<p>Hi all,
I got a 2130 on the SAT and my hook is a really strong art portfolio. But, I have a 3.2 GPA. If my essay and supplements are great, is it worth applying to upenn? Or does my gpa defeat my chances?:-\
Thanks in advance for feedback!</p>
<p>i ain’t no expert but i think you should forget about your SAT and focus on your gpa which is kinda sorta really low for upenn. and an art portfolio isn’t a hook…</p>
<p>whether or not to apply is up to you.</p>
<p>if you are a senior now, sorry to break it to you, but a 3.2 is just not going to cut it (unless either your school is hyper-competitive or you have some extenuating circumstance that you can explain). If you are a junior or younger, work vigorously on that GPA and I say you have a decent shot</p>
<p>Also. I think they prefer Penn 
not UPenn</p>
<p>As everyone’s said before, your GPA is the biggest issue. Definitely play up art, but stop taking standardized tests and start getting lots of weighted A’s.</p>
<p>I’m the opposite…High GPA (4.0), low SAT (1890)…dare to switch?</p>
<p>Thanks for the feedback NervusBreakdown, blankusername, and hahalolk!
Unfortunately I am a senior, but my high school IS really, really competitive. And @NervusBreakdown, maybe I should rephrase–I think my hook is my involvement with the arts rather than solely my portfolio. I did an internship at one of the smithsonian museums to make an online art exhibit, did risd pre-college… Does that change anything? Or do you think Penn’s still a no-go?</p>
<p>If you want to go, you should apply! I got in with a 2120.</p>
<p>So I recalculated my GPA, and it’s about a 3.4 rather than a 3.2. Does this change things much?
I’m really confident about my essays, extracurriculars, art portfolio, and I’m good with the 2130. I think this would qualify me to get into an art school, (assuming the portfolio’s good enough) but my ideal path is to have a foundation in liberal arts as an undergrad, majoring in art history, anthropology, or some other major relating to museum work (my dream career). After that I’d hope to study art in grad school.
So basically art is my fort</p>
<p>Dude, definitely apply if that’s where you want to go. If you haven’t visited, I’d recommend doing a tour and info session. In order to pour as much passion into your app as possible, you need to know what the school’s about and why you want to go there.</p>
<p>Thanks Mailclu–definitely a good point!!</p>
<p>I think it is definitely worth applying. You are a very unique case for sure. I think it might be important to ask why your GPA is the way it is. Is it because of a weakness in any one area, or are almost all of your grades around that GPA? What is GPA for each year?</p>
<p>Thanks hahalolk! If it hadn’t been for the optimism I’ve encountered at CC, I might not have applied to Penn, and definitely wouldn’t have put as much time into the application.
I think the simplest answer to why my gpa’s so low is because I put all my effort into securing A’s in my advanced classes, and then end up with B-'s in my easy classes. I see my harder classes as an opportunity to grow and learn, whereas the easy ones are more busywork… Maybe I also put too much emphasis on art. I’m not sure–I do know 3.4’s kind of inexcusable for an ivy, though.
This is a kind of silly question, but could being a unique case give me leverage in any way in a day where 4.0 cum laude members are being rejected from ivies…?</p>