damn you, yale

I've narrowed down some choices for schools. What I'd like to spend (waste?) money on for applications, where I'd want to fly to for one day to auditions, bla bla bla. I thought i could avoid taking the GRE because a) i am absolutely awful at these tests and do horribly and b) it will probably set me back a hundred or so.
But if i want to consider Yale and Northwestern, it looks like I'm going to need to start studying and take it! I took some of the 'sample' test on the website. Ya, i got about 1 out of 10 right. This is going to be a nightmare!
Along with that, I have to come up with an essay about what I hope to get out of this degree. Do they really read this? Every hopeful musician saying "I'd like to get a sweet gig out of school. And since I'm paying 30 grand a year to study with you, i'm hoping it works"

So far my thoughts are on Yale, Mannes, Temple, Manhatten, Julliard, Cleveland, Northwestern. I'm going to need to start making a checklist for all the shit these places require.