It’s an eat-or-be-eaten world out there for elite colleges attempting to secure enrollment from the top students and athletes in the nation. You might think Yale University would be above this cutthroat battle for the world’s top academic and athletic talent, but you’d be wrong. Within the arsenal of tools Yale admissions officers put into play to get their favorite applicants to matriculate, Likely Letters are tantamount to pulling out all the stops. A Likely Letter is essentially an acceptance letter Yale sends out to Regular Decision applicants before they can technically send out acceptances. It all but assures Yale’s top applicants of acceptance, barring any major disciplinary infractions or major drop in grades, when decisions eventually come out.

Likely Letters are also used in the Early Action round to secure matriculations from recruited athletes. According to a Yale Class of 2028 survey by The Yale Daily News, “Eleven percent of respondents mentioned receiving a Likely Letter from Yale, but only 1 percent of non-athletes received such pre-decision notification.” In other words, they’re far more likely to be sent to recruited athletes than non-athletes.

An Example of a Likely Letter from Yale University

One Likely Letter sent to a potential member of the Class of 2023 read as follows: 

Dear [Student],

With great enthusiasm, I am writing to notify you now of your likely admission to Yale’s class of 2028. Congratulations! Having reviewed your exceptional application, we feel confident that as long as you maintain your current level of academic performance, the Admissions Committee will be sending you a formal letter of admission on March 28th.

We send only a small number of applicants this type of early notice from Yale, and we take this step to applaud your accomplishments and to begin providing you with a thorough introduction to the Yale experience.

The letter goes on to tout all the benefits a Yale education offers and outline the university’s various academic offerings.

What Does a Likely Letter from Yale Mean?

A Likely Letter from Yale is as good as an acceptance letter, all but ensuring that you will be admitted to the incoming class. The only thing at this point that can jeopardize your candidacy is…you! Likely Letters from places like Yale have been known to be followed up with rejections in the case of students who experience a steep decline in grades, a string of absences or disciplinary infractions, or, heaven forbid, a run in with the law. Likely Letters underscore the importance of ignoring the siren call of Senioritis at all costs. No matter how tempting it is to throw in the towel after you’ve received a personal communication from Yale reassuring you that you’ll join the ranks of the Bulldogs next year, don’t make the costly mistake.

The Hidden Purpose Behind Yale Likely Letters

But why does one of the most prestigious universities in the world go through all this trouble to secure the enrollment of a handful of students, you ask? Because they’re up against the other most prestigious universities in the world, namely Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, and MIT, for this same crop of students (although they’re primarily competing against Harvard)! As much as they would like to deny it, failing to cinch these students adversely impacts Yale’s yield rate, which, in turn, can indirectly lower their ranking on the ever-controversial U.S. News & World Report list of the nation’s top universities.

Despite their public statements, Yale, like every other elite institution, values its ranking. This is evident from the Columbia incident, where the university with its hand in the cookie jar misreporting data to U.S. News in a bid to secure a higher ranking. The yield rate indirectly impacts the ranking, and Likely Letters play a significant role in bolstering this metric. 

But why are Likely Letters so effective? It all comes down to psychology. When students receive Regular Decision acceptances, they have a matter of weeks to deliberate, imagine themselves on their prospective campuses, consider their careers with degrees from various institutions, and pick their top choice. Likely Letters set this imaginative process in motion early on, causing applicants to fantasize about life as Bulldogs before other universities have staked their claims. It’s a highly effective recruitment tactic! Otherwise, Yale wouldn’t go to the trouble.

How Ivy Coach Helps Students Get Into Yale

We at Ivy Coach are no strangers to our clients receiving Yale Likely Letters. What’s our secret to getting the Ivy League school to bite early and bite hard on our students? We help them optimize their case for admission to Yale through a compelling singular admissions hook that is irresistible to Yale admissions officers.

If you’re interested in optimizing your child’s case for admission to Yale with Ivy Coach’s expert guidance, fill out our complimentary consultation form and we’ll be in touch.