Yale hosts largest-ever Bulldog Days program for admitted students

Yale’s office of undergraduate admissions this week welcomed more than 1,400 students and 800 parents and family members to campus for Bulldog Days, the university’s annual three-day program for admitted students. It was the largest Bulldog Days event ever hosted on campus.

Admitted students were greeted on Monday afternoon on Old Campus with a pizza party, featuring more than 400 pies from eight local pizzerias, including Pepe’s, Sally’s, BAR, and campus favorites Yorkside, Brick Oven, and Est. Est. Est. Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid, provided an official welcome at the Shubert Theater, kicking off a night of entertainment that featured undergraduate performance groups ranging from the Whiffenpoofs to all-cello rock group Low Strung to the hip-hop dance group Rhythmic Blue.

“When you choose Yale, you are not simply choosing to graduate from a good college with a good education and good prospects for success in the world,” Quinlan told the audience. “You are choosing, in a very real sense, to change your life. Living and working and succeeding here, among the most talented students in the world, will permanently transform what you can accomplish and the sort of people you will aspire to serve, join, and lead.”

Visiting admitted students participated in more than two dozen panels and master classes led by Yale College faculty and staff and connected with hundreds of undergraduate student groups at the Extracurricular Bazaar in Lanman Center in Payne Whitney Gymnasium. The undergraduate student groups also hosted more than 100 events throughout Bulldog Days specifically for admitted students.

“The response from the entire campus was truly extraordinary,” said Chandler Houldin, assistant director of undergraduate admissions and Bulldog Days director. “Practically every member of the Yale College community — the residential colleges, cultural centers resource offices, libraries and collections, and countless instructors — opened their doors and made a special effort to welcome our visitors.”

Most visiting students were hosted in residential college suites by volunteer student hosts. More than 500 Yalies volunteered to be paired with admitted students through the admissions office’s new host matching algorithm, which was coded by Yale College senior Alice Ao.

“Even when our registration numbers far surpassed our initial expectations, a record number Yalies answered the call to serve as hosts,” said Jackie Folmar ’22, assistant director of admissions. “Many admitted students remarked that the most memorable part of their Bulldog Days experience was an intimate conversation in a suite common room. It is in these moments that Yale’s community really shines, and I am so grateful to hosts who took time from their busy schedules to connect with our visitors.”

Other highlights of Bulldog Days included “At Home At Yale,” a performance showcase celebrating cultural diversity; an academic fair featuring nearly 100 academic departments, majors, and resource centers; a mixer and dance party in the Shubert Theater; karaoke and game nights in the residential college butteries; a picnic lunch on Old Campus catered by local food trucks; and a special recording of the “Inside the Yale Admissions Office” podcast with an audience of admitted students.

The admissions office makes a special effort to provide travel funding to students from lower-income families to enable them to visit campus before finalizing their college decision, said Mark Dunn, director of outreach and recruitment. More than 500 admitted students qualified for a travel grants to visit campus for Bulldog Days, and the admissions office booked more than 300 flight, train, and bus tickets for students from across the country.  

Bulldog Days is just one part of a full month of programming that aims to connect admitted students with Yale, said Marty Chandler ’21,  assistant director of admissions Marty Chandler. “Throughout April, the admissions office’s team of student employees work to host virtual programs and make personalized connections between admitted students and current students.”

Since March 30, the office has hosted live Q&A sessions with current students and admissions officers, organized a virtual talent show featuring members of the Class of 2027, facilitated dozens of small group discussions for first-generation and low-income students through a program called “Yale and You,” and paired hundreds of students volunteers with admitted students through the “Prefrosh Advisors” program. Alumni volunteer members of the admissions office’s Alumni Schools Committee also hosted local meetings and celebrations for admitted students in cities around the world.

Admitted students have until May 1 to reply to Yale’s offer of admission.