College Bound: Lu prepares for transition to Yale

Senior Linus Lu’s hands shook incessantly as he whipped out his phone. It was exactly 4 p.m. on Dec. 16, and this was the day Lu’s future would be determined. Furiously refreshing the Yale login page in hopes of faster connection, Lu let out a sigh of exasperation as his frozen fingers fumbled over the keys on his phone.

Trying to collect himself, Lu could barely even type his password into the login box. He was on the Saratoga Strings trip to Chicago, and was about to find out the fate of his future.

The words “You’re in!” screamed off the screen at him. Releasing a cry of happiness, Lu suddenly felt as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

“My reaction was underwhelming,” he said. “It was more relieving than anything because there was so much stress.”

For Lu, this was the end of a long and tiring, but ultimately rewarding journey to college. Yale’s mere 16 percent early acceptance rate proved a daunting obstacle, but Lu was able to overcome it. He added that he feels grateful and fortunate for having been admitted, but almost guilty that many others were not.

Although Lu’s acceptance into Yale was early-action and not binding, he said he has pretty much decided on Yale for his university next fall. He even visited the school again over winter break, falling in love with the architecture on campus.

Even though many students who attend East Coast universities complain about the cold weather during wintertime, Lu’s experience of New Haven weather was rather enjoyable.

“It was cold, but I was in Chicago two weeks earlier, which was colder,” Lu said. “It was actually quite a mild week for the East Coast.”

Looking forward to his move next fall, Lu said that he especially appreciates the beauty of the Yale campus.

“Walking through the campus around sunset [was memorable because] the lighting was really pretty,” Lu said.

At Yale, Lu plans to major in Ethics, Politics and Economics.

“I just find that to be a perfect blend of the type of abstract thinking that I enjoy with real-world applications that are relevant and increasingly important in today's world,” Lu said.

He is also hoping to do a concentration in either English or music. Additionally, he wants to continue pursuing his passion for viola by joining the Yale orchestra, saying he “cannot imagine himself without music.”