>

4

<p>And because your mom works for Yale Health, if accepted, your tuition might even be FREE. Apply SCEA!</p>

5

<p>You’re in good shape academically, and having a mom who is both an alum and a Yale employee should help (more than just legacy by itself, which is a weak hook these days). Your extracurriculars seem diffuse. Liking art and music is fine, but signs of leadership, passion or distinction would help. Maybe for you that’s French?</p>

6

<p>Please, anybody with stats like this, don’t ask “should I even bother.” It’s kind of insulting to a lot of other people whose stats aren’t as good as yours and who certainly are going to bother applying.
As for the OP, plenty of people with a record like yours get in who aren’t legacies, and who don’t have a parent who works for Yale. This doesn’t mean that you will get in, but your chances are quite good.</p>

7

<p>^^^ I agree with Hunt… Sometimes it comes off as though people are fishing for compliments instead of a true gauge of their chances</p>

8

<p>Sorry to offend anyone, guys, but I legitimately didn’t think I had much of a chance. Everyone around me has been telling me I won’t get in, and to prepare myself for disappointment. Lots of kids from my area who are way better than I am apply, after all… I honestly expected similar answers here.
Also, I’m aware that my ECs are weak/lack a unifying theme, which is a reflection of the fact that I really didn’t discover my passion (feminism) until last year. That passion will be reflected in my essays/recs, though, for sure. French/languages are a big thing for me as well.</p>

9

<p>Who are these nutty people telling you that you won’t get in? Of course, you may not get in, so you need to have match and safety schools. But I guess everybody is insecure.</p>

<p>To get a better read on where you stand, read the results threads from the last couple of years.</p>