Yale is one of the most prestigious universities in the world, and one of the hardest to get into. For nearly a decade, we’ve worked with international students to get into top-tier American schools, including Yale, and we’ve learned a lot along the way. In this post, we’re going to give prospective international applicants a peek into our playbook to help strengthen an application — starting far in advance. This isn’t just about writing a strong essay; it’s about building a competitive application over the long-term. First, though, let’s talk some statistics.
When it comes to college admissions, data is our friend. Applicants also need to follow their hearts, but data helps match heart to, well, reality. Yale doesn’t public much data about their acceptance process and statistics, but we can confirm that the overall first-year acceptance rate in 2024 was only 4.5%. That’s hard odds. If Yale follows the trends of other Ivy Leagues and top tier schools, the domestic acceptance rate was significantly higher, probably between 6% and 8%, and the international acceptance rate was notably lower, probably close to 2%.
Ultimately, about of each recent class is international. The countries that are are China, India, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Brazil, and Germany. This doesn’t mean applicants have an advantage if they come from these countries, but there are some commonalities. If you are applying from a country that is known to have very strong school system, the credits, grades, and scores will have a nice (virtual) gold star next to them. If you are applying from a country, or with an educational background, that is less cookie cutter, the applicant will need to put in more work to make their college readiness apparent.
This is all to say that Yale admissions does not have quotas for different countries, but they do have high expectations for international applicant’s educational background, extracurricular experiences, and vision for their future.
Below are three steps to strengthen any international student’s application, regardless of country of origin. We help international students get into exceptional universities, including Yale, and this is a peek into our playbook. Following these steps will clarify interest, strengthen the narrative of the application, and drastically improve chances of admission.
These steps are a starting point, but contact us to get your customized strategy.
Applying to college isn’t a one-size-fits-all process, but these three steps are absolutely critical for every single international applicant with Yale in their sites.
Step 1: Start Now
Step one should be very obvious, but it actually isn’t at all. We often hear from students a year, or even only months, out from that application deadline asking what they should be doing, and our first thought is, “you should have started a year ago — or more.” So, whether the applicant is submitting next month, or they are a few years out from applying, they need to begin now.
The more time applicants give themselves, though, the better.
Starting early gives time to make serious moves that are deeply impactful on the application. More on that next.
Step 2: Select Target Programs
Once an applicant has decided to start on the college application path with Yale in mind, it’s time to focus in on a more specific goal. Yale is a great goal, but it isn’t specific enough if you actually want to get in. They know that they are awesome, and they know that tens of thousands of students will apply every year. Simply liking Yale and showing enthusiasm for the university doesn’t get an applicant in. Instead, it’s specificity and focus that makes a difference. So, international applicants need to pick a major to tune their application towards.
Picking a major isn’t as simple at looking at a list and selecting a favorite, though. The at Yale for the class of 2028, meaning that these are the top majors accepted applicants listed on their applications, were Engineering, Computer Science, Economics, the medical sciences, and Statistics and Data Science. And, , the most popular majors among graduating students were Economics, Political Science, History, and Computer Science. This shows an interesting trend. The most popular majors for applicants stayed at the top of the list for recent graduates, but the humanities also crept in. This is something we often see for students as they progress through the college experience. They go in thinking they know their future, and discover something about themselves in the process. We find this to be beautiful, but we also work to help our students find that piece of themselves before they apply, helping them unlock who they are academically before they even get to campus.
The most frequent prospective majors we hear from international applicants to Yale are in engineering or the medical sciences. However, that doesn’t mean that those two interests are the best way into Yale for an international applicant. Yale is flooded with international applications that emphasize an interest in STEM or medicine, and they want to see something different, especially because gaining access to U.S. medical schools for international students after an undergraduate degree is very difficult.
So, what should international applicants actually be emphasizing in their applications.
First and foremost, passion must take the lead, so whatever a student is most passionate about should be what is underlined and emphasized. The applicant should look through , and make a shortlist of 4-6 that genuinely excite them. If a few are within STEM or on a medical track, students should consider looking around that interest at related subjects that they can lean into in advance of applying to show the Yale admissions officers more than a straightforward STEM application.
From there, international applicants should try to narrow down to one or two potential majors that they can really use as a guide going forward as they select courses, pick electives (if available), and even pursue additional classes during the summer at a local university, online, or through a summer course. Students should also be pursuing extracurriculars, internships, or even employment related to the field. All of this is to emphasize on paper the applicant’s interest in their head and heart, and we’ll go into it more deeply below.
Step 3: Pursue Focused Extracurriculars
Top American colleges, including Yale, want to see more than a strong transcript. The strong transcript and test scores are assumed. What makes someone actually stand out is everything else on the application. It’s who the person is, not their A in a hard math class, that gets a student into Yale. And the best way for an applicant to show who they are is to express it through the way they spend their time.
We work with our students to develop a strong list of focused extracurriculars that make the most of the time that they have. Of course, if they have years before applying, we can do more than if they have months, but either way the same overall logic applies. Activities and extracurriculars should emphasize interest and underline a few important character traits. Each student should decide what traits they want to highlight, but we direct our students towards things like leadership, resilience, a community perspective, team-mindedness, care, and similar traits that speak towards a student being a strong addition to the overall Yale community. Combining one or two traits with an academic area of interest or two is a strong guide in deciding how to spend time outside of the classroom.
For example, a student interested in STEM who wants to emphasize leadership could create a club that mentors younger students interested in the sciences, technology, or math. Or a student interested in history who wants to emphasize a community perspective could volunteer with a local history department or non-profit. Getting a job is also a strong option that international students often overlook, and connecting an academic interest with a job (yes, even a very entry-level one) is a great way to show commitment and dedication to Yale admissions.
Getting into Yale isn’t a simple equation. There is no ‘plug and play’ format for an acceptance, but there are clear, measurable, and definable things that international students can do to increase their chances of acceptance. These three steps are a strong place to start, but they are also only the beginning of the journey. What comes next? We can help.
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