Program Overview and Goals

Program Overview

What is Y-VISP?

The Yale Visiting International Students Program (Y-VISP) is an exchange program at Yale which invites undergraduate students from select partner institutions to study abroad at Yale. After applying to Y-VISP, students are selected to join the Yale undergraduate community for either a semester or a full academic year.

Students granted admission to Y-VISP will:

• Become fully integrated members of the Yale community
• Live alongside Yale students in one of fourteen residential colleges
• Enroll in Yale undergraduate courses
• Participate in extracurricular activities available to all Yale undergraduates
• Receive support and assistance from residential college deans, heads of colleges, academic advisers, peer advisers, and Y-VISP program staff

Partner Institutions

Students from the following institutions are eligible to participate in Y-VISP:

• The University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong)
• Tecnológico de Monterrey (Mexico)
• Waseda University (Japan)
• Yale-NUS College (Singapore)
• Ashoka University (India)
• ShanghaiTech (China) 
• The Chinese University of Hong Kong at Shenzhen (China)

Please note that due to a housing shortage, Y-VISP is unlikely to be able to accept applicants through the 2023-24 academic year. If you have questions or concerns, please contact your home university Y-VISP coordinator.

Program Goals

Breadth and depth in academic interests  

Yale’s educational mission is based on a liberal arts philosophy; the curriculum offers abundant opportunities for students to pursue their chosen fields of concentration in depth, and to freely explore other areas for further enrichment. Ideal Y-VISP candidates are able to express in clear terms why Yale’s philosophy and curricular offerings would advance their educational goals. While some Y-VISP students may wish to focus on particular academic fields, they are encouraged to include at least some coursework outside that area of focus to achieve the full benefit of the Yale experience. 

Appreciation of academic intensity and seriousness of purpose

Y-VISP candidates must understand the exceptionally demanding nature of coursework in a major research university. In many fields, Yale offers a range of courses, from the introductory level to the advanced, graduate level. However, at every level, students should expect robust workloads and high standards of performance. Although some participation in extracurricular activities is encouraged, students should strive for a healthy balance in time allocated to nonacademic pursuits in order to avoid falling behind in academic responsibilities. 

Energetic immersion and engagement within the Yale community

For the Y-VISP program to be a mutually beneficial initiative, students must be inclined to active participation in all aspects of the experience: academic and intellectual, extracurricular and social.  Yale welcomes students with broadly diverse backgrounds, interests, and personalities, but the common characteristic is an enthusiastic willingness to engage with fellow students in the classroom and residential colleges—and with faculty, advisers, and other members of the community.