• Be at least 16 years old by July 19, 2022 (first day of Session III).*

• Graduating in May/June 2023 or 2024 from the Northern Hemisphere, or in Nov./Dec. 2022 or 2023 from the Southern Hemisphere 

• Be a first-time participant in the YYGS. If you have participated in a YYGS session during a previous summer** (2020 and prior), then you are not eligible to participate.

ELIGIBILITY

• Age: Be between the ages of 16-18 years old by July 21, 2024 (first day of Session III).*

• English Fluency: Be able to participate in a rigorous academic curriculum conducted in English. 

• Grade Level: Be a current high school sophomore or junior (or international equivalent).

• Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) Participation

  • Be a first-time participant in YYGS. If you have participated in a YYGS session during a previous summer (2023 and prior), then you are not eligible to participate during YYGS 2024.

  • Please note: If you previously applied to YYGS but were not offered admission or were unable attend AND you meet the eligibility criteria noted above, then you are encouraged to re-apply for YYGS 2024.

Session I (June 23 - July 5)

• Innovations in Science & Technology (IST I)

• Politics, Law, & Economics (PLE I)

• Solving Global Challenges (SGC I)

• Literature, Philosophy, & Culture (LPC I)

Session II (July 7 - July 19)

• Innovations in Science & Technology (IST II)

• Literature, Philosophy, & Culture (LPC II)

• Politics, Law, & Economics (PLE II)

• Solving Global Challenges (SGC II)

Session III (July 21 - Aug 2)

• Innovations in Science & Technology (IST III)

• Politics, Law, & Economics (PLE III)

• Solving Global Challenges (SGC III)

• Literature, Philosophy, & Culture (LPC III)

For more information about Early Action and Regular Decision, please visit Choosing Your Deadline webinar (link is external) to register and view the recording in your browser.

YYGS applications will be read and reviewed on a rolling basis. In fairness to all applicants, admissions decisions will NOT be made nor released until all applications from your respective applicant pool have been reviewed. Please know that we will release decisions as soon as possible, and decisions will be released no later than the decision release dates listed below.

YYGS will ensure that significant need-based financial aid is available for qualified applicants who submit their applications during either applicant pool period. We encourage students with any type of demonstrated financial need to apply for financial aid (using the online YYGS application), since our financial aid students qualify for partial or full-tuition packages covering up to 100% of tuition.

Applicant Pool #1: Early Action

Application Deadline

• 11:59PM ET on November 1, 2023

Application Fee*

• $70 USD

Decision Release**

• Notified of Admission Status & Financial Aid by 11:59pm ET on December 20, 2023

Deadline to Accept or Decline YYGS Offer/ Pay Tuition

• 11:59pm ET on January 4, 2024

Applicant Pool #2: Regular Decision

Application Deadline

• 11:59pm ET on January 10, 2024

Application Fee*

• $85 USD

Decision Release

• Notified of Admission Status & Financial Aid by March 10, 2024 (11:59pm ET)

Deadline to Accept or Decline YYGS Offer/Pay Tuition

• 11:59pm ET on March 15, 2024

 *YYGS application fees are non-refundable. Students with demonstrated financial need can submit the Fee Waiver Form (located within the financial aid section of the YYGS online application) for their school official to complete, and (if approved) the waiver will reduce their application fee to $0 USD.

**Early Action applicants will receive an offer of admission OR be deferred into the Regular Decision pool for further review. Early Action applicants who are deferred into the Regular Decision pool will receive their decision of Admit, Waitlist, or Deny by March 10, 2024.

Step 1

• Review the YYGS eligibility criteria.

Step 2

1. • Review the YYGS application required components.

Step 3

1. • Review a PDF of a sample blank application, and start preparing to answer as many application questions as possible.

Step 4

• You will need to submit contact information for a parent/guardian, teacher, and/or official at your school. Reach out to them as soon as possible to review the PDF of a sample blank application with you, and be sure to collect the information you need.

Complete the Application:

Step 5

1. • Click APPLY NOW  to start your YYGS application. Be sure to write down your email and password to access the application at a later time.

Step 6

1. • Check the “Review” page of the application to see if you are missing any required components, and re-visit any pages that require further information.

Step 7

1. • Once your application is complete, click on the “Review” page. Next click on the “Submit Application” button at the bottom of the page. 

Step 8

1. • In your Applicant Status Portal, pay the $70 USD Early Action fee or $85 USD Regular Decision fee*.  All YYGS application fees are non-refundable.

   • If you submitted a completed Fee Waiver request, then you can check your Applicant Status Portal to see when it is approved or denied. If your Fee Waiver Request is denied, then your application will not be reviewed until the YYGS application fee is paid.

Step 9

• Check your inbox for a YYGS confirmation receipt that indicates the successful submission of your application. Confirmation emails usually arrive within 24-48 hours of submission, due to occasional delays payment processing. 

YYGS reviews all applications holistically. The program's staff understands that students come from a wide variety of backgrounds and with different educational and extracurricular opportunities. As a result, the essays and short answer responses are important parts of the application.

All students must submit the following application components:

• Activities list

• One 400-word essay and one 200-word response

• Two “fast take” responses (280 characters each)

• Official school transcript

• One Recommender (who will complete the YYGS Recommendation Form* ONLY)

• Application fee** ($70 for Early Action and $85 for Regular Decision)

• You must click the Submit Application button on the “Review” page for your application to be considered.

• OPTIONAL: Need-based financial aid****

*We accept completed online YYGS Recommendation Forms ONLY; we do NOT accept written letters of recommendation. The form helps us to compare among applicants coming from vastly different places around the world, and we hope it helps recommenders to save time since it is a very simple, user-friendly form.

**Please note that YYGS application fees are non-refundable.

***Students may submit English fluency test scores if available. You do not need to take an English fluency test to apply for YYGS, and you can instead waive this requirement.

****Students who would like to be reviewed for financial aid must complete the financial aid section of the online application.