Yale University Top Questions

The biggest reason I decided to go to Yale is for the people. They are the most fun, caring, hard-working people I know. There is a welcoming atmosphere at Yale that can't be found at many other institutions.

Yale is very diverse, but like all Ivy League schools, it could still do a better job of socioeconomic diversity. I think that they should act affirmatively for parental income and education, in addition to acting affirmatively for race.

Yale's student body is why I chose to come to Yale. Everyone at Yale is brilliant and incredibly talented, but no one comes to Yale to emphasize how amazing they are. Yalies are interesting, but also interested - far preferring to ask about your adventures and learn from you than they are to show off their own experience or accomplishment. This makes for an incredibly non-competitive environment, which keeps everyone saner and focused on the right things, as opposed to consumed by competition with others. Also, everyone at Yale (certainly that I've met) is simply a good person, who values kindness and is genuinely friendly and open to everyone they meet. This is absolutely incredible, because it creates such a warm environment on campus that you can feel comfortable being yourself without any need to prove your worth to anyone, and that people will respect you and want to get to know you no matter what your interest or where you come from. I haven't met anyone at Yale that I don't like, and I certainly can't say that about any other group of people I've ever been with.

Republicans will feel out of place. Yale is a generally liberal campus. Financially, those from more middle or working class backgrounds will sometimes feel the disparity, but it is certainly not an overwhelming thing. Some kids turn out to be filthy rich, but you would never know it from the way they treat you. There is a fair amount of activism; the campus reacts to the world and does not try to hide from responsibility.

so much diversity its amazing.

Lots of different groups. I attended some LGBT meetings but that group was actually pretty small. I'm still friends with some of the members though, so that's nice. Yalies are from a wide variety of places, and they mix together pretty well for the most part.

Yale's student body is diverse and for the most part integrates all kinds of groups and beliefs, working hard towards exposing others to what is out there. Clothing ranges the spectrum, from really dressy to jeans and tshirts to sweats and hoodies - although choices depend mostly on personal style, seasonal deadlines and exam periods can influence this as well. Yale students are from everywhere.

Yale students are pretty diverse for a bunch of nerds (a large portion of whom are personally quite wealthy). Everyone can find a niche. Political activism is very strong here, and while the majority consider themselves liberal (particularly socially), there is room for the right wing as well. That being said, intolerance of homosexuality, racism, sexism, etc. will provoke a strong reaction here. The LGBT community is significant (there's a reason we're "the gay Ivy"). There is also a strong Jewish community, many houses for worship (primarily Christian), and several cultural clubs and houses. Some students form small, tight groups of friends and hang out with them all the time, while others create broad networks of friends and friendly acquaintances instead. In general, I think people tend to have several main groups - people they live with (that is, in the same entryway or residential college), people they have classes with, and people they do their important activities with (theater, a capella, sports, politics, etc). While it can be a little overwhelming during freshmen year, students eventually sort things out and find their own rhythms. As with academics, social life is what you create - you can wear sweatpants or dresses every day, because you'll find people who do both.

If you're not smart, or at least value education in some way, you won't fit in here. I know plenty of people who were more interested in partying who went to Yale and who were ultimately unhappy. My circle of friends were certainly very intellectual, but none of us went on to get rich people jobs. Basically you can't sum up the student body in a paragraph. I think most of the students there were good writers. I think most of them were VERY good at something, whether that was academically, athletically, or being a legacy.

The residential colleges are a great system because they randomly assign you to roommates your first year and its always very diverse, but people almost always end up getting along. People tend to interact along the lines of their interests or groups, not their racial or class background. Most people here are quite smart, but in general I would divide the student body into Athletes/Frat Boys, Nerds/Shy people, and hipstery/artsy kids. And with a lot of overlap. But most of whom are incredibly wealthy, relative to the rest of the country. There's a lot of political activism on campus, but a lot of ignorant hate speech as well. And people often seem to care more about money than learning--but that's a personal choice.