<p>the recruiting saga of oakcrest high valedictorian and standout rower megan kesselman, now princeton '11:</p>
<p>Ultimately she applied to six schools — Harvard, Miami, U. Penn, Boston University, Columbia and, almost as an afterthought, Princeton.</p>
<p>“Princeton was the last I applied to because they seemed the least interested in me for crew, and I wanted to row,” she said. “They have a fabulous women's team.”</p>
<p>By April she was getting acceptance letters, but money offers varied widely.</p>
<p>Miami offered her a full-tuition scholarship worth $128,000. She could graduate in six years with degrees in both engineering and law.</p>
<p>Boston awarded her a trustees scholarship worth $186,000 over four years.</p>
<p>“It was great to be recognized on merit,” she said. “You really have to work hard to get that. And it's very enticing.”</p>
<p>Megan felt some personal pressure to take either the Boston or Miami offer, because she knew it would be easier on her family, and both were tremendous opportunities.</p>
<p>But when it came time to decide, she was really torn between Princeton and Penn.</p>
<p>“I really liked Princeton, but I thought I wouldn't be able to row there,” she said. “I didn't think I'd be good enough. But, when I called the coach, they had me on the roster already.”</p>