How To Get Into Yale: Admissions Stats + Tips | CollegeVine Blog

Yale is one of the most prestigious, well-known, and oldest colleges in the country (it was founded in 1701). Like its peers in the Ivy League, Yale has a rich history, long-standing traditions, and is a highly sought-after destination for high-achieving high schoolers. It also has an impressive alumni group, which includes everyone from award-winning actresses like Meryl Streep to broadcasters like Anderson Cooper to U.S. Presidents such as William Howard Taft, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush, not to mention Gerald Ford and Bill Clinton, both of whom attended Yale Law School.

 

How Hard Is It to Get Into Yale?

 

Admission into Yale is extremely challenging and only getting more difficult—the class of 2025 had a mere 4.62% acceptance rate. Yale welcomed just 2,169 students to its class of 2025 from a record-setting 46,905 applicants, a 33% increase over the 35,220 students who applied during the 2019-20 admissions cycle.  

 

Yale welcomed 837 students out of a record-high 7,939 applicants through its single-choice early action program (SCEA), a 10.54% SCEA acceptance rate, which is significantly higher than the 3.42% acceptance rate for those applying for regular decision. 

 

While the acceptance rates at super-selective schools like Yale are extremely low, your odds may be better or worse depending on the strength of your profile. CollegeVine can help you better understand your chances at Yale with our free admissions calculator. It uses a variety of factors—including grades, test scores, and extracurriculars—to estimate your odds of acceptance and give you tips to improve your profile. 

 

Average Academic Profile of Accepted Yale Students

 

GPA

 

Yale doesn’t publish the average high school GPA of accepted students; however, know that you will need to earn stellar grades, take rigorous coursework, and graduate at–or near–the top of your class to gain admission. Yale considers GPA, class rank, and course rigor as “very important” when it makes admissions decisions. 

 

SAT/ACT

 

Yale’s class of 2025 middle 50% SAT/ACT score is 1470-1560/33-35.  

 

Class Rank

 

Yale doesn’t publish the average high school class rank of students admitted into its class of 2025, but know that the students accepted are highly qualified academically. 94% of Yale’s class of 2025 graduated in the top 10% of their high school class. 

 

What is Yale Looking for?

 

Yale estimates that roughly three quarters of their applicants are actually qualified to attend, so candidates have to find other ways to separate themselves from the competitive field. While almost all Yale applicants have strong academic backgrounds, Yale values intense academic focus—even more than Harvard, its rival Ivy League institution. 

 

Immersing yourself in an academic topic outside of traditional coursework is a good way to get the attention of admissions officers. An example of a strong applicant is a person who’s actively involved with a BIPOC club and has also published an op-ed for a newspaper on racial inequity at public school or college admissions. 

 

Yale is renowned for its Yale School of Music and David Geffen School of Drama at Yale and, among HYPSM, is the most receptive to students with significant achievements in arts. Whether you’ve demonstrated exceptional talent in art, music, dance, or film, consider including an art supplement to boost your odds of admission. 

 

How Yale Evaluates Applications

 

According to their 2020-2021 Common Data Set, Yale considers the following factors “very important”:

 

• Course rigor
• Class rank
• GPA
• Essay
• Recommendation letters
• Extracurricular activities 
• Talent/ability
• Character personal qualities 

 

These are “considered”:

 

• Test scores
• Interview
• First generation 
• Legacy
• Geographical residence
• State residence 
• Racial/ethnic status 
• Volunteer work 
• Work experience 

 

And these are “not considered”:

 

• Religious affiliation
• Applicant interest