Yale or Robertson Scholarship at Duke?

<p>I got into Yale EA and have had plenty of time to love it and learn about it and picture myself there next year... however, I found out a while ago that I have been named a Robertson Scholar at Duke. This means full tuition, room, board, fees, a laptop, and grants for summer service here and abroad. I am really stressing over making the right choice, and I am wondering if anyone else had a similiar situation or has any advice. Yale has offered incredible financial aid, so the cost difference is minimal. I am really interested in knowing if Yale can offer similiar funding for summer research/service and I guess I'm just looking for more opinions on this situation. </p>

<p>Thanks for the help!</p>

<p>Go where you feel most comfortable. Duke definitely has a "southern", Frat feel. It wouldn't hurt to call the admissions/financial aid office at Yale and ask them about grants for summer research. Let them know of the Robertson scholarship award. I would be surprised if they did not match it [though maybe you won't get a laptop] Most top colleges do offer those types of grants for research. etc.</p>

<p>Yale will not match it, since it is a merit award instead of need-based. Or did you mean something else?</p>

<p>" if Yale can offer similiar funding for summer research/service "
Take a look online for fellowships/ scholarships/ grants for current Yale students to see what is available. Then go with your gut.</p>

<p>Ah, I see... for service and such. I am going to BDD, so I suppose I could ask there as well.</p>

<p>Yale offers awesome amounts of money for research especially to science students. For example the students of the perspective science program get $4000 right after their freshman year for research. Yale is building and also currently has wonderful labs including the newly purchased Bayer labs which are all open to freshman. Also if you are on aid then they fund you to go abroad for research or for study, especially during the summers. I almost forgot; at Yale you can get $1000 every year if you tell them you want to make a drama and $500 to get art supplies if you tell them you want to make paintings or whatever.... You have been admitted to Yale! It's a wonderful opportunity so don't let go of it.</p>

<p>Being a Duke Robertson Scholar is just as wonderful of an opportunity. ihavehope13, your Robertson classmates that you will be interacting with on a daily basis are just as amazing as any Yalies. As a Robertson Scholar, you will have personal access to unbelievable academic resources, advising and opportunities that are simply not available to regular Duke students. At Duke, you basically already have a specialized academic/service-learning plan so a clear path for success in any post-graduate endeavor you might undertake is laid out right in front of you. You definitely have a possibility for attaining the same kind of opportunities at Yale if you really seek them out but this is by no means guaranteed since there will be 1200+ Yalies that are just as ambitious and driven as you.</p>

<p>The Robertson Scholars Program is the most prestigious program in academia of its kind by a long shot. There are students who turn down acceptances to HYP for merit scholarships at their state schools or other Top 25 institutions. You have a FULL-RIDE SCHOLARSHIP PLUS BENEFITS TO DUKE, a top ten school. Being a Robertson Scholar is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You can definitely still go to Yale for grad school and your chances of getting into one of their graduate programs would be phenominal as a Robertson Scholar. My advice would be to take the Robertson offer.</p>

<p>Oh well if it's not the tuition that's a concern, just summer/opportunities, and otherwise you're leaning toward Yale...go to Yale!</p>

<p>Yale offers a multitude of really amazing opportunities for the summer. You can go work through a "Bulldogs" program...there are programs specifically for Yalies in places ranging from Uganda to Hong Kong to London to Istanbul. Many of these programs offer compensation or free rooming. They also have these programs across the United States, that offer really cool internships and pay VERY well...you could work to help create charter schools in New Orleans, manage a summer theater festival, intern for the Cal Supreme Court, or do grassroots activism for a number of causes...it's really cool! If what you're looking for doesn't have a Yale-specific program, Yale offers a crapload of grants for summer opportunities...especially if you're on financial aid. They'll basically throw a few thousand dollars at you to go do whatever you want!<br>
As for service, many of those programs offer community-service jobs in the nonprofit or NGO sector...but you could also do an alternative spring break, which is really cool too. </p>

<p>EAD is wrong when he suggests that getting these opportunities at Yale is really hard. Seriously, it's not. As a freshman I have a fantastic, non-desk-job internship in a cool place (it even involves travel, which I don't have to pay for!) and I get amazing compensation for it. I can't even describe how excited I am! Most of my other friends are doing really cool things too, even after their first year. This is not to say that you're going to go work for Goldman-Sachs as a rising sophomore, but there are a multitude of incredible opportunities available. Honestly, I think there are more opportunities than students. </p>

<p>Also, Yale grad school is VERY different from Yale undergrad. You just wouldn't get the same experience. If Yale is where you want to go, and financial aid isn't really an issue, then go for Yale!! I hope to see you here next year!</p>

<p>Evilasiandictator makes it seem as if Duke is the obvious choice. Robertson scholars sounds incredible, but i think he seriously oversimplifies your decision. He also goes to Duke, not Yale (and if i remember correctly from last year didn't get into yale...). I'm not arguing that you should come to yale, because i think that decision is yours. But i hope you recognize his bias.</p>

<p>duke will never be yale</p>

<p>I am in a similar situation, except I got the A. B. Duke Scholarship instead of the Robertson. </p>

<p>Despite how much I love Duke, I am leaning towards Yale (for now).</p>

<p>My first instinct was to type GO DUKE!!!
However, I read this..

[quote]
Yale has offered incredible financial aid, so the cost difference is minimal.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I say, go to the school you like better! If you want my honesty, even though I am a Duke student, I would have most likely picked Yale if I were in your situation.</p>

<p>I got the AB Duke scholarship as well and have been admitted to both Yale and Harvard. Harvard's financial aid is way better in my situation. I had been leaning towards Yale until the financial aid arrived. Not sure what to do!</p>

<p>^^^^Respectfully contact yale about harvard's FA offer and ask then to "review" your FA application in light of the better package offered by H. Tell them you will matriculate at Y if they can offer the same FA. See what happens.</p>

<p>I'll second menloparkmom's suggestion, including asking them to "review their aid offer in light of Harvard's." They will probably want you to fax them a cover letter and a copy of the Yale FA offer. I'd be surprised if they don't match it. It seems like there is a lot of jockeying around amongst Harvard, Yale and Princeton to offer the best FA this year.</p>

<p>Parents have already sent out the fax to Y and waiting to hear back but how can we ensure that we will receive the same offer for the next 3 yrs- without anything to compare with from sophomore through senior year.</p>

<p>sciency: Important question. Which school do you really like better?
Harvard or Yale?
Or do you not care about which school you go to?
If you don't care, I'd wait to see if Y can match H's financial aid package and if it can.. pick Y, otherwise pick H.
However, if you like Y a million times better than H, I would go for Y.. assuming you are getting comparable FA from both schools.</p>

<p>i guess you should probly consider what you want to study obviously. like imp retty sure engineering @ HY are like non existent.</p>

<p>I’ve been leaning towards Yale for ages, and ever since I was admitted early I expected to go there. Then all of a sudden I was accepted at H – totally unexpected. I went and visited both schools recently. My love for Y was reconfirmed (it was my 2nd visit there). It was my first time at Harvard; I was there for one night and the next day I visited several classes, took the official tour, had a meal at Annenberg Hall. It appeared to me that people at H seemed stressed out and not that happy, but I feel like my perspective was probably influenced by the stereotypes I had heard before visiting Harvard. Also, my hosts at both schools had completely opposite personalities. Maybe I wasn't there long enough at H, and I definitely don't want to choose a school based on that one experience. I just want to be sure that people at H are happy and that they do enjoy their undergrad experience.</p>

<p>It seems to me that academically and EC’s at both schools are at par. My package at H was far better than Y. Even if Y matches it for this year, my concern is, will Y offer me the same type of package next year? How can I be sure that they will offer me the same?</p>

<p>Sciency - the experience (people, stress, atmosphere) will be quite similar at harvard and yale. many students are accepted to both (i think 75% about choose harvard over yale). my suggestion is to take harvard since they gave you more money, and a lot more.</p>