The Yale writing supplement is required for all first-year applicants:
Short Answer Questions
Applicants submitting the Coalition Application, Common Application, or QuestBridge Application:
Students at Yale have time to explore their academic interests before committing to one or more major fields of study. Many students either modify their original academic direction or change their minds entirely. As of this moment, what academic areas seem to fit your interests or goals most comfortably? Please indicate up to three from the list provided.
Yale Academic Interests Essay Slides
Q: How to analyze this prompt?
A:
Identify up to three academic areas that truly interest you.
Demonstrate engagement with these fields through specific examples.
Show your openness to exploring and evolving academic directions at Yale.
Connect your interests to Yale's unique resources and environment.
Q: Which areas truly fit you?
A:
Select up to three disciplines that genuinely excite you.
Prioritize authentic interest over perceived prestige.
Example: Not just "Biology," but "Neuroscience, driven by studying neural networks."
Q: How do you demonstrate interest?
A:
Show concrete engagement.
Example: For Neuroscience, mention "independent research on brain plasticity" or "reading primary literature."
Connect academic activities to specific insights or questions.
Q: How will you explore these at Yale?
A:
Research specific Yale faculty, courses, research centers, or interdisciplinary programs.
Example: For Neuroscience, "I look forward to Professor Jones's seminar on cognitive development and the lab at the Yale Brain Science Institute."
Detail how Yale's resources will deepen your specific interests.
Q: How do you embrace flexibility?
A:
Acknowledge Yale's liberal arts approach.
Discuss how initial interests might evolve.
Example: "I value Yale's encouragement to explore. My interest in Neuroscience might intersect with Linguistics or Computer Science through cross-departmental courses."
Q: How to structure your essay?
A:
Introduction (~50 words): State your top academic interests.
Demonstration (~100-125 words): Provide specific examples of engagement with these areas.
Yale Connection & Flexibility (~100-125 words): Discuss how Yale fosters these interests and your openness to new directions.
Generic lists of majors without personal connection.
Vague statements about academic curiosity.
Simply restating your transcript.
Broad praise for Yale without specific ties to your interests.
Passive voice or overly formal language.
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)
Yale Exciting Topic Essay Slides
Q: How to approach this prompt?
A:
This prompt seeks your genuine intellectual passion.
Connect a specific exciting topic to your chosen academic areas.
Articulate why this idea fascinates you.
Demonstrate curiosity and engagement beyond classroom assignments.
Q: What topic truly excites you?
A:
Select a specific, niche interest.
Example: Not "physics," but "quantum entanglement in superconductivity."
Example: Not "literature," but "post-colonial narratives in Caribbean poetry."
Q: Why are you drawn to it?
A:
Explain the intellectual challenge or question it poses.
Describe a specific "aha!" moment or discovery.
Example: "Quantum entanglement fascinates me with its challenge to classical causality, pushing boundaries of scientific understanding."
Q: How does it fit your academic areas?
A:
Link your exciting topic to your previously selected academic fields.
Example: For "quantum entanglement," connect it to Physics and Computer Science through quantum computing applications.
Show interdisciplinary thinking, if applicable.
Q: How to structure your essay?
A:
Introduction (~50 words): Introduce your exciting topic/idea.
Why Drawn (~75 words): Explain your fascination and specific insights.
Academic Connection (~75 words): Link it to your chosen academic areas.
Restating information from other parts of your application.
Vague reasons for choosing Yale.
Exceeding the 125-word limit.
Essay Prompts #2. Applicants submitting the Coalition Application or Common Application will also respond to the following short answer questions (approximately 35 words):
"What inspires you?"
"If you could teach any college course, write a book, or create an original piece of art of any kind, what would it be?"
"Other than a family member, who is someone who has had a significant influence on you? What has been the impact of their influence?"
"What is something about you that is not included anywhere else in your application?"
Yale Short Answer Questions Slides
Q: What inspires you?
A:
Name a specific source of inspiration.
Example: "The resilience of small businesses."
Explain the impact in a few words.
Example: "Their adaptability in crisis fuels my entrepreneurial drive."
Q: Course, book, or art: your choice?
A:
Choose one format. State your idea concisely.
Example (Course): "A course on ethical AI development."
Example (Book): "A novel exploring interstellar diplomacy."
Example (Art): "A sculpture depicting the fusion of organic and mechanical forms."
Q: Who influenced you, and how?
A:
Name a non-family influential person.
State their impact directly.
Example: "My robotics coach, Ms. Chen. She taught me persistence in problem-solving."
Focus on a specific, observable change in you.
Q: What's missing from your application?
A:
Reveal a unique quality or interest.
This is a chance to show personality.
Example: "I compose instrumental music using mathematical patterns."
Example: "I collect antique maps, fascinated by historical cartography errors."
Q: Strategy for short answers?
A:
Each answer: 1-2 concise sentences.
Be direct. Every word counts.
Show a different facet of yourself in each response.
Repeating information from other application sections.
Vague or generic statements.
Exceeding the approximate 35-word limit per question.
Focusing on accomplishments, not insights or inspiration.
Essay (Choose 1, 400-word limit)
Essay Prompts #3. Applicants submitting the Coalition Application or Common Application will respond to one of the following prompts:
Reflect on a time you discussed an issue important to you with someone holding an opposing view. Why did you find the experience meaningful?
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.
Reflect on an element of your personal experience that you feel will enrich your college. How has it shaped you?
Yale Essay Prompts Slides
Q: Approaching Yale Essay Prompts?
A:
Choose one of the three prompts.
Each response is limited to 400 words.
Focus on specificity, reflection, and connection to Yale.
Show your unique perspective and growth.
Q: Discussing an opposing view?
A:
Choose a real, important issue.
Describe the opposing view, not just your own.
Focus on the dialogue, not a debate win.
Explain why the experience was meaningful to you.
Example: "Discussing climate policy with a skeptic. This taught me empathy and improved my ability to listen for common ground."
Q: Reflecting on a meaningful community?
A:
Define your community: club, team, online group, cultural association.
Explain its specific significance to you.
Describe your active contribution to that community.
Example: "My robotics team. Its focus on collaborative problem-solving pushed me. I mentored new members in CAD design."
Q: An experience enriching college?
A:
Select a specific element of your personal experience.
Show how it shaped you directly.
Explain how this shaped experience will enrich Yale's community.
Example: "Volunteering at a local animal shelter shaped my understanding of systemic issues. I will join Yale's 'Animal Welfare Society,' advocating for policy changes."
Q: General essay strategy?
A:
Narrative Arc: Begin with the experience, show your growth/reflection, end with Yale connection.
Specifics: Use names, places, precise details.
"Why": Always answer "why" it matters to you.
Word Count: Aim for 350-400 words. Edit for conciseness.
