December 15, 2008
Posted by Sam Jackson
Yale Early Action 2013 results arrive today – a message to students
It's that dreadful / wonderful time of year again - finals season, but more importantly, the time when early admissions decisions come out. Last year I borrowed a post from a friend to explain why, whatever happens, there is life after early admissions (and regular admissions, I might add). This year, I'll take a moment to write my own, though I'll keep it short. This applies to Yale, but any other school, too.
Dear High School Senior,
I was once where you are right now. Thankfully, the pain of waiting has faded some in the last two years, but I can remember it. More importantly, I have a bit of experience surviving it and know many others who did, too. Parents, teachers, guidance counselors and others might bore you with platitudes, but really, I can't say enough that the world isn't over if you don't get into College-of-your-Choice today. If you do, fantastic! I'm really happy for you, and you should be really proud - but don't give up on High School just yet, either.
Either way, take a breather and relax a little, but don't slack off too much - remember that some point down the line you might want to take use of the things you are ostensibly learning in class, even if you think chemistry / english / physical education is pointless. If you didn't get into First Choice School early, relax -- many schools use their early rounds to snap up athletes, legacies, and other students, which is part of the reason admit rates are higher - what's more, although some schools recruit really heavily early, others try to balance this more (MIT, for example, basically caps their early round). Regular decision is still when most people find out.
So, here's the deal: make sure you get in all your other applications, and you know, even if you do get in early, it doesn't hurt to go for a few more -- you can use other acceptances to argue for better financial aid (something I wish I was able to do). Most of all, though -- and this is true whether you are accepted / rejected / deferred / waitlisted at any point in the process: the dirty secret of college admissions is that people are, in general, extremely happy wherever they end up. It's true. There is little statistical difference in happiness. If you hear people bemoaning their sad fates, that's because they're the token few--most people are too busy being happy to come out and tell you just what a good time they're having.
So... those are just a few thoughts. If you got in and are excited, got deferred and are worried, or got rejected and are really depressed, comment and join the discussion about it. Talking to others helps. You're not alone.
I'm a current senior at Yale University and I've been blogging about college admissions and higher education marketing trends since I began my college application process in 2005. I now also write about my experience here at Yale.
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8 Comments
December 15, 2008
Thank you, this post helped me clear up why I got into a school with lower stats when one of my classmates didn't last year.
December 15, 2008
Well, it's not all about stats. How are you liking your school?
December 17, 2008
Hello Sam!
I've been reading this site for quite a while now, and I received, like 5500 other Yale Applicants, my admissions results. I was deferred, but am not to worried about the entire thing. The only thing of concern is how will I be able to stand out, especially when there are 2 thousand something students deferred, most likely 15000 more applicants by the end of RD, all for the 1100 spots left in the freshman class.
And I must say that I am guilty of becoming somewhat too "infatuated" with Yale. I've been reading too much of their material on the web and in print that I forget that I may indeed go to another college. It has also somewhat led me to a subtle rivalry with Harvard? Odd, I know, but I've been brainwashed to think Harvard is bad and Yale is good. Logically, I know that's not the case, but psychologically, who knows the right answer?
Anyways, if you have any good suggestions on how deferred candidates may be able to shine in the admissions process, I'm sure a lot of the applicants would appreciate it! Or, of course, you could put in a good word at the admissions office...haha!
December 20, 2008
Hi Sam,
Firstly I would like to thank you for posting this; it is by far the most reassuring result I have come across by googling something along the lines of "Yale deferral" Just knowing of someone who was accepted after being deferred gives me hope, but at the same time I will prepare myself for the worst.
Secondly I was wondering if you'd be able to address a question I've had since Monday. As you are probably aware, the percentage of early admits dropped from 18% last year to 13% this year and deferrals dropped from 65% to 47% while rejections more than doubled (I believe). Because fewer seats were filled with early applicants this year than were last year and because so many more applicants were rejected, does it not make sense that the acceptance rate for deferrals would increase? I understand that you can't possibly determine the strength of the RD pool, but I wanted to know what you thought. Thanks
-Patiently Waiting (or Trying to At Least)
December 21, 2008
i think it's totally legitimate for your love for yale to lead to a rivalry with harvard. historically, the rivalry exists because they were the big name schools forever and ever, but the reason it maintains is because they simply are very different schools. the similarity of their reputations means that they attract similarly accomplished applicants, but, by and large, vastly different matriculants. as you decide which schools are right for you, it is totally legitimate to realize which ones are blatantly NOT right for you as well.
good luck with your decisions!!
December 23, 2008
I think statistically, yeah, it might make sense for the deferral acceptance rate to increase since the percentage of early apps deferred was reduced, among other factors... but it's hard to say, given the #s of people who will be applying RD, the strength of that pool, you know? I would just say that what matters in the end (for you, at least) is not what happens in aggregate but what happens on the level of your own personal admissions decision, so worry less about the numbers and more just put faith in your candidacy and hope that the Yale team was able to catch a glimpse of your coolness through your application. At the end of the day, breaking down the numbers doesn't help anyone but college confidential page views. : )
December 23, 2008
Oh - re: whether yale love should make you hate other schools: I know people who felt that way and then ended up at Harvard when Yale fell through, or vice versa, you know, so that's one thing to think about, but most importantly is not to let that blind you to the good qualities of other schools. I play devil's advocate a bunch at Yale sometimes and try to defend Harvard when they get unduly smashed up. Both have great things to offer to undergraduates, though I think there are important differences, and there are lots of other good schools too -- make sure you apply to some of them in addition to Yale : )
October 14, 2009
Have you heard of college predictor tools like acceptedge.com? It takes your test scores, GPA, etc. and combines them with interests from your Facebook profile to give you suggestions of colleges you may like.
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