The Fanfare is endeavoring to highlight some of our nation’s finest schools to help students find their match in the college process. This week’s issue highlights Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

Listen to any Yale student talk about their university and it will be clear that they possess an unparalleled passion for their school. Unlike some prestigious research colleges, Yale places a large emphasis on undergraduate education, requiring all professors to teach at least one undergraduate class. As a result, the professors at Yale truly love teaching – if they did not, they could have easily gone somewhere else. This aspect of the school creates a relaxed, laid back discussion and dialogue-centric class atmosphere, with classes operating similarly to a Berkeley Harkness table discussion.

While perhaps not as stressful as some other institutions, Yale is still very challenging academically. With a sub-seven percent acceptance rate, Yale attracts some of the most hardworking students in the nation. However, the huge variety of activities and clubs on campus keeps undergrads having fun. There are more than 400 student groups on campus, including singing, dancing, juggling fire and theater. Freshman can easily get involved, as Yale hosts a club fair very similar to Berkeley’s own.  All these groups perform shows on campus frequently, making a quiet day at Yale a rare occurrence. Even a day in the library at Yale is something special – the library includes twelve million volumes and is the third largest college library in the nation.

While these amenities are certainly helpful, Yale students themselves do their part to help each other stay relaxed. Alumnus Jack Koch, Berkeley Class of 2015 and Yale class of 2019, says that Yale’s “close knit residential college system” is the feature that most appeals to him. After being at Yale for only a week, he says he already feels as though he is part of the Yale family. Each residential college has a Dean and a Master, each of which is only responsible for 300-500 students, so help is readily available and specialized.

There is no “typical” Yale student – the student body is extremely diverse, although all students seem to share a passion for what they love and a tendency to make others feel welcome. With this in mind, however, Yale does have a strong focus on liberal arts, and Berkeley students that enjoy discussion based classes – English, Religion and some History classes – will likely feel right at home.  With its close knit community and multiple levels of support, it is not surprising that Yale consistently ranks as one of the happiest schools in the nation and certainly the happiest among the Ivy Leagues.

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