Admissions Process

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

Hello,
I am currently a sophomore in high school, and although many say that it is too early for me to start thinking about this sort of thing, for me it is not. I do worry about the college applications a lot, but it is all justified because it is very important to me. Even though it is too early to know for sure, I want to pursue a career in investment banking. I have had many ideas of what I want to do with my life, ranging from becoming a lawyer to becoming a neurologist, but the one that has always appeared to me is a career in finance. I have traded stocks on a simulator, and recently have started trading with my own money, and it is just an area that I cannot seem to get bored of. With my intentions clear, it seems that the school of best fit would be Wharton, an obvious choice.

Now getting to the main point of this post: I am very concerned about my chances. I currently attend the #1 ranked high school in my state, and it is very competitive. There is a wide range of courses for me to choose from, with an emphasis on the science and mathematics department. With that said, my grades are nothing that stand out. My average is currently about a 94, but I have a rigorous schedule compared to my peers. I am a sophomore already taking AP World History and AP Physics B. The reason my grades are not as high is because I took math research, which is an elective, in freshman year, and got an 85 and an 80, which drastically brought down my average. I plan on taking AP US History, AP English, AP Chemistry, and AP Spanish junior year, and then AP Calc BC, AP Economics(macro/micro), AP English(a different one), AP Spanish Literature, and AP Biology or AP Psychology in my senior year. I do hope that I can bring up my average to above a 95 and that I will get a 5 on most of my AP exams, and above a 2250 on my SAT. My extracurriculars are nothing amazing, but I plan on playing 3 varsity sports, I am a writer for 2 departments of my school newspaper, and I am in the investment club. I also used to be a part of the speech and debate team in my school. I plan on interning at either a law firm or a bank over the summer as well.

With all of this information, I have quite a few concerns about my chances of getting into Wharton:
-how much do freshman and sophomore year grades matter compared to junior year grades
-if I have the ability to double up pre-calc and AP Calc BC as a junior, would that be better for me if I took that instead of AP Chemistry
-how important are extracurriculars and internships/summer programs in relation to grades
-what can I do to maximize my chances of being accepted into the school?

I know this is a very long post, but it is very important for me to decide what the best course of action will be going forward. This is my dream school, and I think I would strive there. All help is appreciated.

2

You don’t have scores yet. So it is really impossible to know what chance you have at any school. Look that the “Common Data Set” for Penn. That will tell you what kind of grades and scores the freshman class has. But until you have more accumulated more grades, scores and achievements nobody knows. And until you apply and hear, nobody knows but with scores people can at least comment.

3

I know, but I want to do whatever is possible to increase my chances of getting in, now. Do you have any advice?

4

If I were you, I would drop the varsity sports (unless you are good enough to be recruited) and fill your time instead with an internship at a finical institution and starting some kind of company on your own as well as any possible financial club you can get involved with… you need to focus on your passions and take it as far as you can go preferably to a state/national level and or some kind of community service level… how about starting an after school club at an inner city school to teach young children about finances (on a simple to complex level per age)?? Penn loves innovative community service that makes a difference from what I understand. I would also try to do Penn’s LBW program about 25-30% of participants end up getting in to Wharton … The time to plan is NOW and you need to utilize your summers as well as the school year with something specific to your passion that others aren’t doing…

5

Ummmm no.

Stay on your course with the sports (IB is very bro-ey, if you know what I mean). Just kill your math and analytical coursework. The post above mine reads like so many HS student’s THOUGHTS on what is impressive to colleges. Genuineness is what is impressive. “start a company” or “go help some brown kids” — rather mercenary and cliche. A 16 year old simply can’t get a meaningful internship at a financial institution. If they exist, it’s because some officer wants his brat kid to get something on her resume. A better step would be to get a job at the movie theater or grocery store.

Use your summers well, of course. But don’t try to fit into any mold. Just excel at what you truly enjoy.

6

@T26E4 I logged in just to praise this advice.
Resume building is great, it really is but too often have I seen shallow resumes that screams ambition but no substance. Being yourself and finding the things that you’re successful at will build a meaningful resume and list of accomplishments.

7

Agree with @T26E4. Stay the course.

8

I really take exception to the parent who posted that a HS student isn’t genuine if they start a company or go into an inner city school to teach students (finance)… let alone the comment “go help some brown kids”… (wow thats offensive!) Here’s a news flash for you- students today actually ENJOY community service and don’t do it to pad their resume or to be mercenary and cliche-y, but rather partake in it to make a real difference in the world! Penn isn’t looking for "bro-ey"types who do sports to pad their resume instead they are looking for kindness (which is rampant in community service volunteers)
http://www.thedp.com/article/2016/02/harvard-study-admissions-kindness

The OP stated that their passion was investment banking not sports… so why should their time be filled with playing sports like every other high school kid does? That doesn’t differentiate them from any other applicant and Wharton is looking for the movers and shakers in the country - says so right on their website… “While there is no magic formula, we are looking for students who:
Are leaders, movers and shakers, and will make an impact”

also this student has gotten B’s and it is hard to get into Wharton with B’s but “do-able” with a failed simulation test IMO (OP please read this article) http://calnewport.com/blog/2010/03/26/how-to-get-into-stanford-with-bs-on-your-transcript-failed-simulations-the-surprising-psychology-of-impressiveness

You are wrong that a HS student can’t get a meaningful internship… JP Morgan Goldman and many others all have High School internships like this:
Program: 2015 Corporate & Investment Bank Summer High School Program
Business Area
Corporate & Investment Bank
Position
High School Summer Intern
Vacancy Year
2015
Location
New York
Job Description
If you’re an ambitious high school junior or senior, you’ll jump at the chance to apply your interest in the finance industry. The skills you develop and the professional network you build will launch your future in business. You’ll spend the summer exploring the sophisticated financial solutions we deliver across asset classes and digging into the data that informs our solutions for the world’s preeminent companies.

https://jpmorgan.tal.net/vx/mobile-0/appcentre-americas_jobs/brand-0/candidate/so/pm/1/pl/1/opp/3847-2015-Corporate-Investment-Bank-Summer-High-School-Program/en-GB

If you are truly interested in finance LIKE YOU STATED IN YOUR POST then by all means use your time expanding that interest!! Its not resume padding, its delving into your field of interest! Also teaching kids finance is giving back to your community in a way that you enjoy, rather than working at a food bank or something…

In applicants to the Wharton School, we would like to see:
an interest in business to fuel positive change to advance the world’s economic and social well-being
demonstrated leadership
a strong preparation in mathematics, particularly calculus

9

“go help some brown kids” is meant to be offensive – yet that’s the shallowness of how many HS kids see it.

And the number of club “founders” I’ve run across make my head spin.

I’m advising OP to do something meaningful as he/she sees it. If it’s getting a great and deep internship, great. If it’s tutoring less advantaged kids, super. If it’s sweeping floors at the grocery store, paying his bills and coming to work on time every day – then fantastic.

You’re mistaken if you think I’m telling OP to pad the resume. The exact opposite. Can the OP really exert leadership? maybe. On his/her team would be an excellent start.

10

@runswimyoga @T26E4 I have no interest in getting more involved in this back and forth than I am with this post, but I will say that I strongly disagree with the advice of dropping sports to pursue things that we think admissions would like. I essentially took @runswimyoga 's advice back when I was in high school, as I knew I wasn’t good enough to be recruited and instead made it less of a priority for myself (despite it being something I was passionate about) and focused on doing volunteer work and co-founding a charity. End of story is that it worked, I got into Wharton and am loving it here, but I still regret giving up sports. You have to realize that when you aren’t that good of an athlete (which are the only kinds of students your advice applied to), competing in high school varsity sports is your last shot to play on a competitive level where you feel like you’re truly representing the team on your jersey (intramurals and club sports just are not the same). I don’t see where the initial poster said that sports is not a passion of his, so I’d say that if he has any passion at all for sports, he should keep pursuing them. He only has a few years left to do that, and he shouldn’t give it up because he thinks it would help him get into Penn. Honestly, I think Penn likes to see that students are well-rounded and some (if not most) of the more successful people I know here were athletes (some three-sport athletes like the initial poster) in high school.

11

So to summarize, OP should not quit sports to start a charity which is exactly what @WhartonPenn2017 did successfully. So the choice is live a normal life, play sports, etc… and probably not get in or quit sports, go save some whales, get accepted, then be filled with regret that you didn’t play sports when you could. Oh and Wharton wants kids who have a focus on community service and changing the world. Which is all probably really important as 90% of the grads head off to their BB IB jobs after graduation:)

12

Ok so @shortema if sports are your passion and you think you will regret not fulling your last shot at competing at a level where you truly represent your team…

then my advice to you would be to stay in sports, but perhaps find a way to combine your passion for your sports and business/finance… say organize a golf/soccer/swim/bball shoot out tournament that raises money for financial literacy/teaching kids about $$ skills. I bet you could get a local bank to sponsor/ underwrite it… Schools are seriously lacking in teaching basic financial literacy to students (and not just inner city schools) That would combine your passions and do it in a way that would serve your community for greater economic good! My initial point was for you to focus on your passions and take them as far as you could go with it… if you have several passions, combine them!!

I know students that have achieved incredible things don’t just do the ordinary school projects is my real advice … here is such a teen she started this
http://www.thevalidationproject.com
but you can do all kinds of things on your own too… don’t let adults tell you you have to think in the box is my point

13

@gluttonforstress @runswimyoga Sorry if I wasn’t clear. I wasn’t saying that the poster shouldn’t get more involved in community service, starting a club or organization, etc. It’s a very good thing to do, and I enjoyed doing those things. I was just saying that you shouldn’t sacrifice things you’re passionate about (e.g. sports) to do those other activities. The poster and anyone else going through this process just has to strike a balance. Do the things that you think will help you get in, while also continuing to pursue the things you are truly passionate about. If you give up things you’re passionate about, you’ll regret it later on, especially if you don’t get into your dream school that you sacrificed your passion for.