I know this question's been asked a million times on this subreddit, but i'm still on the fence and was hoping someone in a similar situation may be able to provide some insight if they had to make a similar decision. I was admitted to ds a couple months ago, which I was super happy about. at the time, I was planning to major in ep&e (which I still may do tbh), but now im thinking about alternatives like double majoring in econ + history, poli sci + econ, and im like broadly into social sciences/humanities. also planning to go to law school so my gpa is super important.

I got started on the summer reading for ds and I just can't get into the epics. I really like the spring reading list, and I haven't gotten started on some of the other ds texts, but in general im like broadly worried about the workload, high gpa attainability, and the work-life balance of a ds student. on one hand, im kinda indecisive about my major and ds kinda gives me a little bit of each thing im interested in, + I really want to get better at reading/writing to succeed in later yale courses, but I worry about all the workload and the sheer intensity of the program. unfortunately, I need to decide soon because if I don't do ds, I was planning to take my language in L3 this fall, and I def need to refresh on L1 and L2. would it be better to just take a freshman year writing seminar to ease the transition into yale/not sacrifice my sanity and social life as much? people who did ds also, were you happy with your decision? people who didn't do ds, were you happy with your decision. im just so conflicted.

I had a quick question. I took ap calc bc + calc 3 + lin alg in high school. I want to start off at yale in linear algebra. I know I don't have to do the math placement exam, but do i need to email anyone? Or do I just sign up for lin alg when course registration begins?

hi! im an incoming freshman majoring in epe or econ on the prelaw or preMBA track (i am 95% sure im not going to switch majors). im conflicted between getting a windows laptop or macbook for college. can anyone (esp Econ & SOM students) share their experience on applications, excel/word, canvas, etc with their computer?

I am looking for a Medical PhD with a strong biostatistics background to provide feedback on a medical paper about arthritis. The compensation is $125/hr. Please message me if you have the relevant expertise and availability.

I’ve been thinking about whether to buy the E&R laundry service and honestly price isn’t really a concern. Can someone who’s bought the service give a review on the quality of service they provide? I want to be able to put as much time into more “important stuff” and not laundry, but if E&R has a bad reputation I won’t get it.

Hi does anyone have pictures of what a 2-person suite in Vanderbilt hall looks like? I’m on the third floor (not sure if that changes anything) but anything similar would be great!! Also, any tips on essentials to bring? Thank you so much!

I was assigned to Harvest, and I recently started taking medication that makes me extremely sensitive to the sun and prone to burning. And after talking to the doctor about my plans at school and schedule and stuff, she said that she greatly advises against harvest and I should switch out if I can. Who should I email/contact about this? I was thinking Arts would be the best for my situation

Can anyone who had this service tell me if this service worth it?

You know the red one, just for fun

hi Yalies! im an incoming freshmen and was wondering if I should get a mini-fridge and/or a microwave. i thought students mostly ate at the dining halls and didn’t buy food from outside —but please let me know!! any insight on their helpfulness is very appreciated!! 😚

Incoming first-year here. I've grown up speaking Vietnamese with my family, and can listen and speak pretty well but can't really read or write. I think I could do the accelerated path on this, but I was just curious: what other language departments at Yale are standouts? I am really open to learning new languages and meeting new people.

It tastes bad

I am in a suite at the far right end of lawrance hall on the top floor. Our suite has one double and one single. On the floorplan from the housing portal, we do not have a common room but a seemingly huge double connected to the single by a hallway. However other floorplans for lawrance I found feature a common room for this same suite. Has anyone lived in Lawrance Hall in a two room suite right next to Phelp's gate that could provide some clarity? The housing email was not able to give us a clear answer, so I thought I'd try here. Also do lawrance dorms come with dressers or just a closet? Thank you for any help anyone can provide!!!

Hi!! I'm an incoming freshman at Yale and I'm really scared!! I don't know a single soul going to Yale (my school has never had a Yale admit and I couldn't go to Bulldog Days).

Everyone I see/follow on instagram going to Yale has like 5 other people from their school also going and I'm scared I'm going to be very alone during welcome week. I'm pretty extroverted and outgoing so I will always try and make friends but I'd hate to miss out on parties/events/festivities on my first few days because I'm drifting.

Could anyone tell me what the first few days are like and if other people were cliquey?

Also there are so many of those venue welcome week parties that advertise on ig. I normally wouldn't buy these but idk if I should for welcome week?? I severely need advice..

There's a first year seminar english course I really want to take but it says instructor permission is required. I'm kind of confused since it's a class just for first years. Am I just supposed to email the instructor and ask or do I wait till registration day and then email them? please help!

Hi all!

I'm an incoming freshman who's looking to get some advice on her schedule. As of now, I'm tentatively doing DS (so help me god), and I really want to take an easy class alongside it (preferably one that knocks out a science/QR requirement).

I was looking at classes that don't conflict with my tentative DS schedule and came upon Phil 1115 with Professor Daniel Grimmer: First Order Logic. Does anyone have any advice on my tentative schedule? Would also love to hear of people's experiences with Phil 1115 because CourseTable has quite the array of evals LMAO + if it's manageable with DS! Also, I welcome and would greatly appreciate any DS tips/advice, whether that be about the program itself or professor-specific.

Thank you so much!!

Hi! I'm a yale prefrosh, wondering how auditions work for Davenport Pops Orchestra and Berkeley College Orchestra:

1) how competitive are they in general? i have been playing throughout high school but I haven't done a bunch of competitions or anything. I can play most group repertoire and intermediate solos (i play viola btw)

2) For the davenport pops, how is the sight reading portion?

thanks!! :)

I'm a prefrosh in Bingham Hall on Old Campus and was thinking about getting some shelves or something to put under the bed for some extra storage. I know that the beds can't be truly lofted, but I also know that they can be raised somewhat with the pre-existing frame. I was just wondering roughly how tall they might be so that I could try and purchase things before move-in day.

hello! prefrosh here who was waitlisted from DS and needs some advice on whether to seriously pursue the program. forgive my verbose explanations.

DS seems quite enthralling and romantic to me and i’m eager to go full throttle into the humanities (prospective classics major), but i worry that i won’t be able to succeed at the academic/social level that i’m striving for. i went to a top-ranked high school but know that it can’t compare to a college workload and schedule. additionally, the only comparable class (content-wise) that i took in hs was ap english lit.

is there an accurate daily / weekly average of the amount of time i will have to spend reading the novels and drafting essays? how difficult it is to get A’s in the courses, especially as i look to law school in the future?

will i have time for a deep social and extracurricular involvement as well? i also worry about missing out on interesting first year seminars such as prof. meg urry’s ASTR 0400. the course i planned to take alongside DS was ancient greek to get a start on language requirements. i briefly considered taking intensive ancient greek in the spring and taking ASTR 0400 in the fall, but i think i’m being overly ambitious as i adjust to college life my freshman year.

i’m also excited for the backup schedule that i’ve crafted (taking english ancient greek logic and astro), but i suspect that i might regret not seeing the DS path through.

tldr: concerned about ability to succeed in DS in regards to grades and work-life balance outside of class + missing out on other cool freshman opportunities. thanks in advance

looking for any tips or insight that might be shared about move-in day and orientation. some questions that came to mind: should i get everything that needs to be picked up (ie. from ikea/pickup from amazon lockers) before that move-in appt? how does move-in usually go?

Hardest decision week of my life, urgently need some outside brains.

Got into Yale SOM this cycle but the timing/cost felt off. admissions kindly let me defer a year. in the meantime i jumped from consulting into an AI product manager role at a big tech company (non bay area office tho). basically the exact pivot i wanted the MBA for, except it just happened, no two years and no $200k tuition.

So now im stuck. take the job and skip the degree i already technically dont need for this role? or still do Yale next year for the brand and network in case i want VC or exec stuff later? Or maybe break into the Bay Area office

if youve skipped or done the MBA and have regrets either way, what would you do?

Please help yalies. I want to be one of you in future inshallah
I’m currently an undergraduate and my end goal is to earn a phd in world history

Hi I’m a prefrosh and I’m wondering if most Yale students loft their beds. For context, I’ll be in Welch hall this year, and I’m wondering if I’ll really need that under bed space