How to Get Featured in Yale Daily News

Introduction to Yale Daily News

According to the newspaper’s website, the Yale Daily News is “the nation’s oldest college daily newspaper.” It primarily “serves the communities of Yale and New Haven, Connecticut.”

This already gives us an important clue: 

If you want to get published in Yale Daily News, your topic must be connected to Yale or New Haven or, at the very least, be helpful to Yale’s students, alumni, or staff members.

But what can you write about? To answer that, we’ll need to take a look at the Yale Daily News website:

The top menu features several categories. When we exclude the Magazine and the About sections, as well as the Multimedia section – which features podcast episodes, photographs, and similar media, but not writing – we’re left with 7 article categories: 

• Opinion – Features opinion pieces mainly about Yale or Yale-connected topics.
• University – Features articles on Yale University, student life, graduate and professional schools, events, and policy and administration.
• City – Mainly features news articles about New Haven, ranging from city politics to community life.
• Scitech – Features articles on a wide range of sci-tech subjects, from the latest scoop on new technologies to reports on breakthrough medical research.
• Arts – Features pieces about performing arts, music, arts events, and more.
• Sports – Features articles on student successes in a variety of sports, as well as other relevant sports-related pieces.
• WKND – Features a number of stories that could be best described as “weekend reads” for students.

So, in order to get published in Yale Daily News, your story will need to fit one of these categories. However, it seems like the newspaper currently only accepts opinion pieces, so keep that in mind.

Want to get your story published in other newspaper sections? We can make it happen! Contact us today.

Is Getting On Yale Daily News Worth It?

Absolutely. Just consider Ahrefs' analysis of the website:

As seen above, the website has a strong backlink profile with a domain rating of 77. So, getting featured on Yale Daily News can help you increase your brand visibility, establish credibility, and - if you build backlinks to your site - increase your site’s authority.

How Do I Get On Yale Daily News?

As mentioned, it seems like Yale Daily News currently only accepts opinion pieces from outside contributors. They only mention that submissions can be sent to the opinion editors at opinion@yaledailynews.com. 

You’ll first need to send a pitch, then a draft. Let us walk you through all the steps below.

9 Ways To Increase Your Chances Of Publication

Here are step-by-step instructions for getting published in Yale Daily News – plus important guidelines to follow to increase your chances of getting accepted.

1. Submit A (Good) Pitch

First things first – Yale Daily News requires you to send a pitch before you send a draft. The pitch should give the editors an idea of what your story will be about and why they should publish it. 

There are other things you need to include in your pitch, too:

• Your full name – As a policy, Yale Daily News doesn’t accept anonymous submissions. However, if you feel that your story absolutely must be anonymous, try explaining your situation by sending an email to the aforementioned email address.
• Your affiliations with Yale University or other relevant institutions or organizations – Having affiliations isn’t required, but can certainly help.
• Your phone number, so that editors can contact you if they choose to publish your piece.

Now that we’ve got the pitch out of the way, let’s see how you can write a great draft that Yale Daily News will want to publish.

2. Read Articles Published On Yale Daily News

In order to write a story that Yale Daily News will want to publish, you’ll need to mimic the newspaper’s current style and ensure you write about topics that fit its editorial focus. 

The best way to do so is to read and analyze opinion pieces currently published on the website. Simply open the Opinion category on the website and read through a few stories you like.

Make notes as you go and follow them when writing your own piece.

3. Adhere To The Rules

Next up, there are a few rules that Yale Daily News reporters, journalists, and outside contributors alike need to follow:

• The word limit. 

Stories should never be longer than 800 words – but they can be shorter:

• Columns typically run 600-800 words.
• Letters to the editor run 400-500 words.

So, just ensure you don’t exceed the 800-word limit. No fluff!

• The anti-discrimination rules.

Yale vehemently prohibits and refuses to publish pieces that contain any form of discrimination. They may also refuse to publish articles from individuals or organizations that are “known to be prejudiced and/or discriminatory.”

• Journalistic standards.

Like many other newspapers, Yale Daily News requires reporters and writers to:

• be factual and able to substantiate their claims, 
• avoid speculation, and
• avoid unnecessarily targeting individuals or organizations.

It’s critical you follow these rules when writing for any serious newspaper, and not just Yale Daily News.

• Cooperativeness.

Lastly, be open to working with the Yale Daily News Editor-in-Chief and other staff members after your submission gets accepted. 

They may make some changes to your story and ask you to sign off on them. Alternatively, they may ask you to make the necessary changes yourself. 

It’s crucial you stay cooperative during the entire revision process. Otherwise, you risk getting your submission rejected when you’re so close to the finish line.

4. Be Relevant

Yale Daily News states that they consider submissions on any topic, but that they’re especially interested in stories that are relevant to Yale or New Haven.

So, no matter which topic you decide to cover, try to tie it back to the University or the city. 

5. Find An Affiliation With Yale

You can get published in Yale Daily News even if you’re not connected to the University in any way. 

However, the newspaper does prefer to publish stories written by Yale University students, alumni, staff, and others with a direct affiliation with Yale.

6. Submit Original Content

Yale Daily News doesn’t publish content that has already been published elsewhere. So, always submit an original, previously-unpublished story.

7. Go Solo

Yale Daily News also advises contributors to submit their stories individually rather than as a group. 

8. Make Strong Arguments

Always support your arguments with credible evidence, or, at the very least, ensure you can support them with logical reasoning if someone happens to challenge your perspective.

9. Ensure Your Grammar Is On-Point

Last but definitely not least, your grammar should be flawless. Ensure it is by following these guidelines: 

• Proofread your work. Look for errors in sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling. You can read your work aloud to identify awkward phrasing or grammatical mistakes more easily.
• Use grammar resources. Resources like grammar books, online grammar guides, or grammar-checking tools can help you avoid common mistakes and edit your article with confidence.
• Seek feedback. Ask a trusted friend, colleague, or mentor to review and provide feedback on your writing. They can catch errors you may have missed and offer additional suggestions for improvement.

It’s best you catch and rectify grammar mistakes before submitting them to Yale Daily News.

Get Featured In Yale Daily News With Our Help, Guaranteed

Tired of putting in the work only to get your submission rejected or ignored in the end? We can help. 

Work with us and get any story published in Yale Daily News – or you don’t pay us. Sounds good? Schedule a free consultation today and learn how we can get your voice heard.