yale 250 essay examples

Guide to the Yale 250 Essay (2023)

For the class of 2025, Yale Law School offered admission to less than six percent of applicants, making it one of the most selective schools for law school admissions. As part of your Yale Law School application, you'll submit a required 250-word essay in addition to your personal statement. One of the best ways to set yourself apart from the other applicants in this competitive pool is through your essays, especially the Yale-specific 250-word essay. Composing a well-written, cogent essay that lets your personality shine through can give you a leg up when members of the Yale Law School admissions committee review your application package.

Understanding the requirements for the Yale 250 and writing a strong essay can increase your chances for admission at Yale Law School.

The Yale 250 Essay Prompt

Unlike some other programs that offer optional essays with specific prompts, Yale's 250-word law school essay is mandatory and offers only a broad prompt. This allows applicants to choose pretty much any topic they want to write about. Yale Law School's website provides the following instructions for the 250-word essay:

"The 250 word essay is an opportunity to write about an idea or issue from your academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to you. Although there are many ways to approach this essay, one option is to write about a time when you changed your mind about an idea or issue that is of interest to you. The idea or issue you choose does not have to be law-related; the essay is simply another opportunity for faculty readers to learn more about how you would engage in the Law School community."

Writing Your Yale 250 Essay

Some struggle to write their Yale 250 essay because they aren't sure how to get started. Having the freedom to write about anything you want is both a blessing and a curse. You have the opportunity to highlight any part of your background or experience you'd like, but choosing a topic for this law school essay can be a challenge. Regardless of the topic you choose, be sure to write a strong Yale 250 essay. A weak essay can weaken your overall law school application package and hurt your chances for acceptance at Yale Law.

These tips will help you develop topic ideas, narrow them down, and compose your Yale 250 so it adds value to your law school application package and increases your chances for acceptance.

Brainstorm Topics for Each Area of the Yale 250 Prompt

Brainstorming is usually considered the first step of writing an essay. However, people tend to skip this step when they are under a time crunch. Take at least 30 minutes to brainstorm topics for your Yale 250 essay. It's much easier to start with too many law school essay ideas and narrow them down than to struggle to develop a single idea. Ultimately, taking the time to brainstorm will ensure that you settle on a strong topic for your essay.

Review Sample Essays

Sample essays can be incredibly helpful, but it's always best to wait to look at them until after your brainstorming sessions so they don't influence the ideas you write down. A quick internet search will return some sample Yale 250 essays, but you can also check out the ones in this  Sample Application Materials Package . As you read each sample, take note of both the topic itself and the author's approach to the topic and think about how you can use their approach to inform the topic you choose. A good law school essay takes an ordinary or everyday topic and puts a colorful twist on it. Conversely, a weak essay can take a colorful topic and make it boring and forgettable. 

Choose Your Yale 250 Topic

Choosing the topic for your Yale 250 essay may be the most difficult part of putting together your Yale Law School application package. If you spent some time brainstorming and reviewing sample essays, narrowing down your choice will be easy. If your list includes any of these topics, eliminate them:

Any topic that covers information the admissions committee can find elsewhere. The Yale 250 is an opportunity to provide more insight into your life and your fit for the program. Committee members do not want to read essays that repeat information from your personal statement or diversity statement. Instead, submit an essay that demonstrates your professionalism and strong writing skills while highlighting aspects of your personality and experience that aren't visible elsewhere in your law school application.

Any topic that makes it difficult for readers to feel an emotional connection with your writing. Strong essays evoke a strong emotional response from readers, making them unforgettable. Your goal is not to shock readers but rather to create a narrative that causes them to feel sad, happy, angry, inspired, or some other emotion. Admissions committee members who connect with your story emotionally are more likely to remember your essay, which gives you a better chance for acceptance.

Any topic that falls under the umbrella of cliché or stereotypical. There's a difference between relatable or common topics and clichés. Some topics feed into stereotypes and offer little in the way of adding value to your application package. Admissions committee members have read many essays about applicants who grew up with a single parent or in a working-class neighborhood. You are not the first. Instead of making these experiences the focus of your essay, share how they have informed your individual worldview or subsequent experiences. This lets you show what separates you from other applicants with similar backgrounds.

Write From a Place of Authenticity

Don't compose your Yale 250 essay by writing what you think the law school admissions committee wants to read. Committees include a mix of people from various backgrounds. If you try to please everyone, you will likely please no one because your essay will be disingenuous and fail to spark an authentic emotional response. Instead, be yourself and provide a well-written, succinct essay that showcases your personality and unique voice.

Depth and Style Matter

The Yale 250 prompt is broad, but it directs applicants to write about an experience in one of three different areas: academic, extracurricular, and professional. Don't be afraid to choose an academic or intellectual experience to highlight. Some of the best essays for the Yale 250 recognize that Yale Law is a school that treasures intellectual curiosity, academic thought exercises, and strong, beautiful prose.

Students who show promise in the Yale Law School admissions process demonstrate that they are careful about their word choice, articulate in their descriptions, creative in their organization, and deeply introspective. They use the power of words to impact the reader, teach the reader something new, or invite the reader to think deeply about a topic. When crafting your Yale 250 essay, it is important to remember that Yale uses faculty (professor) readers for its applications. Professors at Yale are looking for students who demonstrate that they have the academic prowess to succeed in the professors' classes. 

Don't Go Over the Word Count

Yale Law School explicitly requests a 250-word essay. Writing over the word count shows committee members that you cannot follow instructions. This is not a good picture to paint for those interested in pursuing a law career, where details and nuances are often essential. It can be difficult to cover a topic in 250 words, but consider the Yale 250 an opportunity to demonstrate your skills in concise, effective writing. Narrow your focus to specific moments and eliminate fluff to ensure you stay under the word count.

Final Thoughts

The law school admissions process requires a significant amount of writing, including personal statements, diversity statements, and school-specific essays. If you have more questions about Yale Law School's 250-word essay or other aspects of your application, the team at S. Montgomery Admissions Consulting is here to support you! Whether it's through  personalized one-on-one counseling or just downloading our free  Essential Guide to Applying to Law School , there are plenty of ways we can help make this process a little bit easier. 

As always, feel free to reach out to us at  [email protected]  with any of your questions! You can also  submit a question  to be answered on our weekly  Break Into Law School® Podcast , streaming wherever your favorite podcast service is.

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6 Awesome Yale University Essay Examples

What’s covered:.

• Essay 1: Immigration Reform  
• Essay 2: Artificial Intelligence
• Essay 3: Shaping Education Systems
• Essay 4: Biomechanics
• Essay 5: Why This Major
• Essay 6: Why Yale
• Where to Get Your Yale Essays Edited  

Yale is one of the top universities in the country, and a member of the prestigious Ivy League. Earning a spot at this highly coveted university is no easy feat, but having strong essays is one step in the right direction.

In this post, we will share six essays real students have submitted to Yale. We will also be covering what each essay did well and where there is room for improvement. Hopefully, you will have a better idea of how to write your Yale essays after reading through these!

Please note: Looking at examples of real essays students have submitted to colleges can be very beneficial to get inspiration for your essays. You should never copy or plagiarize from these examples when writing your own essays. Colleges can tell when an essay isn’t genuine and will not view students favorably if they plagiarized. 

Read our Yale essay breakdown to get a comprehensive overview of this year’s supplemental prompts.

Essay #1: Immigration Reform

Prompt: Yale students, faculty, and alumni engage issues of local, national, and international importance. Discuss an issue that is significant to you and how your college experience could help you address it. (250 words)

A chaotic sense of sickness and filth unfolds in an overcrowded border station in McAllen, Texas. Through soundproof windows, migrants motion that they have not showered in weeks and children wear clothes caked in mucus and tears. The humanitarian crisis at the southern border exists not only in photographs published by mainstream media, but miles from my home in South Texas.

As a daughter of immigrants, I have heard countless stories of migrants being turned away by a country they desperately seek to love. After seeing the abhorrent conditions migrants face upon arriving in the U.S., I began volunteering with Loaves and Fishes, an organization that shelters and provides necessities to undocumented immigrants. This year, my experiences collecting donations and working at pop-up soup kitchens have made me realize that the communities in South Texas promote true American values of freedom and opportunity. The U.S. government, however, must do better.

During my university career, I aspire to learn how our immigration system can be positively reformed by considering the politics and economics that shape policy-making. Particularly, classes such as Institutional Design and Institutional Change will prepare me to effect change in existing institutions by analyzing various methods to bolster the economy. 

Additionally, I hope to join the Yale Refugee Project that volunteers at the southern border and prepares asylum cases for court. With the numerous opportunities offered by YRP, I will be part of a generation of activists and lawmakers that builds a more empathetic immigration system.

What the Essay Did Well

This essay draws its strength from its roots in the applicant’s personal experience and its connections to Yale-specific opportunities. Here, we learn a bit about the applicant’s story, values, and fit for Yale, all well-encapsulated within the 250-count word limit. 

The essay starts off with a fantastic imagery-rich anecdote, a strong way to draw your reader in. The student quickly establishes not only the problem’s dire extent but also a personal connection; this issue resides in her own backyard. Here, she establishes that immigrant mistreatment is more than a faraway crisis to her, offering crucial background behind her passion for it.

Her attitude towards getting things done is evident through her concise writing. She succinctly describes the steps she has taken like “ volunteering with Loaves and Fishes ” and “ collecting donations and working at pop-up soup kitchens. ” She then goes on to plainly explain the classes and organization at Yale that closely align with her goals, making it quite easy to imagine the role she would play on campus. Being concise and intentional with your ideas maintains the reader’s interest as they grow to trust that each sentence will carry interesting content that differs from that within the sentence before it.

This essay is wise in that it honed in on very specific opportunities at Yale that align perfectly with the student’s passions. Notice how YRP’s mission mirrors that of Loaves and Fishes in their shared goal to better southern immigrant communities. YRM’s opportunities for helping immigrants through the world of law offer an almost “grown-up” version of the work this student has already completed; here, she shows a willingness to build upon her experience and to push herself even further.

What Could Be Improved

If there is one area of this essay that could be strengthened, it is the conclusion. As the word count is tight, this student doesn’t have space for an entire paragraph, so at the moment she used this sentence: “ With the numerous opportunities offered by YRP, I will be part of a generation of activists and lawmakers that builds a more empathetic immigration system. ” 

This sentence is more a conclusion for her discussion about the Yale Refugee Project, although alluding to a “generation of activists and lawmakers” and building a “more empathetic immigration system” suggests a forward-looking conclusion statement. That being said, it could be made stronger by separating the conclusion from the Yale Refugee Project and possibly tying back to previous ideas like the situation at the border or her call for the government to improve. 

Essay #2: Artificial Intelligence

Prompt: Think about an idea or topic that has been intellectually exciting for you. Why are you drawn to it? (250 words) 

Her name is Sophia. Described by many as compassionate, sexy, and a witty twitter icon, Sophia embodies success and holds a level of intelligence humans can only dream of. Sophia is not your average girl. In fact, she’s not a girl at all. Created in an artificial intelligence lab in Hong Kong, Sophia is the most famous android in the world. 

When I first read about Sophia the Robot and its apparent ability to feel emotions, I was intrigued yet perplexed. For years, A.I. has revolutionized technology, enabling tasks to be performed rapidly and skillfully. But the single characteristic I long believed separated humans and A.I. was humans’ ability to express emotions. Today, with emotional A.I. undergoing expeditious development, I find myself wondering what actually makes us human. Can only humans have a mind with consciousness and thought? Will machines be able to imitate the human mind or can they perceive emotions only through algorithms? How do humans learn to feel emotions? What is the mind? 

As a philosophy enthusiast, I am fascinated by the potential for A.I. to recreate the human mind. From Descartes postulating that the mind is identified by a self-awareness to early monists arguing that the mind is a purely physical construct, philosophical theories seek to understand the mysterious minds of humans that science cannot fully explain. In college, I hope to study the Philosophy of Mind and Artificial Intelligence in order to better understand our minds and the technology that is increasingly resembling them. 

This is an amazing essay because not only do we see this student’s fascination with AI, but we see the effect it has had on their outlook on the world. By the end of the essay we are left wondering “what is the topic that intellectually excites this student?” Is it AI or the philosophy of the mind? Seamlessly intertwining these two topics is quite impressive.  

So how did this student convince us of their fascination for two ideas? They showed us. Although they tell us “ I was intrigue d” about AI, we see their interest in their discussion of Sophia. Describing Sophia as “ compassionate, sexy, and a witty twitter icon ” makes the AI appear on a pedestal. Using cliche phrases like “ Sophia is not your average girl ” emulates a discussion you would have about a real person you are in love with, which becomes all the more humorous when we are told right after Sophia isn’t human. 

While this student employs descriptive writing, humorous cliches, and subverted expectations to demonstrate their fascination with AI, we see their interest in philosophy through the use of rhetorical questions. Similarly with the topic of AI, the student plainly states their interest in philosophy by referring to themself as a “ philosophy enthusiast. ” But we see that enthusiasm jump off the page when they ask four consecutive philosophical questions. Bringing the reader into their head is such an effective way to convey your inner-most thoughts without losing the reader’s attention. We are a part of this inquiry and suddenly become just as curious to the answers as the student is.

Through these varied writing techniques—another way to keep your essay interesting—both of this student’s fascinations are well-represented. The last line brings everything together in a neat package, explaining how they can explore both topics as one in college.

There is honestly very little this essay needs to improve upon, but one suggestion would be to include Sophia in the latter half of the essay. Since Sophia epitomizes the fusion of AI and the human mind, this is such a perfect symbol for this student. Adding a rhetorical question about Sophia (ie “ Does anything separate me from Sophia? “) or referencing their hope to understand Sophia’s role in humanity after a Yale education in the conclusion would be easy ways to keep the idea sustained throughout the essay. 

Essay #3: Shaping Education Systems

Each time we handed homework back, our primary school students would anxiously start counting and comparing the number of corrections. The warning that “ a mistake on the Gaokao will cost you thousands of places to your dream university! ” had already been drilled into their heads. 

The combined efforts of generous government spending and unreserved sacrifices of parents have guaranteed education for most Chinese children. After two summers of teaching English in rural Chinese schools, I’ve realised that the problem isn’t funding, but a redundant system.

My friend and I founded Project Take Flight to propose learning driven by curiosity rather than pressure, earned by exploring rather than memorising. After two weeks with quirky essay prompts, vocab games, improvised debates and a lesson titled ”How to Fail”, students’ creativity flowed and the stigma of making mistakes seemed forgotten.

But there’s a limit to the impact of two high-school students; education systems around the world need nation-wide policies that do not just provide the resources but also ensure they are used effectively. Putting students in school might equip us with the skills necessary in the “world of tomorrow”, but education at its best – the type I hope to experience at Yale – enables us to have a say in what that world will look like. I want to understand the processes of curricula development and policymaking through taking courses in Educational Studies alongside my major so I can contribute to shaping an education system where every student can learn for causes greater than themselves.

The prompt asks for an issue that is significant to you, and this student certainly did that! Although education reform is a fairly general topic on its own, the focus is on the work this student has done through the club they founded and the problems they have observed because of their hands-on experience. This is a good example of making a broad idea personal and therefore successful.

The student is able to show the difference between the traditional education system and the innovative approach they implemented with concrete examples. The mantra they include about every mistake affecting your chances of college echoes the sentiments of stressed high school students, but the fact it has been adopted by kids in primary school is this student’s way of demonstrating how broken the system is. They contrast the old with the new by showing how they made learning fun and stress-free with “ q uirky essay prompts, vocab games, improvised debates and a lesson titled ‘How to Fail’ .”

Although this essay hints at how this student wants to reform the education system, we are largely provided with very little about their actual plans. We have seen their ingenuity at starting Project Take Flight in high school, but we want to know how they will expand on their passion with a Yale education.

Rather than telling us “ I want to understand the processes of curricula development and policymaking through taking courses in Educational Studies, ” this student should have 1) included more resources at Yale and 2) described their idea to improve the education system. Admissions officers know you are young and can’t accomplish much yet, but they also know you have dreams—tell us about them!

Something like this would have accomplished both point more effectively: “ I want Project Take Flight to spread its wings and touch students all over the globe. Through the course Money in American Politics I will learn the tools needed to lobby Congress to adopt a student-focused curriculum. Working under Professor Nancy Close, I will acquire an expertise in child psychology to reform my proposed curriculum to best suit the needs of children from the New York city public schools to the rural villages of China that started it all.”

Essay #4: Biomechanics

Prompt: Yale’s extensive course offerings and vibrant conversations beyond the classroom encourage students to follow their developing intellectual interests wherever they lead. Tell us about your engagement with a topic or idea that excites you. Why are you drawn to it? (250 words)

My heel strikes the pavement, calf muscles flexed to brace for the mechanical load of the impact. As my weight shifts forward, I imagine horizontal velocity vectors extending directly ahead. The angle created by my knee increases as I hit the propulsion phase of my stride, and with a final drive of force, I push off from my forefoot.

I discovered my fascination with sports biomechanics in the USC Biomechanics Research Lab. In my research project, I apply scientific principles to running to prevent stress-induced injuries in athletes. By analyzing video frames of PAC-12 athletes in motion and linking them to force plate data, I seek to understand the forces behind running. Comparing these conclusions to the data of athletes after a stress fracture, I can deduce the tangible differences that increase susceptibility to injury. To accomplish this goal, I have learned to use Python and MATLAB to sync the video and force plate data to create graphs for analysis. I have also used sports analysis programs to identify the locations of joints in individual frames and create videos overlaid by force vectors. Through this work, I hope to use my passion for sports biomechanics to improve the health of athletes.

My interest in sports biomechanics also extends outside of the lab, where I see my knowledge in motion. Neighborhood runs are scientific feats where I analyze my movements with principles of physics. With every step, I seek to improve my performance, putting sports biomechanics into action as an athlete.

This is a very detailed essay that is able to convey complex academic ideas in a manner that is easily understood by the reader. Not only that, but the high level of detail also demonstrates the passion this student has for sports biometrics.

Right off the bat, the hook at the beginning brings a high level of energy and excitement to the essay: “ My heel strikes the pavement, calf muscles flexed. ” However, the introduction isn’t just for sheer shock value; they introduce the intellectual aspect of running. Details about “ horizontal velocity vectors ,” the “ angle created by my knee ,” and the “ propulsion phase ” immediately demonstrate the depth of knowledge this student has.

Their intellect only grows in the second paragraph with the multitude of details they use to describe their research project. Breaking down their process step-by-step allows the reader to appreciate all this student has accomplished, even if we know nothing about sports biometrics. We walk away from this essay blown away with this student’s abilities and a clear understanding of their intellectual vitality. 

This essay does an excellent job explaining how this student has explored their passion for sports biometrics, but a key detail is missing: why are they passionate about it.

They tell us about how their goal of pursuing sports biometrics is to “ prevent stress-induced injuries in athletes, ” but how did this become this student’s purpose? Maybe this student sustained an injury when they were younger that prevented them from playing for two seasons and made them feel like they had lost a part of themselves. That would have made a great introductory anecdote. Or perhaps organization is a cornerstone of their personality which led them to fall in love with charts and data analysis and sports biometrics allows them to combine the thrill of sports with their detail-oriented side. Whatever the reason is, this essay needed to include details that demonstrate why this student chose sports biometrics.

Essay #5: Why This Major 

Prompt: Why do these areas appeal to you? (Biomedical Engineering; Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology; Neuroscience) (125 words)

Tearing past layers of wrapping paper, I blink twice at the box in my hands: The Squishy Human Body. Little did I know that this strange seventh birthday gift would inspire a curiosity in biology and a desire to pursue medicine. Snapping open the plastic head, I would seek to understand the brain’s inner workings. Squeezing the rubber heart would turn into countless questions about the molecular properties of its tissues. Using the tweezers to remove the small intestine, I would perform my own surgeries, each time with improved equipment that I designed to fit the patient’s needs. I hope to continue my exploration of biology at Yale, working to understand functions on a cellular level while applying my knowledge to the field of medicine.

While this essay is short and sweet, it works! Focusing on a singular moment in time, a singular object, allows this student to tell us a lot about their passion for biology and medicine in a very limited amount of space.

The reader is taken on a journey through the human body—via the toy—and at each stop along the way we learn another detail about the student. This is a clever way to convey information, especially when you are tight on words. Using symbols and giving each sentence a specific focus helps the reader quickly take away the main point so we finish the essay feeling like we’ve learned a great deal about what this student wants to learn and do with their degree.

Additionally, this essay is a breezy read because of the use of action verbs keeping the reader in the moment. The repeated structure of beginning sentences with -ing verbs (“Tearing,” “Snapping,” “Squeezing,” “Using,” etc) suggests that these actions are currently taking pace. This is a nice trick to draw your reader in without wasting any space.

This essay could be even better if it told us more about this student in detail. Using the head, heart, and intestine as symbols for what they will learn and do in the future good, but including concrete details would make it great. We could see research projects they conducted, volunteer work at a hospital they engaged in, or clubs that they joined at school to demonstrate their hands-on experience with medicine. The whole point of  The Squishy Human Body is to give kids hands-on experience, so let’s see it!

Reworking sentences to be more like these would have made the essay stronger: “ Snapping open the plastic head, I found the brain I performed countless CT scans on to locate tumors. Squeezing the rubber heart, I see my report on addressing high rates of female cardiovascular disease.”

Essay #6: Why Yale

Prompt: What is it about Yale that has led you to apply? (125 words or fewer)

Coin collector and swimmer. Hungarian and Romanian. Critical and creative thinker. I was drawn to Yale because they don’t limit one’s mind with “or” but rather embrace unison with “and.” 

Wandering through the Beinecke Library, I prepare for my multidisciplinary Energy Studies capstone about the correlation between hedonism and climate change, making it my goal to find implications in environmental sociology. Under the tutelage of Assistant Professor Arielle Baskin-Sommers, I explore the emotional deficits of depression, utilizing neuroimaging to scrutinize my favorite branch of psychology: human perception. At Walden Peer Counseling, I integrate my peer support and active listening skills to foster an empathetic environment for the Yale community. Combining my interests in psychological and environmental studies is why I’m proud to be a Bulldog. 

A strength of this essay is how it acts like this student is actively a student at Yale, subconsciously tricking the reader into thinking that they belong. While many students in a “ Why School? ” essay say things like “ I want to ” or “ I would “, being quite literal in the sense they are viewing attending Yale as a future possibility. However, this student employs present verbs and specific locations to make Yale a current reality, for example: “ Wandering through the Beinecke Library, I prepare for my multidisciplinary Energy Studies capstone. ” While this approach requires more confidence, it can help you stand out from other applicants who approach Yale as a hypothetical.

Another positive aspect is how this student explains what Yale resource they are taking advantage of and how they will benefit from/contribute to it. Incorporating both of these is what gives your “Why School?” essay meaning. Admissions officers need to see you have done your research and found opportuniites that relate to you, but they also want to see what you will do on campus and beyond. This student applies this method of description to a class, professor, and organization to thoroughly demonstrate how Yale uniquely aligns with their goals.

One issue with this essay is it tries to cover too much, ultimately leaving many things unsaid. Take the introduction for example. While the notion of embracing “and” not “or” is a good way to demonstrate all the possibilities they can pursue at Yale, this student shares details about themselves that pique the reader’s interest, but unfortunately aren’t expanded on. We want to know about their coin collection and their Hungarian and Romanian roots, but they are never referenced again.

Although the Yale opportunities are slightly more focused around the idea of the environment and psychology, the essay lacks a clear link between the two topics until the last sentence. This makes the essay feel disjointed and overwhelming for the reader because we can’t process how all of this information relates.

To overcome this issue, the student could present the idea of the environment and psychology as their end at the very beginning, cutting out the other identities they present. Not only would this make the entire essay more streamlined, it would make the second paragraph far more manageable because the reader would go into knowing this student’s two interests. Yes, some interesting facts would need to be sacrificed, but when you only have 125 words you need to prioritize the main idea of your essay.

Where to Get Your Yale  Essays Edited

Do you want feedback on your Yale essays? After rereading your essays countless times, it can be difficult to evaluate your writing objectively. That’s why we created our free Peer Essay Review tool , where you can get a free review of your essay from another student. You can also improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays. 

If you want a college admissions expert to review your essay, advisors on CollegeVine have helped students refine their writing and submit successful applications to top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

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How to Get Into Yale Law School: The Ultimate Guide

How hard is it to get into yale law school learn the yale law school acceptance rate and admissions requirements, plus essays examples that work.

LEARN HOW TO GET INTO YALE LAW SCHOOL

Part 1: Introduction 

Part 2: yale law school programs, part 3: yale law school admissions statistics, part 4: yale law school essays (examples included), part 1: introduction.

For aspiring lawyers, attending Yale Law School is the unparalleled dream. Yale’s is the highest ranked, most selective law school in the United States, boasting renowned faculty members, small class sizes, an untraditional grading system, and a plethora of illustrious and powerful alumni, including two former Presidents, three sitting Supreme Court Justices, and many other leading figures in politics, academia, business, and media. 

If you hope to add your name to the Yale Law School alumni list, you probably already know that you’ll need stellar undergraduate grades and standardized test scores, stand-out personal essays, and that little, mysterious, crucial something extra to be a competitive applicant.

This guide will go over everything you need to know to tackle your Yale Law School application, including statistics, a discussion of standardized tests, an overview of all the application components, and full-length examples of personal essays.

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Most students looking to practice law will be interested in earning a Juris Doctor (JD) degree. In addition to its JD program, Yale Law School also offers a few other graduate degrees : Master of Laws (LLM), Doctor of the Science of Laws (JSD), Master of Studies in Law (MSL), and PhD in Law.

Yale’s JD program is what we’ll cover in this post. 

Yale Law School also permits JD students to enroll in joint degree programs with a number of other Yale graduate programs, pending case-by-case approval. While students can seemingly propose a dual-degree course of study in any program that will complement their legal studies, most common are JD-MBAs or JD-MA programs in fields such as Global Affairs. If a joint degree program interests you, depending on the specific program in question, you’ll either need to apply to your non-JD program at the same time that you apply to Yale Law or you’ll apply during your first year of law school.

With an incoming class size of around 200 students per year and a 4:1 student-to-faculty ratio, Yale Law School is on the smaller end of top-tier law schools in a way that can make it seem like an even more elite club.

Here are some statistics on Yale Law School’s class of 2026:

Number of applicants: 4,471

Number of offers of admission: 246 (5.50%)

Class of 2023 incoming size: 201

GPA distribution and range:

25th percentile: 3.89/4.0

50th percentile: 3.96/4.0

75th percentile: 4.00/4.0

Range: 3.25–4.27

LSAT distribution and range:

25th percentile: 172/180

50th percentile: 175/180

75th percentile: 177/180

Range: 158–180

Though there is no minimum GPA or LSAT score for applicants, the lowest GPA and LSAT scores received by a member of Yale Law School’s class of 2026 were 3.25 and 158, respectively. Admitted students with very low scores likely have other aspects of their applications that are extraordinary.

To get into Yale Law School, you should spend your undergraduate years working hard to earn top grades. You should also invest plenty of time studying for the LSAT to aim for a score of at least 175, preferably 176 or above. Remember that while it’s absolutely possible to get in with a lower score, 50% of successful applicants scored 175 or higher.  

Note: Beginning with the 2019-2020 cycle, Yale began accepting GRE scores in place of the LSAT. Additionally, applicants can submit scores from the LSAT-Flex or the GRE General Test at Home. While Yale gives no preference to one test over another, you may only submit one test score; you cannot submit both an LSAT score and a GRE score.

Yale Law School application

To apply to Yale Law School, you’ll need to sign up for the Law School Credential Assembly Service (CAS), which you can access online via the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) . You’ll then submit your entire application online through LSAC.

For the class of 2027, YLS opened its application system on September 1, 2023, and applicants have been able to submit their applications since October 1, 2023. Applications must be submitted by February 15, 2024.

The components of your Yale Law School application are:

An application form

Transcripts from every undergraduate and graduate institution you’ve attended, submitted directly to LSAC

At least two letters of recommendation from former professors, submitted to LSAC (and no more than four letters of recommendation total)

LSAT or GRE scores (note: while LSAC will automatically report your LSAT scores to Yale, to submit GRE scores, you’ll need to designate Yale as a score recipient through the testing organization, ETS)

Mandatory: law school personal statement (no length guidelines given)

Mandatory: a 250-word essay on “an idea or issue from your academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to you”

Optional: various addenda, such as a diversity statement or an explanation of unusual items that appear elsewhere in your application

While some law schools require dean’s certificate forms as part of their application, Yale only requires them if and when you receive an admission offer and decide to accept.  

In this section, we’ll go over how to approach writing each of the essays in Yale Law School’s application, plus show you full-length example essays. 

Some general guidelines to keep in mind when writing your essays:

Focus on crafting the very best writing you can and make sure to proofread your essays for correct grammar and spelling. Since writing well is an incredibly important skill for lawyers, Yale’s admissions officers will absolutely be paying attention to how you write in addition to what you write.

Be sure to carefully follow essay instructions, including length guidelines. Going over a specified word limit will show you don’t know how to follow directions, which is not a great look for someone hoping to work in a field as intricate as law.

Yale Law School personal statement

When applying to law school , we recommend starting by writing a personal statement that you can later tweak to cater to every school to which you apply. 

Here’s what Yale Law School says about the personal statement. Emphases are ours: “The personal statement should help us learn about the personal , professional , and academic qualities an applicant would bring to the Law School community. Applicants often submit the personal statement they have prepared for other law school applications.”

Aim for about 500 words.

Here’s an example that our student, Rebecca, wrote to apply to Yale Law School:

Growing up thirty minutes from Lake Michigan, I always loved water. As a child, my family spent most summer weekends at the beach, where I ran nervously into the freezing blue lake and spent hours combing the sand for interesting stones and shells. Bordered by four of the five Great Lakes, Michigan has the most freshwater coastline of any state—it’s where you want to be when a climate apocalypse comes. 

In early 2015, the news that Flint, Michigan’s water had elevated lead levels began to make local headlines. I was in my freshman year at the University of Michigan and enrolled in an ecology class focused on aquatic ecosystems. I remember one day, shortly after I first heard about the situation in Flint, standing on the banks of the nearby Huron River during a field trip, in complete disbelief that less than an hour from where I stood, clean water could not be found. 

I’d never paid much attention to politics up to that point, but as an aspiring environmental scientist and a native Michigander, I felt a mixture of horror, sadness, and anger when I thought about how the residents of Flint had been put in danger so that the government could save money. How could water—the thing we had so much of in Michigan—be full of poison?

By the spring of 2016, Flint was national news and a state of emergency had been declared on local, state, and federal levels. My friend, Mariam, who was part of a student activist group, invited me to participate in a bottled water collection drive which culminated in a group of us driving up to Flint a few weeks later to drop off the supplies we’d gathered.

It was there that the economic and racial contours of the situation sharpened in my eyes. When we dropped the water off at Flint’s Red Cross chapter, it became obvious to me that the majority of people who were suffering were working class and black. Having grown up in a primarily white suburb and then moved to affluent Ann Arbor for college, it was completely unimaginable that something so devastating would be allowed to happen in the version of Michigan that I personally knew.

When I first read the term “environmental racism” in an article about Flint, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Though by this point I’d declared Ecology, Evolution, & Biodiversity as my major, I’d never before considered that race could have anything to do with what I was studying.  Nevertheless, “environmental racism” perfectly summed up what I’d observed in my visit to Flint.

As I read more about environmental racism, I began to understand that disadvantaged communities all over the country and the globe were being impacted by toxic environments. Though I’d always imagined myself changing the world as a scientist out in the field, the more I learned, the more I felt that working from the angle of policy and law would be the most effective contribution I could make towards achieving environmental justice. 

I am applying to Yale Law School in order to equip myself to help communities like Flint as an environmental policy lawyer. With valuable resources like the Environmental Protection Clinic and the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy, I know that Yale’s Program on Law and the Environment will provide the strongest possible foundation for me to do this crucial work. And belonging to the community of YLS’s exceptionally motivated future legal leaders would offer me the challenge, support, and inspiration to aim high as I demand a better and more equitable future. 

What can we take away from Rebecca’s essay?

Rebecca chooses a chronological approach that is loosely organized around the timeline of the Flint water crisis. Using the Flint story as a spine, she seamlessly weaves in information about her academic interests, geographic and socioeconomic background, and political awakening. While a chronological order is by no means necessary to writing a good essay, it works well here because it anchors the personal information that naturally leads into Rebecca’s explanation of why she would benefit from a Yale education.

On that note, while the subjects of Yale and law serve as the culmination of Rebecca’s essay, they take up little space relative to the essay as a whole. Instead, Rebecca uses the majority of her essay to tell a story about herself, which is what a personal statement should do. This approach is much more likely to stick with an admissions officer than a summary of all of Yale Law School’s amazing attributes.

When she does turn to YLS, she offers a few specifics while also nodding to the clearest and most powerful thing Yale has going for it: the people. The professors and peer group will push Rebecca to be the best lawyer she can be.

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Yale Law School 250-word essay

Yale Law School also requires a 250-word essay, known as the “Yale 250,” in addition to a personal statement. Their application notes: “The 250-word essay is an opportunity to explore an idea or issue from your academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to you. The idea or issue you choose does not have to be law-related; this is simply another opportunity for faculty readers to learn more about how you would engage in the Law School community.”

Since the 250-word essay is open-topic, many applicants have difficulty figuring out how to approach writing it. Good topics for the 250-word essay range widely. But here are a few general guidelines:

1.      Write about yourself, rather than penning an ode to Yale.

2. Do not use the Yale 250 to explain bad grades or offer excuses for other extenuating circumstances; save anything urgent regarding context for the addenda.

3. The Yale 250 is about adding color and often quirk to your application. Think of it as a chance to add texture about something—perhaps something surprising—that you didn’t get to cover in your main personal statement. We’ve seen applicants write about their love of basketball brackets or streetwear fashion. 

Here’s what another one of our students, Malcolm, wrote for his Yale 250-word essay:

People who visit my house often exclaim that I have a green thumb. While plants adorn nearly every surface in my home, I don’t find the claim of a green thumb accurate. That’s because I know a true one—my mother. 

Growing up, our small apartment was equally densely populated by plants—from dramatically draping vines propagated from found pieces to cacti abandoned by the dumpster and nursed back to health. No person, book, or website made my mother such a skilled horticulturalist. Instead, she has an intuitive ability to understand what a plant needs. “Look how brown it is,” she’d insist. “It’s telling you something.” 

When I first moved out, I was eager to replicate my mother’s jungle. To my dismay, my new greenery browned at an alarmingly quick rate. Suffice to say, I hadn’t inherited her legendary green thumb. 

While initially discouraged, my desire to feel at home prompted me to do what I do best: research. I went down every online rabbit hole about fertilizer, soil, and the indefinable “bright indirect light.” When a plant began to yellow or drop leaves, I’d spend hours reading about how I could improve its water or light levels. Eventually, I learned to understand the signals my plants were transmitting, which had been previously imperceptible to me. While I don’t have an inborn green thumb, diligence has made my plants thrive. Even my mother says so.

Let’s break down what works about Malcolm’s essay:

In this essay, Malcolm uses a casual, occasionally humorous tone, which is not always the right choice but works here because he balances it with tight, vivid writing.

While Malcolm chooses to discuss an extracurricular activity, horticulture, that doesn’t immediately seem connected to law, he uses it to convey personal qualities that would make him a good lawyer: diligence, a love of research, and an insistence on accurate definitions.

Though they are not the main subject of his essay, Malcolm also transmits small but informative details about his upbringing. Through the essay, we learn that he and his mother lived in a small apartment and that their plants were often found rather than bought.

Yale Law School optional essays

Yale Law School Addenda

Although they are optional, Yale Law School allows applicants to add addenda to their applications. Items you might attach as addenda include explanations of deficient grades, test scores, or any other items in your application materials that you feel need clarifying. Remember that you should only ever explain away bad grades if you have a real story about what happened and if you can turn the weakness into a strength by explaining how you grew from a difficult situation.

Yale Law School diversity statement

Diversity statements also fall under this optional category. Yale writes: “Although Yale Law School does not require a diversity statement, many applicants submit diversity statements that help us learn more about them and how they would contribute to our community. Other applicants choose not to include diversity statements, especially if they have otherwise covered key aspects of their background and experiences in their application. One way to decide whether to include a diversity statement is to consider those aspects of your identity that are core to who you are, and make sure they are represented in your application.”

If you’re unsure whether you should include a diversity statement with your application, we suggest reading our guide to writing law school diversity statements and guide to law school admissions , which cover how to approach this decision.

Here’s an example of a diversity statement that our student, Maya, wrote to apply to Yale Law School:

In the fall of 2014, I was a twenty-nine-year-old waitress and college dropout with one semester of credits to my name. Nearly a decade earlier, as I was beginning my second semester at the University of Massachusetts, my mother’s car was struck by a drunk driver running a red light. She was killed instantly. The next day, I took a bus home to Rhode Island and never went back except once, a month later, to pick up my belongings with my dad. The semester off I’d initially allotted myself to deal with my grief morphed into two semesters, then three. Before I knew it, the momentum of my old life had swallowed me whole. I’d enjoyed my short stint in college, but in the wake of such catastrophe, I needed to be close to my family, and no one I knew argued with this logic.

For ten years, I spent time with my dad and sister, forged community with old and new friends in Providence, and held down serving jobs at restaurants around town. I’m a good waitress—I’m quick on my feet, have a remarkably sharp memory, and can banter with the best of them. However, as my thirtieth birthday approached, I began to wonder what else my life could have become had I stayed in school.

More or less on a whim, I decided to apply to Smith College’s Ada Comstock Scholars Program, which is designed for women of nontraditional age. To my surprise, I was accepted. Becoming a student again at age thirty, just twenty minutes away from where my college career had ended, was exhilarating, surreal, and challenging in ways I could not have anticipated. Though overtime I found wonderful and inspiring friends in my fellow Adas, as we were called, I was typically the only nontraditional student in the majority of my courses. I initially felt old and like an imposter, and, for the first year or two, spent a lot of time by myself. 

I thought about my mother frequently during these years. My mother and I are similar in that she also left college before graduating, though in her case it was to get married after she became pregnant with me. Unlike me, she never got the chance to go back.

As I complete my final semester of college this winter, I’ll be the first person in my family to graduate from college. I will be thirty-four years old. My path as a nontraditional student often perplexes people I meet whose own paths have led seamlessly from high school to college to professional life. Over these last three-and-a-half years, I’ve come to realize that this journey has been a gift because I truly understand the value of my education, having lived a working adult’s life without it. Not only has this shown me that I can change my own life through hard work, it’s also strengthened my resolve to advocate for those who have been less fortunate than I have. I know I will use my wide range of life experiences and the wisdom and empathy they have bestowed to become the very best lawyer I can.

What can we learn from Maya’s diversity essay?

The primary point of difference that Maya highlights is her journey as an older student, though we learn that she’s a first-generation college student as well. Though both facts are important to understanding who she is as an applicant, by choosing one element of her background, her essay is given focus and clarity.

Like Malcolm, Maya uses another experience—in this case, her past work as a server—to demonstrate skills that will make her a successful attorney.

Not only does Maya detail the experiences that make her a unique candidate, she also reflects on how these experiences will shape her as a lawyer. This is the key to writing a successful diversity statement.

Final thoughts

Gaining acceptance to Yale Law School will be a challenge for any applicant, no matter how qualified. For the greatest chances of admission, first, focus on achieving the very best grades and test scores that you can. Next, tackle your essays with creativity and impeccable writing to demonstrate the unique experiences, skills, and point of view that you will bring to Yale. 

About the Author

Dr. Shirag Shemmassian is the Founder of Shemmassian Academic Consulting and one of the world's foremost experts on law school admissions. For nearly 20 years, he and his team have helped thousands of students get into law school using his exclusive approach.

THERE'S NO REASON TO STRUGGLE THROUGH THE LAW SCHOOL ADMISSIONS PROCESS ALONE, ESPECIALLY WITH SO MUCH ON THE LINE. SCHEDULE YOUR COMPLIMENTARY CONSULTATION TO ENSURE YOU LEAVE NOTHING TO CHANCE.

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TLS Guide to Personal Statements: Table of Contents   Foreword Chapters: 1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   Appendixes: A   B   C   D   E   F   G

Appendix C: Yale 250s

Published November 2009

Everyone who applies to Yale Law School must write, in addition to a personal statement, what is affectionately known as the Yale 250. This is a completely open-ended short essay (250 words, obviously) on any topic of the applicant’s choice. It sounds easy. It can become terrifying. If you decide to apply to Yale, have fun with it, but do treat this sucker to your best writing treatment. With this requirement, the committee wants to see that you are an excellent writer. Try to get some sort of powerful imagery or clever literary device in your Yale 250. Don’t be too experimental or abstract unless you actually have won a writing award. Simple clarity with some sort of profound thrust is the best target to aim for here. Witty humor is also great, if you can pull it off. Below is a collection of six very good examples of Yale 250s, in no particular order of success. The first essay includes some comments about why it succeeds, but the other short essays are presented on their own, to be enjoyed, or savored, or laughed at, or learned from.

1. Porgy and Bess

I leaned forward. The old woman beside me seemed entranced. We were at the Los Angeles Opera for George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess and had just heard "Summertime."

Porgy and Bess is a distinctly American opera—the story of an African-American working-class couple, set to American music idioms synthesized with European orchestral techniques. Its memorable arias and duets have escaped the confines of the opera house and entered the realm of popular music as irresistible tunes—often in hybrid form—that endear themselves to a public indifferent to classical music.

I expected the virtually all-black cast because of Gershwin's daring stipulation to hire only black principals. But given the paucity of non-white operagoers, I did not envision an audience that would mirror America's diversity. I surveyed the sea of black, brown, yellow, and white faces—many likely attending their first opera—and felt hopeful and proud.

The de facto segregation plaguing America softened that evening. Unlike many movies and plays depicting the African-American experience, Porgy and Bess drew a multiethnic crowd. America's finest black opera singers attained critical visibility in a domain that rarely receives them. Perhaps the soprano singing "I Loves You, Porgy" inspired the young black woman mouthing its words to someday perform them. Perhaps the haunting beauty of "Summertime" reminded the white woman beside me of the first time she heard the music—and first saw her place in our kaleidoscope of colors. I know that I, for the first time, felt I belonged at the opera.

Commentary 1: Porgy and Bess

This Yale 250 beautifully puts the reader in the shoes of an African American attending Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess . The sensory details are lush, and one could almost hear the singing: “Your daddy’s rich, and your mamma’s good looking, so hush little baby, don’t you cry.” This is a narrative about finding oneself in artistic representations of—sometimes painful—history, and sharing that experience with others. We learn that the author has always loved the opera art form, but now she finds another side of her kaleidoscopic self there—she shares the opera not only as an orchestral and vocal music lover, but also as a black woman. This essay releases a profound, encapsulated moment of awakening about art, life, compassion, and openness for others to share.

2. Violin Maker

He sat close on my right but seemed unaware of my presence. Etudes, sonatas, and suites ran together, each piece unimportant when compared to the sound of him playing. And this wooden box—for months my solitary obsession—was finished.

It was my first cello—the first instrument I made but could not play.

Building cellos is hard. Violins can be difficult, but are never so brutish and physical as the excavation of a cello. Carving a violin is fastidious and constricting. The stature of a cello, however, makes even the most delicate task feel expansive. Simple size yields a human presence: the work, which feels like collaboration, must be done on the cello’s terms.

But the change I felt confronting this cello as a violinist overwhelmed differences in construction.

The violins I had built and played for years were a collective project of inquiry—an introspective journey toward an elusive sonic ideal. Continual adaptation made them an expression of my playing, which had become so rooted in these fiddles that the once distinct acts of making and playing were inseparable.

This cellist discovered sounds in my work I could not predict or explore. By ending my conceit of complete understanding and vertical integration, he helped me appreciate my cello as a singular work rather than dismiss it, as I would a violin, as an inadequate manifestation of an ideal. He reminded me that all my instruments are tools for musicians; it is what they make with them that matters.

I have an abnormally large head. It has been that way since birth – just ask my mother. In home videos, I can be seen futilely trying to balance my head on my neck, only to have it tip forward or backward. When I was nine, it got stuck under the bed while I was trying to retrieve a Lego. My parents told me I would eventually grow into it, but I am still waiting.

Though balance is no longer an issue, other problems have arisen. Whenever I do something that requires entry into a small space, I have to mentally check its size against the dimensions of my head. Putting on shirts stretches their collars, while removing them requires body contortions that would put a “sixteen”-year-old Olympic gymnast to shame. I steer clear of sunglasses - put a pair on a watermelon and you will see why. The same goes for hats. “One size fits all” excludes “gigantic.” In high school, I was forced to either remove padding from my football helmet or get one custom made. And, as if to drive the point home, I was given nicknames such as “Mr. Potato Head,” “Bobblehead,” and the beautifully blunt “Bighead.”

But alas, my head is a part of who I am. It helps to make me unique and stand head and shoulders - mostly head - above the crowd. While I have learned to embrace it, I know that it may be impossible for others to do the same.

4. The Buildings of Stories

Cross disciplinary methods of research are vital to promoting intellectual curiosity and

developing new and creative techniques for addressing familiar problems. Interdisciplinary studies contributed to my double major in English and architectural theory. While completing my undergraduate degrees, I sought connections between the two fields, examining the sense of place and fictional architecture created by authors such as Margaret Atwood and William Faulkner, who used interactions with architecture to reveal characters’ understandings of the world. By bringing broad human themes down to the basic level of the spaces characters inhabit, these authors grounded their epic messages in the everyday and presented stories that were both grandly heroic and fundamentally relevant. Throughout my research, I applied architectural theory to literature and combined my knowledge of architectural symbolism with fictional

descriptions of place, thus adding another layer of meaning to the worlds created by authors. This merging of an interdisciplinary approach with traditional theoretical devices helped me move beyond typical literary analysis.

The value of interdisciplinary studies also extends to the law, which requires sharp perception, insightful analysis, and inspired synthesis: trademarks of admirable academic pursuits. Legal scholars illuminate areas such as medicine, gender issues, and the arts by examining those disciplines through the lens of the law. Because legal reasoning informs many of society’s most pressing concerns, legal scholars include the brightest and most discerning intellectuals in our society. By combining my interdisciplinary background with an education from Yale Law School, I hope that I might join those esteemed scholars.

5. Multiple Heritages

“This is Flan. It’s a pastry from Peru. My family eats it all the time,” I told my fourth grade elementary school class.

At age nine, I treated my ethnic heritages—I’m the son of a Hispanic mother and an Arab father—as objects on a shelf, to be taken down or put back when needed.

“I’m proud to be a descendant of the Incas, and to also call the cradle of civilization—the Middle East—home,” I told my friend’s Indian father, who, in view of my dark skin color and thick, black hair, was convinced I was also Indian.

At age sixteen, my background, it seemed to me, would only sit well with others if treated as thought-provoking intellectual fodder – so I spent my time talking about history, religion, and politics.

“I grew up watching Spanish soap operas with my grandmother, but also attending Muslim Sunday School. I feel blessed to come from such a rare background,” I explained to a houseguest over dinner.

At age twenty-three, my non-conformist passions run wild, and I seek to differentiate myself in whatever way possible. The embrace of my background is a means to that end, rather than an end in itself.

“My parents were more similar than they were different. They also shared values—hard work, honesty, humility, and compassion,” I told my grandchildren while looking at photos of my parents.

At age sixty-five, I view my parents as, above all, human beings. Fundamentally, we’re all just people. No?

6. Volunteer Work

The sticky sweet splatter of saliva hit my face and I smiled – in part because my mouth and eyes were spared, but mostly because spitting was huge for Eddie. We were making progress.

Feeling the buckle of my shoe digging into his writhing calf, I shifted my weight. I freed a hand, pinning his head to the floor, discouraging his unsavory method of communication. The carpet absorbed his remaining projectiles, adding to the distinctive smell of group home - stifled and stale, boredom blended with frustration, sweat, and despair, all marinated in Pine Sol.

Eventually his anger softened. My grip loosened as his rage drained. Finally headed off to bed, he smiled slightly. In that moment I saw the original Eddie – not yet a victim turned predator.

Previously I knew only Eddie’s fun and feisty image. Unable to identify the mint extract beneath the chocolate in his cupcake, he accused me of poisoning him. Outraged by my suggestion to “do over” a disputed basketball play, Eddie convinced me that indecision was the only wrong call.

Later I saw Eddie, future felon. Squirming across from a mother who feared him and the little sister he violated, Eddie was terrified by what he had done. Shamed and ashamed, he was so alone.

In an environment where hugs were no longer appropriate and bedtime stories were not feasible, physical restraints, however uncomfortable, were the only way to be touched at all. Only after leaving [Group Home] did I realize I had been touched too.

» Continue to Appendix D: Ending on a Good Note « Back to Appendix B: “Why Our School?” Essay

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College Advising, Superb Application Essay Development

How to Write the Yale Supplemental Essays for 2019-2020: Part II, the 250-Word Essays on an Intellectual Interest and on an Issue of Local, National or International Interest

Who should read this post: Anybody who wants to write a successful Yale supplemental essay, of the 250-word variety. In addition o analyzing prompts today, I have spliced in an example of a problem essay at the end of the post, on a problem that few applicants write about, but more should be writing about.

With that, we turn to . . .

How to Write the Yale Supplemental 250-Word Essay Prompt One

Applicants submitting the  Coalition Application  or  Common Application  will respond to the prompt below in 250 words or fewer:

• Think about an idea or topic that has been intellectually exciting for you. Why are you drawn to it?

Ah, the Intellectual essay, once again. This is an application essay topic you find from Stanford to . . . well, Yale. And Brown. And U Chicago, in various forms. I write about it every year.

For this particular example, you obviously don’t have much space. On the other hand, if you plan to apply to Stanford, that’s okay–their intellectual experience essay is also 250 words.

Unpacking the prompt, notice it’s essentially two-part:

• defining that intellectually exciting area and
• showing why you are drawn to it.

If you are heading for some STEM area and have experience, like research, or building a robotic device, that’s the obvious topic for you. It’s perfectly okay for an essay to expand upon a specific area that you also discuss in your activities–just don’t splice the activities paragraph into this essay. Build around the idea.

Notice that my examples in the last paragraph are not from the classroom per se. That’s my next tip. If you are only able to talk about what happened in a class, you are not showing much motivation outside of the “required reading.”

You could be really passionate about literature and write this essay as you apply to go into a language-based major in the humanities, and you’d still want to do more than talk about that inspirational experience reading MacBeth’s final, great soliloquy in your English class. Plugging that experience in would be fine, but for this essay we’d want you to be doing non-assigned reading as well.

An essay about being inspired about ideas, whether the subject is dark matter, and how incredible it is that most of the universe is made up of something that cannot be perceived directly, or the poetry of Czeslaw Milosz , and how he uses words to capture in ineffable beauty and terror of life, in such a way that it’s impossible to actually explain in prose — the key is to show your reader the fascination that you, yourself, feel about this topic. That is, if you want a good essay.

If your strength is doing emphasize that by describing yourself doing, in relation to the topic of your prompt. If your strength is writing, focus on creating a description of your topic that has an impact. And think carefully about your topic. If you write well enough, even something that seems lightweight can work. The key is to choose something that ties into your potential areas of study in college.

An Example of an Intellectual Interest Approach for the Humanities

By way of example, if you are interested in writing or graphic arts, even a pop form like the comic book is legit. The Pulitzer-Prize winning author Michael Chabon showed this (wonderfully) in an essay he wrote for the New Yorker, years back. Specifically, he described how his religion teacher had dismissed comic books as bad, trashy and encouraging an unhealthy tendency to escape reality.

Chabon recounts how his younger self responded by building an intellectual defense, from the heart and from the mind, of comic books and more specifically, of comic-book superheroes. The cape the hero wears occupies a prime position in this defense. Here is a key quote from that essay:

It was not about escape, I wanted to tell Mr. Spector, thus unwittingly plagiarizing in advance the well-known formula of a (fictitious) pioneer and theorist of superhero comics, Sam Clay. It was about transformation.

Chabon then explains how he was transformed by comic books. Of course this essay is thousands of words long, and a 250-word essay might be a single paragraph in a piece of long-for journalism or essay writing. But as an example that expands your potential topics, it’s worth looking at, so here is a link to it:

Secret Skin

Returning to our STEM subjects, try to start with some interesting statement on your area of interest and then explain the ways you have engaged with it, with an emphasis on things you have done, when possible, or start with an anecdote showing you engaged in that area, and again show your long-term involvement with it. If you have a deep personal motivation, such as your interest in the genetics of cancer beginning with the illness of a family member, say that (this kind of experience is not uncommon in those pursuing medicine, in my experience). If you are interested in medicine because your parents told you to be, make up a better reason.

Here are the next two Yale topics:

Applicants submitting the  Common Application  will also select ONE of the two prompts below and respond in 250 words or fewer:

• Reflect on your engagement with a community to which you belong. How has this engagement affected you?
• Yale students, faculty, and alumni engage issues of local, national, and international importance. Discuss an issue that is significant to you and how your college experience could help you address it.

If you are working with the Coalition portal, you will write the same essay, with the same two prompts to choose from.

The “community” essay and the issue of importance essay are subjects I have written about before. Just search my tags and subject areas by typing in “concern” and “problem” and scan the posts that pop up. But let me end this by offering my own, 500-word draft on a problem. I know that the prompt here only allows 250 words–I just typed this thing up last week after observing a problem, and you are not supposed to be copying somebody else’s work anyhow–this is just meant to be an example of an approach.

Example of an Essay on a Problem of Local, National and International Importance

Racing to Where?

I am a fan of the Tour de France.  Being a fan of the Tour could be comparable to being an NFL fan, if being an NFL fan meant watching football for three or more hours every day for three weeks.  With two rest days. 

The Tour this year was 3,365 kilometers long.  The total time of the winning rider in this year’s tour was Egan Bernal.  To win this year, he spent 82 hours and 57 minutes on the saddle.

I admit that I did fast forward some of it,  but I saw everything that mattered, from Brussels to Paris.  But the tour was supposed to be even longer than those 3,365 kilometers.  Specifically, it was to be 3,420 kilometers long.  And I saw why it was cut short.   

It was cut short because, during Stage 20, while the riders were laboring over the top of one of the most famous passes in Tour lore, the Col d’Iseran, on the highest paved road in the Alps, a freak hailstorm was flooding the next valley.  A mixture of ice, rain and snow coated the pavement over a thousand meters below the pass and sent landslides of mud and glacial melt across the course, which in one case sent a French man out clad incongruously in shorts, sandals and a raincoat, to guide a bulldozer trying to clear a foot of ice and water off the pavement.

Freakish weather is not all that freakish in the Alps—it snows in the high mountains any month of the year—but this hail-ice-snow-rain storm had an assist:  the glaciers above and around the road have been melting for decades, and the weeks before the tour arrived saw a record-setting heat wave settle over Europe.  In effect, the storm just hosed the already-melting surface of the glacier onto the pavement. 

This is our new abnormal.

The result for the Tour began as its director, Christian Prudhomme, from the red car that leads the riders to the start of each stage, and from which he monitors the race as it proceeds each day, called Stage 20 to a halt.  The effects continued as the next and  final stage in the Alps was cut short. This is without precedent.

That storm altered the course of the Tour.  It determined that Egan Bernal, the great climber, would clinch the tour as its most important stages, foreshortened, ended as two climbs.  That image of a freak storm below the riders, as a glacier which has been receding and collapsing for years coughed up a thick gruel across the course, captures where we are today. 

And it told me that I could never watch the Tour again without looking at climate change. 

That same dome of heat that softened up those glaciers also seared crops, saw parts of Germany declare a drinking water shortage, and killed thousands.  As I write this, it is parked over Greenland, setting a new record for glacial melt.

For me, climate change isn’t about writing an argument on cause and effect, or the future.  It’s about doing something, now. So I ride my bike, walk whenever possible.  And I write. 

That is what my future will be about—doing what I can–and writing to convince others to do what they can. 

I have yet to have a client this year write an issue of concern essay on Climate Change. Given the impact that this will have on the future of the planet’s seventeen-year-old humans, I do not understand this.

Let me know if you need help with your essays–I do still have some space for new clients as of early August, 2019– Contact Me.

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