Information for Counselors

Admission to Yale-NUS College is highly competitive, and whether you are a teacher or a higher education counselor, students interested in Yale-NUS will likely come to you for help and advice. With this in mind, we have put together some information that may be helpful for you.  

What is the “Perfect Candidate” to Yale-NUS?
Many students ask us what makes the perfect candidate, and the truth is that there is no fixed set of criteria. We use a holistic admissions approach and do not depend on score cut-offs, quotas or percentages.  While academic strength is the first thing we look at when we read a student’s application, we also place considerable weight on the student’s contributions, outside of the classroom, to his/her school and local community. Ultimately, we are looking for the best and brightest students who will not only be a good fit for the College, but for whom the College will also be a good fit.  

How Do I Know If My Student Might Be a Good Fit for Yale-NUS?
When you think about your students, who are the students who come to mind for their academic excellence, their outstanding sense of integrity, their humility, and their significant influence on their peers? We select students who excel academically, are highly passionate and involved beyond classroom confines, are critical and creative but also reflective and responsible thinkers, and who will most benefit from and contribute to the College.  

What Should I Include in My Recommendation?
In writing your recommendations for a student, you may share with us any information that you think is important for us to know when assessing the student’s fit for the College.  This is not limited to academic qualities demonstrated in the classroom. We invite you to provide information on how your student stands out from his/her peers, whether in terms of intellect, values, experiences or social influence. The more specific you are, the more helpful your recommendation will be. You may also share with us any extenuating circumstances unique to the student that you think we should know.

What Does the Recommendation Form Look Like?
When a student nominates you to provide a letter of recommendation for them, there will be a form that we will ask you to complete. This form will ask you to provide the following information:  

• Background Information
• Ratings
• Evaluation (no word limit)

You may view a sample here on the Common Application website.  

What is the School Report Form?
Your student may also ask you to submit the school report form as part of their application to the College. As part of the School Report, please provide transcripts from the student’s last 3 years of school. While our admission counselors are familiar with the different education systems around the world, you may wish to include a School Profile to highlight any additional information about your school that you think we should know.

Who Can I Approach If I Still Have Questions About Yale-NUS?
Many of your questions will have been addressed in the FAQs section on the website, or in any of the different sections of the website. But if you have additional queries and wish to get in touch with our Admissions team, please write to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your concern and we will get back to you as soon as we can.