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Visit to Yale for Admissions: Need Clothing Advice

plhoang

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Blue suit, white shirt, no tie, black shoes.

You don't want to look like every other undergrad on his way back from a Whiffenpoofs rehearsal, and you don't want to go overboard. You are, after all, trying to set yourself apart and be memorable in a good way.

New Haven really isn't that scary, especially given that it's a lot nicer today than it was when I was there (Y'94).
 

Jferg4350

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Originally Posted by unpainted huffheinz

"Yale could use an international airport!"


I'm not made of airports get out!
laugh.gif


but i would go with what everyone else is pretty much saying

blue blazer, tan chinos/khakis, brown shoes, button down shirt

not sure if i would go with a tie or not, your choice
 

dfagdfsh

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On second thought, I agree with LabelKing. Go as overboard as possible. Wear a Run DMC esque clock necklace
 

blackplatano

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Originally Posted by Teger
On second thought, I agree with LabelKing. Go as overboard as possible. Wear a Run DMC esque clock necklace

If you are going to say something stupid at least get it right. Is Flavor flave that has the clock necklace.
 

dopamine

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Originally Posted by AnGeLiCbOrIs
That is usually true but you never know who you will meet. When I went to a Hofstra Law open house a few years ago I introduced myself to the dean who gave me his card and told me to email him when I applied. I don't know if that's what got me in but it couldn't have hurt. The impression you make can be very important and don't hesitate to introduce yourself to people while selling yourself gently.
Definitely true. I went to a large college admissions event in my town, dead set on going to Harvard, but met the Dean of Admissions at the University of Pennsylvania after the event. 45 minutes, a business card, and a promise of admission later, I was impressed enough to do more research and eventually apply ED to the Wharton School's undergraduate business program. I would say not to try too hard - please don't wear a red rep tie.. You want to look slick but not like you just came out of a Glee Club event or jumped out of a Brooks Brother's catalogue. Navy Blazer, Khakis, no tie, v-neck sweater (possibly argyle) underneath. Preppy, but not boarding school-like. Alternatively, you could ditch the blazer completely. Regardless, just make sure to bring a folder containing copies of your resume and actively seek out the admissions office for some face time with admissions officials.
 

cvac

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Angelic,

No offense, I think we both know that this Yale grad program, whatever it is, and Hofstra Law are not the same thing. I'm not a Yalie or any Ivy grad, so please don't mistake this for snobbery.

At any rate, I think the OP should make the best impression he can (can't hurt, after all), but not get his hopes up.

I don't recommend a tie because I think it looks too fussy...I'd go for a polished, yet relaxed look and forgo the tie.
 

Concordia

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What program, and what are you doing professionally now?

Don't make the mistake (not that it will be a killer) of dressing down just to make a point. If you wear a suit to work now and are applying to SOM, wear the suit. Probably for the law school also. Elsewhere, a plain, serviceable suit won't kill you if you lay off the contrast collars and the bling. Look like someone who's smart, who is serious about the program, and who won't make them look bad.
 

plhoang

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Originally Posted by Concordia
What program, and what are you doing professionally now?

Don't make the mistake (not that it will be a killer) of dressing down just to make a point. If you wear a suit to work now and are applying to SOM, wear the suit. Probably for the law school also. Elsewhere, a plain, serviceable suit won't kill you if you lay off the contrast collars and the bling. Look like someone who's smart, who is serious about the program, and who won't make them look bad.


He said GREs, not GMATs so I would presume he is applying for one of the graduate studies programs rather than SOM. But yes, for SOM a suit would be appropriate.
 

redgrail

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Originally Posted by dopamine
I would say not to try too hard - please don't wear a red rep tie.. You want to look slick but not like you just came out of a Glee Club event or jumped out of a Brooks Brother's catalogue. Navy Blazer, Khakis, no tie, v-neck sweater (possibly argyle) underneath. Preppy, but not boarding school-like.

Truth.
Argyle is so much less preppy than repp ties.
Wait, what?
 

rach2jlc

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You guys have it all wrong. My hint, if you REALLY want to get into Yale:

Wear the traditional dress of the Native American tribe of which you are close to, if not the last, surviving member. If you can't come up with an authentic sounding name, I'll make one up now: the Shushuwanahashawahaa tribe of southern Indiana. If your admissions counselor/interviewer tries to call you on making that tribe up for the purposes of admission, break down into tears and say that this is what the White Man has done from the beginning... tried to erase the beautiful, 1800 year history of the Shushuwanahashawahaa tribe! And now YALE, your dream college, is doing it too!!!

Further, wear a pink triangle AND a red ribbon, showing that you have both been a member of the gay community (and thus subject to constant prejudice since birth) and also a cancer survivor. You can also wear a baby-blue elephant pin, which means nothing but is odd enough your admissions counselor will ask about it, at which time you tell them that it is a solidarity pen given to you by other members of the Hermaphrodite Community in your area, as a way of showing that you are proud of your "Biological Uniqueness."

Next, discuss how your Indian heritage and upbringing were affected by living in a single parent, abusive, alcoholic household that limited the time you could spend in school, because you also had to lie to the Human Resources department at a local Rubber Tire Factory so that you could work to support your family from the age of eight.

Do these things and the doors to Yale will be open unto you!

Necktie is optional; the Shushuwanahashawahaa were always a casual dressing bunch.
 

Go Surface

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Or, just watch Gossip Girl this coming Monday. The students are going to Yale for their admissions interviews/open house. See how Blair Waldorf does.
bigstar[1].gif
 

voxsartoria

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If you are applying to a top graduate program, how you dress will mean nothing.

Scores, grades, letters and your prior schooling will determine everything. The competitive nature of these programs focuses faculty on obtaining the best students possible to be competitive with other programs. There is little black magic to this process, it is all almost robotically objective. The only thing that professors take more seriously than choosing graduate students is how to replicate their own ranks.

So, my advice would be not to try to reinvent yourself at the moment. Be yourself, whatever that is, and hope for the best. It's like jumping out of a plane...you're at the stage where you have to let the forces of nature work.

It is very different than undergraduate admissions, and both undergraduate and graduate admissions differ from admissions to professional programs.


- B
 

wmmk

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If you wear a repp tie, just make sure it isn't either orange & black or crimson & white.
 

voxsartoria

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Originally Posted by wmmk
If you wear a repp tie, just make sure it isn't either orange & black or crimson & white.

Sigh. Yale isn't a pre WWI English public school.

If it is in your nature to wear a school tie, wear it. Even though you would be one in one thousand, it won't make a difference either way. If it is not in your nature, however, and the artifice makes you uncomfortable, you should not wear it not because of it sartorial impact, but because it will make you uncomfortable as you interact with people.

Again, I advise in the strongest possible terms that you just be yourself, whatever that might be. If your merit is comparable to students that get into the program that interests you, you have a good chance of entry. If not, you don't.


- B
 

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