Applying to Yale College

A note of advice to prospective applicants
It has come to our attention that there are people claiming to be current Yale students offering admissions counselling / advice for a fee. We do not object to any form of admissions counselling, but anyone considering their offer should make sure to check that they are indeed Yale students before committing to anything. We do not take responsibility if you fall victim to a scam.
To verify that they are Yalies, ask them to log in to yale.edu/sis or any official Yale website and show you their enrolment status.
Alternatively, please email us to confirm.

Why Yale?

Yale undergraduates are given much freedom to develop a well-rounded mind with the guidance of internationally-renowned faculty and through interactions with intellectual peers. Yale is also a fairly small, well-knit school with approximately 1300 students in each cohort, each of whom is placed in one of 12 residential colleges where students form life-long friendships.

What is not offered at the undergraduate level?

Pre-professional programs like Accounting, Business, Finance, Law, Medicine are not offered. Neither are minors. There is no Honours program for any of the major, although it is possible to graduate with “distinction in the major.”

Interesting facts about the undergraduate degree

Students can major in not more than two subjects, subject to approval, and get a Bachelor’s Degree in one of them. They may also choose to design their own major, again, subject to approval.
Certain majors offer a joint B.A. / M.A. or joint B.S / M.S. program. These programs require students to take a certain number of graduate level classes in addition to the undergraduate ones.

How many students from Singapore and Malaysia study at Yale?

For the school year of 2016-2017, there were about 30 Singaporean and Malaysian undergraduates. There are about 6-8 Singaporean and Malaysian undergraduate students each year.

In addition, MASA comprises several visiting students from NUS and Yale-NUS as well as a sizeable number of Singaporean graduate students (mostly in the International & Developmental Economics program (IDE) and the East Asian Studies program). We also have a handful of Singaporean PhD candidates.

Typical Profile of Students Admitted into Yale from Singapore and Malaysia

General

  • Excellent teachers’ recommendations
  • Excellent academic grades and a challenging course load 
  • Excellent SAT scores 
  • Interesting and varied extra-curricular activities, demonstrating leadership in them
  • Unique and compelling college application essay that reflects who you are (an original piece of work – admissions officers can often tell when the essay was written with external help)
  • Good interviewer’s report is helpful, but probably not as important as the above
  •  (Note from the Admissions Office:) Graduates of polytechnics are advised to apply as freshmen, and not as transfer students

Can I postpone matriculation at Yale?

Anyone admitted to the freshman class has the option of postponing matriculation at Yale for one year, as long as secondary school work has been completed successfully. Singaporeans serving NS can postpone matriculation for up to two years.

Paying for Yale

Yale is one of the few schools that offers need-blind financial aid to international students. This means that a Singaporean or Malaysian student can apply for financial aid at Yale during the college application process without the risk of lowering their chances of admission.

If you are considering Yale, please do not hesitate to apply because you fear the cost will exceed your family’s means. Yale College admits students on the basis of academic and personal promise and without regard to their ability to pay. Once a student is admitted, Yale meets 100% of that student’s demonstrated financial need. All aid is need-based. This policy helps to ensure that Yale will always be accessible to talented students from the widest possible range of backgrounds.” 
– Yale Financial Aid website