The 1,310 freshmen who make up Yale's Class of 2001 are as varied as the weather was on the weekend they arrived on campus. After leaving homes in early every U.S. state and 39 foreign countries -- including Russia, Sri Lanka, Morocco and Nigeria -- members of Yale's newest class were welcomed at activities that took place in splendorous sunlight and beneath steady rain. The new members of the Class of 2001 include:
* a prospective music major who conducted a city orchestra while still in middle school and who studied in St. Petersburg with a leading Russian conductor, despite never having spoken the Russian language before;
* a young scientist whose summer re-search on the use of laser technology in the treatment of melanoma won her a spot on USA Today's list of High School All-Americans;
* a five-time world champion in karate;
* a member of the Canadian debate team;
* one of the Caribbean's top swimmers;
* a young entrepreneur whose trout fly-tying business boasts its own mail-order catalogue; and
* a board member for Native American activities at the Museum of
Natural History
in New York City.
"I am amazed at the power and talent of this year's freshmen class," says Margit Dahl, director of undergraduate admissions. "The admissions process this year was highly selective, and we have an exceptional group. We are pleased and excited to welcome them to New Haven."
Fewer than 18 percent of the 12,046 applicants this year were admitted, which is the most selective rate of admission in recent years. More than 54 percent of the class attended public high schools; the rest studied at private and parochial schools. Worldwide, 884 secondary schools are represented. Median SAT scores were 720, in both verbal and math.
The class has slightly more women (664) than men (646), and 30 percent of the freshmen identify themselves as members of a minority group. While there are 101 students whose parents never attended college, two members of the class are the sixth generation of their families to attend Yale.