Yale is universally recognized as one of the best universities in the world. A member of the vaunted Ivy League, Yale has one of the best undergraduate programs in every single subject they offer. The 6,750ish undergraduate student fight hard to get there. Yale receives nearly applications for only about 1,600 spots per class. The acceptance rate for the Class of 2028 was only %, the lowest acceptance rate in the history of the university.  

Yale requires that submit test scores, but you do have some options. You could submit an ACT or an SAT score, but if you aren’t happy with either of those results you could choose to submit all your AP or IB exam scores instead. If you choose to submit AP or IB scores to fulfill the requirement, you need to take the tests submitting your application.

This test policy is designed to empower you to present yourself in the strongest possible light. They don’t expect perfect scores, and there are no minimum scores, but they do want to see scores that underline your academic successes and that illustrate your future potential.

This post isn’t about the standardized test policy, though. It’s about another crucial piece of your supplement that has even more power to make-or-break your application — the supplemental essays and questions. And there are a lot of them if you’re applying to Yale.

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The Yale supplement is as intense as Yale is. There are a lot of questions, so you need to give yourself the time you need to brainstorm, craft, and edit before submitting. We highly recommend starting the supplement at least two months before submitting to give yourself ample time, especially if you don’t have support for the application from an admissions expert. 

The first question isn’t part of the ‘official’ supplement on the Common App, but it’s still really important to approach it strategically.

If you experienced a significant challenge associated with preparing for or completing the standardized test(s) you selected, you may provide details here. (100 word limit).

This question is optional, and it’s actually optional. Most of the time, we say “optional” means that you have to do it if you want to get in. This is not that sort of situation. This question actually is optional, and there are very, very few situations where you should actually use this space to make excuses for what you determine to be sub-standard scores.

So, when should you complete it? We recommend students answer this prompt only if they had limited access to test options, sites, or prep. In the days of online test prep, there aren’t many excuses for not accessing test preparation resources. But maybe your situation is unique. If so, share it. You may also need to answer this question if your testing experience was interrupted in some way — like a tornado or hurricane or fire. Seriously, it needs to be a big emergency.  

Now, let’s get into the supplement proper.

Tell us about a topic or idea that excites you and is related to one or more academic areas you selected above. Why are you drawn to it? (200 words or fewer)

This is a simple question that requires a not-so-simple answer. You have 200 words, which is more than enough to do more than just explain why you want to study biology or art history or whatever it is that you are passionate about. Instead, you need to tell a story that starts with a moment that speaks to an idea. What do we mean by that? Let’s get into it.  

Successfully applying to Yale requires that you share a bit of your heart with the university, along with your head. This is going to come up throughout the supplement, because it applies to every single piece of writing you will do. For this one, that means pinpointing a singular moment that you can use to illustrate what excites you academically. Ideally, this moment isn’t related to just one of the areas of interest you listed, but bridges your areas of interest and shows how you think about them collaboratively.

For example, you could talk about an experience waist-deep in a river taking water samples to gain a better understanding of local water ecology and the impact of climate change, and frame it around climate change literature. Or you could write about an experience putting together a literary journal and supporting a group of writers and artists in telling their stories in a cohesive format. Or maybe there is a place where math and art intersect that makes you giddy. Whatever you write about, it should be genuinely exciting to you, and that excitement should show.

You’ll also have room in the next supplement to speak to the academic programs at Yale specifically, so don’t spend much space here on what you’ll do at Yale to pursue these interests. Instead, really commit to convincing them that you know what you love, and you’re deeply passionate about it pursuing it into university.    

What is it about Yale that has led you to apply? (125 words or fewer)

Ok, so this is the prompt where you’re really just talking about Yale, and why you’re applying. They know they are exceptional, so they don’t really need you to tell them that they are the best of the best. They know that already, and they also know that they have amazing buildings and a beautiful campus.

While the prestige and the campus may have led you to want to apply, that isn’t what you should be putting here. Instead, focus in on the specific offerings of the academic program, or programs, you’re looking to pursue. This means sharing at least one professor you would like to study under and/or research opportunity you would like to take advantage of. You should also name two courses that you’re really interested in within your major, and reflect on a minor you want to use to refine your major (if this applies).  

Finally, you need to include something in this supplement about community, and that may be a thread you can run through the supplement by highlighting the different communities at Yale that you will become part of — your residential community, your major community, and any communities you may opt into in a serious way, like a club or organization.  

And remember, don’t lose story in this. Yes, it’s a big ask. But you still need to keep a story-centric approach to this supplement. In the words of every high school writing teacher: show, don’t tell.

Please respond in no more than 200 characters (approximately 35 words or fewer), to each of the following questions: 

These are super short, but they still require time. Each needs to be a tiny little beautiful meaningful story that makes the reader want to know you better. By the way, this is 35 words.

What inspires you?

Think outside of academics here. Go outside of school, outside of programs, and into your daily life. Then, zoom in. “Inspires” sounds lofty and grand, and many students default to writing about a person or an event, or even a company, that they have no personal knowledge of and that doesn’t impact their daily life. Instead, look close to you and reflect on the things that impact your daily life — and find inspiration there.  

If you could teach any college course, write a book, or create an original piece of art of any kind, what would it be?

Gosh, this is a big question! Any course? Any book? Any piece of art? Really? That’s a broad ask, but perhaps something immediately jumps to mind. If not, we recommend brainstorming something that is related to what you want to study, but that pulls additional passions or interests into it as well. Whatever you decide for your answer here, present it as a course title, book title, or the name of a piece of art as if it was the label at a gallery.

Other than a family member, who is someone who has had a significant influence on you? What has been the impact of their influence?

This one is super cute, and we encourage applicants to lean into the sweet nature of it. You have so little space (remember, 35 words) that you don’t have room to explain anything except earnestness. Lean into that.

What is something about you that is not included anywhere else in your application?

Wow! Another big question that requires a small answer. This is another place where earnestness plays well. Maybe it’s your bond with the family cat or a show you binge watch with your grandmother, or how you like catching sunrises more than sunsets. 

Yale Essays: Please respond to one of the following prompts in 400 words or fewer. Please indicate the number of the prompt you choose.  

This is the longest Yale essay, and you have options! Below we break down each of the three options so that you can pick the one that is best for you.

Option 1: Reflect on a time you discussed an issue important to you with someone holding an opposing view. Why did you find the experience meaningful?

This is an interesting prompt if you have an answer that quickly pops into your mind. If you have to struggle to come up with something to write about here, it isn’t the prompt for you. However, if there is a past conversation that is an obvious answer for you here it may be your perfect fit.

If you select this prompt, you need to make sure not to present yourself as the one who is unilaterally in the ‘right’. Coming off as believing you are superior is a very bad look for this prompt. Instead, you need to focus your response on finding common ground, and that should also be what you found meaningful about it. Yale wants students with strong beliefs and deep passion, but also with the ability to build bridges and collaborate with people across the political spectrum. Show them that you are exactly this sort of person through a specific story with lots of detail and scene-setting.

Option 2: Reflect on your membership in a community to which you feel connected. Why is this community meaningful to you? You may define community however you like.

This prompt will work for nearly anyone because everyone is part of at least one meaningful community — especially as Yale lets you define ‘community’ very broadly. If you pick this prompt, though, you still need to be as focused on story as you would for Option 1. Don’t just write about a community, bring the reader into your community through an experience that you write as a scene. By ‘scene,’ we mean a time-constrained moment that could be a few minutes or a few hours, but that is unlikely to be more than a day, that you can go into in deep detail to immerse the reader and truly convey the emotional importance of this community to you.

Option 3: Reflect on an element of your personal experience that you feel will enrich your college. How has it shaped you?

This option is a little funny because it’s sort of a “write whatever you please,” kind of prompt. You could write about nearly anything, so who is it good for? This prompt is good for people who have something they need to talk about that requires more than 35 words to explain, but that they haven’t had space for yet. For many who pick this prompt, although not all, it comes down to writing about a challenge that has shaped their life, but that they didn’t want to have define them by writing about it in the main Common App essay.

If this is the case for you, be careful to give yourself lots of room to write about the future. Being stuck in the past doesn’t communicate how it will enrich your college or contribute to the Yale community, so you need to make sure that you’re presenting any experience as something you’ve growth through rather than being stuck in.

The Yale supplement is a challenging mountain of a supplement, but it also makes you think really hard about who you are, what you want to study, and where you want to go in life. This is useful not just for the work you’ll do for Yale, but for your entire college application process — and we appreciate that.

Applying to an Ivy League university requires planning and strategy, and benefits from expertise. Email us to learn how we help outstanding students get into exceptional schools.