<p>I think the applicant pool is normally so competitive stats-wise, that it really comes down to your essays, where Yale determines if you’re the right fit, as T26E4 suggests. Yale could fill its classes with 2400/36 applicants, but it doesn’t. The adcom is looking for kids who will contribute meaningfully to the Yale community through demonstrated academic and extracurricular passions. Although applicants with perfect test scores are perfectly capable of doing so, ultimately the person, and not the test score, is admitted.</p>