Yale has announced a new testing policy for first-year and transfer applicants for fall 2025 admission. Read the announcement and review the policy.
CloseQuestBridge & Yale. Affordable. For Everyone.
The QuestBridge application is a useful option for students from low-income backgrounds interested in selective colleges with generous need-based financial aid. Students selected as QuestBridge Finalists can apply to multiple partner colleges with the same free application.
Applying through QuestBridge is one of three ways to apply to Yale for first-year admission. Yale has no preference for one type of application over another. All applicants should submit one - and only one - application per admissions cycle.
QuestBridge application steps
- Complete the free National College Match Application by the September deadline for evaluation by the QuestBridge organization.
- If selected as a QuestBridge Finalist in October, forward the QuestBridge application to Yale and submit the additional required application material.
Students who apply to Yale using the QuestBridge National College Match Application should also submit the required financial aid documents to the Office of Undergraduate Financial Aid by the appropriate deadline.
QuestBridge application options
Students selected as QuestBridge Finalists have three options for sharing their QuestBridge application with Yale. Yale has no preference for any option, and no option increases an applicant’s chances of admission or the size of their financial aid offer.
Option 1: Rank Yale for the QuestBridge National College Match (Deadline: Early October)
Applicants who choose this option are considered for a match with Yale, which includes an offer of admission and a financial aid award with a $0 parent share. For Yale and most QuestBridge partners, the match is binding. When match decisions are released in early December, there are three possible outcomes for applicants who ranked Yale:
- Students who match with Yale will withdraw all other applications and plan to matriculate at Yale.
- Students who match with another binding QuestBridge partner college will have their applications automatically withdrawn from consideration at Yale.
- Students who do not match at any partner college will be automatically moved into Yale’s regular decision application pool.
Applicants considered for regular decision are evaluated using the same review process and are eligible for the same need-based financial aid. Students admitted to Yale through regular decision are not required to matriculate at Yale and will have until May 1 to reply to an offer of admission.
Option 2: Opt out of the National College Match (i.e. do not rank any colleges) and apply for Yale’s Single-Choice Early Action program (Deadline November 1.)
Finalists who opt out of the Match may apply to Yale’s single-choice early action program using their QuestBridge Application or another application. To have a QuestBridge application considered for early action at Yale, please send an email to apply.questions@yale.edu by November 1 from the email address listed on your QuestBridge application and include your QuestBridge ID number in the message. Applicants opting in for single-choice early action will receive a confirmation and a separate invitation to activate a Yale Admissions Status Portal on or around November 2.
Students who are not selected as QuestBridge Finalists may apply for Yale’s single-choice early action program using the Common Application or Coalition Application. by November 1.
Option 3: Share your QuestBridge Application with Yale for Regular Decision (Deadline mid-December)
Finalists who do not rank Yale as a college choice in the QuestBridge National College Match may also share their QuestBridge Application for consideration in Yale’s regular decision program by completing the QuestBridge Regular Decision form on the QuestBridge website.
Students who are not selected as QuestBridge Finalists may apply for Yale’s regular decision program using the Common Application or Coalition Application by January 2.
QuestBridge application timeline
Late September: Deadline to submit QuestBridge National College Match application to the QuestBridge organization
Mid-October: QuestBridge announces QuestBridge Finalists
November 1: Deadline for Finalists who rank Yale to submit QuestBridge Questionnaire and Financial Aid Documents
November 1: Deadline for Finalists who are not participating in the National College Match to share their QuestBridge applications with Yale for single-choice early action
Early December: Matching Finalists notified
Mid- December: Deadline for finalists who did not rank Yale in the National College Match complete the QuestBridge Regular Decision Form
Mid-December: Single-choice early action applicants notified; deferred applicants moved to regular decision
Mid-December: Finalists who ranked Yale but did not match with Yale or a binding partner automatically moved into Yale’s regular decision program
Late March: All Yale regular decision applicants notified
May 1: Response deadline for all admitted students
Additional required application material for QuestBridge Finalists
All students who apply to Yale with the QuestBridge application must also submit the following materials online or by mail to the Yale admissions office:
- Yale QuestBridge Questionnaire, available via the Yale Admissions Status Portal after Yale receives a student’s QuestBridge application. The specific short-answer questions on the questionnaire can be found on the essay topics page.
- Midyear Report with official first semester or trimester grades from senior year. This is due when these grades become available - typically January or February. A school counselor or advisor may submit your midyear report using slate.org; Yale’s Application Material Upload Form for Educators; fax to 203 432 9775; or mail to P.O. Box 208234, New Haven, CT 06520. Applicants may not self-report mid-year grades.
QuestBridge Finalists participating in the National College Match should also submit the following financial aid documents by November 1:
- The CSS Profile. Submit electronically. (Available Oct. 1)
- Your parents’ most recent federal income tax returns (signed, with all schedules, attachments, W-2s, and other earnings statements, plus corporate/partnership tax returns, if applicable.) Send using College Board’s IDOC Service, which you may access after submitting the CSS Profile.
If a student’s parents are divorced or legally separated, the non-custodial parent should also submit a tax return, W-2s, and a copy of the Noncustodial Profile, available online when completing the CSS Profile. Applicants who do not have any contact with a noncustodial parent may submit a request to waive the requirement of their financial information using the Noncustodial Parent Waiver Petition.
QuestBridge Finalists not participating in the National College Match should follow Yale’s standard instructions for applying for financial aid.