My thoughts and (hopefully) useful tips for 2014 applicants

Colleges and Universities A-Z Yale University
1

<p>So I was just checking back to this site and I saw Mythbuster's thread. As a SCEA admitted student from class '13, I just wanted to share my thoughts as well and reinforce his main points while adding some of my own.</p>

<p>First, NO mixture of numbers guarantees an admission to Yale. This is not what they are about, and there are thousands upon thousands of others out there who most likely have the exact same numbers as you do. Put yourself in the shoes of their admissions people. Does one more question right or wrong really matter that much in a test with hundreds of questions? After a certain level of scores, they really seem to stop mattering.</p>

<p>So then what to concentrate on in your application? I found the best way to approach this is to ask this question of yourself. If there were people who lived in the same region, had the same academic achievements, had the same SAT ACT GPA class rank, and were the same ethnicity and gender as you, what makes you a better pick than they?</p>

<p>My answer to that (though there are others) is your passion. On the surface you do so many things, you achieve so highly, win so many awards, lead so many clubs of so many types. What unifies those parts of your life? Why is it that you do this and that and the other thing? Is it because you love to help others and that all your activities whether they be tutoring or service revolve around that? Is it because you love to lead and love the thrill of seeing a whole group of people achieve to a higher level because of you? Is it because you love the discovery of new knowledge, to learn itself? Or is it some completely other unifying theme?</p>

<p>Whatever it is, find that one thing that is your passion and sell it, pour out your heart and soul into that one thing. Make the admissions committee love that one thing and think that one thing is as important as you do. And then finally, show your dedication and unfailing resolve in the pursuit of that one thing.</p>

<p>Remember what Yale is looking for. If you take a look at the decision threads, the SATs, GPAs and so much more are the same for the admit, defer, waitlist, and rejection groups. What separates them? I believe it is that those who were accepted successfully proved that they were passionate about something and that they are a titan, a mover and a shaker for their passions through their presentation of their activities, through their interviews, through their essays, and through their responces.</p>

<p>Too often you see people whose resumes look astounding until you peel back a few layers and realize... there's only air there. People who do a ton of stuff their are not truly interested in because they want to get into Yale for the sake of getting into Yale. Padding their resumes with tons of clubs so disjoint that there is no passion behind the things they do, only drudgery. That is not what Yale is looking for. They are looking for those who will come into Yale not for the reputation, but for the resources that will be available to them to advance their passion. I think the interesting and ironic part is that you need to love something even MORE than you do a specific college to get into these top schools.</p>

<p>Show your initiative as well, show that you won't just do what you are told but that you will go out and actively seek to do new things; to invent where there was nothing; to create where there is need; to fill in the gaps left in our world. Whether that be as small as creating a new club or as big as a whole service, it doesn't matter, show that you are willing to grab the bull(dog) by the horns and run with your dreams.</p>

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<p>Now beyond just what you can do, lets talk about teachers.</p>

<p>As for recommendations, don't delay or be shy about this. Just approach the teachers and ask if they can do a recommendation for you and what they need to do it. Good rule of thumb, if you feel that you can't ask the teacher you want in a non-awkward way, I would rethink whether that is the teacher you want to get the recommendation from.</p>

<p>Two things you want to look for in a teacher when you're hunting for that recommendation.</p>

<p>First is how well they know you. Think about it. No teacher is going to write "OMG THIS KID IS HORRIBLE!!!" so just the generic "works hard nice kid" stuff won't work. Find teachers who can give something UNIQUE about you. The ones who can hopefully highlight your talking points and your one thing. </p>

<p>Secondly, horrible as this is to say, look at how influential they are and how many years they have been teaching. This is simply because if a teacher says you are the best kid in the category of XXXXX, the next thing colleges look at is hmmm how many kids has this person encountered. If they've only been teaching for say 2 years, they are essentially saying "This kid is the best... I've only taught like 100 kids but this kid is definitely the best" versus a seasoned pro "I've taught thousands of kids, and I've never met someone as _______ as this kid". Plus, the older teachers will have more experience = better letter.</p>

<p>Finally, if you really feel comfortable with the teacher, see if you can sit down and talk to them about what you want to come through in the letter. You may be able to fill them in on some aspects about you that they did not know, AND more importantly, they might be able to tell you something great about yourself that you never even realized. This makes for a stronger recommendation.</p>

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<p>If you have any questions I may be checking back from time to time, and Good Luck to you all!</p>

2

<p>Good, although somewhat trite information at this point. I think you capture a tangible sense of “passion” well though. One thing I disagree profusely with -

Young teachers can easily write better letters than “seasoned pros”. Such a sweeping generalization is misleading. I think you should just trust whomever teacher that you have created a noteworthy bond with, barring extenuating circumstances (has not taught you in an academic course, cannot speak english, etc.).</p>

3

<p>Good post - I definitely agree with the explaining your passions part - this is essential to a strong application, but remember your “passion,” does not necessarily have to be something central such as debate or sports (although having a deep passion in these is great). As we’ve discussed in my thread - to demonstrate your passions, you may tale a variety of pursuits, connect them, and show your love for them. </p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/741285-class-2014-lessons-learned.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/741285-class-2014-lessons-learned.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

4

<p>thanks for the great insight. i have been trying to figure out just what makes the difference for all the excellent students who apply… and it was super helpful to give the advice that you don’t have to have only focused on one thing, but find a way to “umbrella” all the things you’ve done under one big passion or drive.
I can see why you were admitted as you write very well - even for just a post!</p>

5

<p>thanks for the advice. I have one question though… If we have a passion spread out among different activities or clubs, but do have a way to connect it, where would you say is the best place on the application to do that? The essay seems to be the only opportunity, but also is it acceptable to attach a resume giving more information about each activity than the common app allows room for?</p>

6

<p>^Yes, how <em>would</em> you tie together seemingly-random ECs that you are truly passionate about? Essay? Additional Info?</p>

7

<p>Good question, the essay is one place, but I believe that one of the greatest places to do this is the interview. What is nice is that Yale tries to interview every single applicant. This is a wonderful time to show the interviewer that you are not just the same old that they see all the other days. </p>

<p>Also for additional info I attached a resume with short blurbs on what I did and that kind of stuff. As far as I can tell there is nothing forbidding that. What I would do is to separate the resume into two major parts. On the first page put the things that you feel are most impressive or most representative of what you care about along with a few bullets (this is not essay time) about what you did, when and what you learned. After that first page then you can start the reverse chronologically (most recent first) listed things you have done. Again that first page of your resume. is a wonderful time to catch the admissions officers’ eyes about your central passion.</p>

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<p>Just a little bit about your essay. Remember that the essay is not really looking for what has happened to you, but instead how that has shaped you. The admissions director for my region gave this anecdote. </p>

<p>“I once read an essay which gave an absolutely riveting account of how the applicant’s grandpa was a self made man who moved over from Ireland and against all hardships achieved the American Dream. My response was ‘SWEET GRANDPA I wish we could get HIM into Yale!’ but all that essay showed me was that they knew how to write well, nothing else”.</p>

<p>What you want to do in your essay is to not only show (not tell) what major event/person/lesson/whatever has happened to you, but in fact to bring those admissions officers into your story. To vividly show them this event as it appeared to you, and to make them understand how this has changed you in such a way that makes you perfect for the school.</p>

<p>Here’s two ways to tell the same story.</p>

<p>My science teacher was an exuberant man who taught a variety of interesting lessons, but the one I will never forget was on nuclear bomb tests. After showing us a short video on the Bikini Island Tests, my teacher turned on his old overhead projector. On the dusty screen a picture of an old sickly man was juxtaposed with a school ID of a fairly young boy with his name covered up. Telling us that the old man had been part of those test, he slowly turned and pointed at the boy. “This boy, at only age 15, already has the same type of cancer that killed his grandfather.”
Mr. Z paused for a few seconds while the class shifted uncomfortably and then he removed the post-it covering the boy’s name. We realized why Mr. Z knew so much of this story. The boy’s last name was Z.
I was struck that this boy, only 15 years old, was suffering because of residual effects from his grandfather’s actions. I was struck that despite all that we know, we still could not predict, nor fully solve this dilemma. Struck that this boy, at such a young age, was battling such a horrible affliction. This boy could die for an event in which he was never involved.
That day I decided to become a doctor.</p>

<pre><code> I once had a science teacher who was teaching chemistry to us. This science teacher was a very interesting and exciting person to learn from. One of his lessons was on nuclear power, and so he introduced the bikini island bomb tests which were nuclear tests on pacific islands designed to test the US’ nuclear capabilities.
He revealed to us that he knew someone who was there. It was actually his father in law. His father in law died of cancer, most likely because of those tests. He told us that his wife had also become sick with cancer and even his son was sick already, at barely age 15.
He suspected that this was due to the tests, which must have somehow altered his father in law’s body in such away that it passed down disease. That was when I realized I wanted to be a Doctor.
</code></pre>

<p>The first time I showed you, the second time I only told you. And I personally think that this makes all the difference. The second time you only learn of what has happened to me. The first time I can try to show you that I care about others, that I have a thirst for knowledge, that I want to heal. Show in your essays, don’t tell, and you will begin to allow the admissions people to see not only your numbers or your writing style, but also your personality and your humanity.</p>

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<p>To TheProtagonist, I absolutely agree that it is not the case that you should choose older teachers irrespective of your connections with teachers. All I am saying is that all things being equal, the more experienced teacher has a greater chance of writing a noteworthy letter (assuming of course that you absolutely stand out to that teacher, which I don’t think is an unfair assumption to make in a forum about applying to Yale).</p>

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<p>And To Mythbuster, I absolutely 100% agree!</p>

8

<p>Thanks for the great post! Your show-don’t-tell example really helped me out</p>