An article on an actual AO meeting...

Colleges & Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

<p>its a bit old, but i thought it was a really good read. completely wasn't what i expected. maybe things will be a bit different now that stetson isn't the dean anymore? This just leaves me feeling even more confused on what they're looking for. </p>

<p>High</a> drama in the office of admissions | csmonitor.com</p>

2

<p>wow. I’m surprised at how essays and teacher recs are not even discussed sometimes. I can’t believe that location can play such a big role, too. Scary.</p>

3

<p>interesting article…thanks.</p>

4

<p>Yeah, I really hope it changed too. Not discussing essays and teacher rec…that’s ridiculous. they can never correctly evaluate a student and that’s going to hurt the college too in the long run…admitting the wrong people, rejecting the right people. AO’d better change if it hasn’t already.</p>

<p>this article kinda reminds me of a chapter in harry bauld’s college essay writing book except more shocking. thanks for it.</p>

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<p>“Ms. Jackson begins by reviewing plaudits for a high school senior. Like each of Penn’s 16 regional directors, she has spent at least half an hour on each application, checking test scores, class rank, recommendations, extracurricular activities.”</p>

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<p>1998… better days. 13% acceptance rate at harvard, 29% at penn. they’re both pretty much half that now.</p>

<p>thanks for the link. it was actually a really interesting read</p>

7

<ul>
<li>A highly motivated white male from Illinois who wants to attend the Wharton School of Business. Penn gets a number of applications from his school. He is in the top 5 percent of his class with high ACT scores. But his class rank is relatively low. Nothing else distinguishes him."</li>
</ul>

<p>He’s in the top five percent of his class, but his rank isn’t high enough? How the focus has shifted towards personal/subjective qualities.</p>

<p>That or being from a Magnet school with nonweighted GPAs has altered the way I view class rank as a serious barometer of academic ability.</p>

8

<p>how does a computer possibly evaluate a student? it says the computer evauluates everything, writes a blurb, and assigns a number to the student. Hows that possible?</p>

9

<p>that’s it. i’m going to be rejected. <em>weeps softly</em></p>

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<p>bulldoghopeful, as I came from the same area, I would expect he attended a very large high school not unlike mine. My graduating class was 1,017, so top 5% in my class would be a relatively big number in terms of rank. Not saying I don’t agree with your point, just stating what it might mean.</p>

11

<p>Some people must have recognized themselves in this article (like the first admit and the denied girl). How weird and harsh (for the latter) must that have been…</p>

<p>I’m actually kind of happy about the emphasis they place on geographic location (Applicants from my country are quite rare).</p>

12

<p>fyi, this thread has a number of other “inside” articles linked, mostly LACs but a few universities, too:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/419701-collection-articles-inside-admissions-process-selective-lacs.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/419701-collection-articles-inside-admissions-process-selective-lacs.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

13

<p>

Wow dude, what the hell… what kind of prick teacher would write “hands in late work” for a student that they supposedly care about?</p>

14

<p>LOL good question. It is truthful but really that’s not cool.</p>