Yale Viral Admissions Video

Yale’s sequel to its viral admissions video doesn’t hold a candle to the original (photo credit: Namkota).

In the age of viral videos, no university’s admissions office has released a more fun and engaging video touting why students should choose their school than Yale University. For those who haven’t been glued to their computers and iPads for several years watching these admissions videos, allow us to fill you in on why Yale happens to make a viral admissions video better than any university in our land. In a word, it’s because in the school’s 2010 video entitled “That’s Why I Chose Yale,” they demonstrate spunk. And what do our regular readers know that our students at Ivy Coach demonstrate as college applicants no matter their passions, no matter their experiences, no matter their geography? Spunk. Our students show spunk. It’s a key reason why they so often earn admission to their dream schools. And it’s a key reason why this video, through its song and dance, amassed over 1.9 million views over the last eight years. Our hopes are not as high for this latest Yale admissions video, “That’s Why I Toured Yale.”

That’s Why I Chose Yale

The original 2010 video is a delight. One can’t help but giggle as a mother in the front row at a Yale information session “oohs” and elbows the man next to her when the admissions officer says that every tenured professor teaches undergraduates, so even a freshman might be taking a class from a Nobel Prize winner. You get to hear the talented singing voices of so many Yale students as they discuss what they love about Yale. Heck, even Allison Williams sings in the video — and this is before she became a star on HBO’s “Girls.” But check it out for yourselves so you can see just how much fun these students had making it.

That’s Why I Toured Yale

Even though it was created by the same team behind the  “That’s Why I Chose Yale” video, “That’s Why I Toured Yale” falls flat. In a way, this updated video is way too professional. In a word, it’s stuffy. Sure, it’s got fancy direction, beautiful visuals, and a nice score. But the humor feels forced and it’s missing the silliness of the viral 2010 version. Sure, this video features some of Yale’s strengths — like its elegant library boasting one of the world’s largest collections of old books and manuscripts. Who knew that the marble walls filter sunlight to preserve the books, as the tour guides teach us in the video? And who cares! “I am choosing Yale because of its extensive rare book collection.” Said nobody ever.

Something that was important to Yale’s admissions office, as Anastasiia Posnova reports in a piece for “The Yale Daily News” entitled “New admissions video released” was to tout the affordability of Yale and to update the video with new information, like about Yale’s new residential colleges. It’s also clear that Yale is subtly touting its rich diversity with the featured students in the video — as they very well should. But you can’t rely on rich diversity and fancy editing to make a great video. You still need great writing. You still need fun. This latest video lacks a certain pizazz. And it’s information overload.

But what do our readers think about the new Yale admissions video? Let us know your thoughts, your musings, your questions, and your deep dark secrets by posting a Comment below. We look forward to hearing from you!