Ellie Park, Multimedia Managing Editor

When Catrina Chen, a senior at Brooklyn Technical High School, took her usual after-school train home on Dec. 2, it felt like the longest 15 minutes of her life. 

When she opened her decision letter, she froze, staring at her screen in disbelief. As confetti burst across her screen, it finally hit her: she was one of just 66 QuestBridge scholars who were admitted into Yale’s class of 2029.

“Because I only ranked Yale, I knew that if I saw confetti on my page, it meant that I got into Yale,” she said. “I screamed while looking at my computer, and I immediately jumped up and ran out to tell my family.”

The QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship connects low-income high school seniors with full scholarships to partner institutions. Yale, as one of QuestBridge’s partner institutions, offers a binding admission process to matched students. Those who match with Yale are also guaranteed a $0 parent share award. 

QuestBridge Scholars can rank up to 15 schools in order of preference. Scholars match with the school ranked highest on their list that decides to offer them admission. Last year, 67 percent of QuestBridge finalists who matched received an offer of admission from one of their top five college partners.

This year, out of over 25,500 applicants, QuestBridge selected 7,288 finalists to be considered for the QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship. QuestBridge’s 52 college partners matched with 2,627 finalists, the highest number of Match Scholarship Recipients to date for QuestBridge.

“We are delighted to welcome this record-breaking number of QuestBridge Scholars. These Scholars will contribute a rich diversity of perspectives and experiences to our college partners, enhancing the vibrancy of their campus communities,” wrote Ana Rowena Mallari, co-founder and CEO of QuestBridge, in a press release.

According to Moira Poe, director of Yale’s QuestBridge partnership and senior associate director of strategic priorities at the admissions office, Yale continues to be a popular choice for students to rank. She said that the admissions office reviewed a fair number of finalists before moving into the early action review cycle.

Any student who did not receive a match but who ranked Yale is automatically entered into the regular decision pool. However, Poe explained that since Yale partnered with QuestBridge in 2007, the admissions office consistently admitted more QuestBridge finalists through regular decision rounds than the QuestBridge Match. She said that she expects to admit “many more finalists” during Regular Decision.

“We are proud to be a long-time QuestBridge partner institution,” Poe wrote.

QuestBridge at Yale

In the QuestBridge Match round, Yale can only try to match with those QuestBridge finalists who qualify for a financial aid award with a $0 parent share. In other rounds, Yale’s admissions and financial aid processes operate entirely independently. 

“I think [applying through QuestBridge] highlights the circumstances of where we’re coming from,” said Mary Ayala, a high school senior from Atlanta, Georgia, who was admitted to the class of 2029 through QuestBridge. “It shows to universities that we’re coming from unfavorable circumstances, yet we’re still able to succeed.”

Zoma Marino ’26, a QuestBridge finalist who was previously admitted to Yale during regular decision, explained that QuestBridge scholars often represent “firsts.” Whether they are the first in their family to attend college, the first from their high school to enroll in a prestigious university, or the first in their community to “reach impossible dreams,” Marino described QuestBridge scholars as some of the most hard-working and extraordinary people she knows.

Eugenie Kim, a high school senior from Kansas who was recently admitted to Yale’s class of 2029 through QuestBridge, shared how meaningful her decision was for her family. She explained that her grandmother, who did not have the opportunity to attend college, was one of the most thrilled in her entire family to learn that she was accepted to Yale on a full scholarship.

Upon arriving on campus, all QuestBridge finalists admitted to Yale — known as Questies — are welcomed by the Yale QuestBridge Chapter, a student organization dedicated to building community among QuestBridge scholars, whether or not they matched with Yale through the program.

“It means a lot to have a community where we can understand each other’s adversities, celebrate our achievements, and dream big together,” wrote Hang Chen ’26, co-president of the Yale QuestBridge Chapter. “I am so excited for this new class of QuestBridge Match scholars to join the vibrant community we have here at Yale.”

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions is located at 38 Hillhouse Ave.