<p>I had good grades freshman and sophomore year, (all As and A+s in the hardest classes at my school), but this year my grades aren't as great. I am taking more APs than any other junior but I unfortunately managed to get B+s in 3 classes. In the other course I took I got As/A+s. I have great extracurriculars and I will have one "good" recommendation and one really really great one. Hopefully my essays will be good, and I am going to apply early decision and I am a legacy. I am hoping to get my SAT scores up. The first time I took them I got a 2100, but I'll have to wait a few weeks for my new scores to come back and see if I improved. I anticipate good, but not great SAT 2 scores.</p>
<p>Do I have a shot? You can be honest. I am worried that my grades have dropped too much junior year, but I am hoping that the legacy/ED might help me out a bit... </p>
<p>THANK YOU!</p>
<p>A fellow legacy! I was a legacy who did ED too, and was successful. Our grades sound pretty similar… I had a perfect record until I got one big fat B throughout my entire junior year in one AP course, and then come first trimester of senior year I had one B and one B+. I go to a competitive private school though, so idk if my grades are viewed a little differently or not. I was also in the toughest courses offered, and it sounds like you basically are too since you’re in 3 AP courses (I took 4 as a junior, but same difference). I would try to bump your scores… I got a 2130 my first time and my school’s college advisor told me that I needed to bump that score up by at least 100 points, which I eventually did so don’t be discouraged (but it sounds like you aren’t, which is good to hear). I also had strong SAT II scores in areas that I was interested in… don’t settle for weak SAT II scores because you never know how much they’ll help you. I also had pretty solid EC’s; what are yours? Any leadership? Any awards? Your recs sound good, but if you can get two that are “really really great” that might be best. Mine were both from teachers who knew me very well personally, one of whom happened to have taught the class that I got a B in junior year so I’m not sure if that helped admissions forgive my B, or if the B would have been okay with them anyway. Also, I got a 5 for the corresponding AP so if your AP scores for for those B+ classes are strong, that would probably help.</p>
<p>You and I are viewed a bit more favorably by admissions, but Penn isn’t legacy-obsessed: I was told by the staff of the Sweeten Alumni House (a place you will grow to know well) that my application had to make it through at least the first few rounds of elimination before my status as a legacy was taken into account. So definitely keep your scores at the higher ends of the score ranges that the school reports and have solid essays and EC’s so that your regional director wants to vouch for you. Once you make it past that point, it’s a little less of a crapshoot for us because our parents went to Penn. I unfortunately know at least one legacy who seemed really qualified but was turned away ED and eventually RD too, but she applied to Wharton so who knows what happened. Which school are you applying to? (Totally random, but if you’re applying to CAS make sure you have a language SAT II.)</p>
<p>Good luck! Let me know if you have questions because I was in the same boat, and I was so anxious, and I don’t want you to be anxious over any of this like I was.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for your reply! You made me feel a lot better, but I still definitely do need to bring up my scores and I wish I hadn’t managed all of those B+s! My school is considered the best in my state (but we are only semiprivate… too me, we are more public, but whatever), but I don’t live in an extremely populated state. I have taken the toughest courses at my school. There was only one other junior who took more APs than me this year and the rest took 2 or fewer. I’m taking a few AP courses this summer and I’ll be taking 4, (maybe 5), more next year. I do have pretty good ECs, but I know pretty much everyone applying does, and many students have better ECs than I do. I do a ton of community service things and lead a few projects in my community. I play one sport at school. I’ve held the same job since freshman year… I’ve been busy with an internship/job during the summer at an insurance company since my sophomore year. I hold a LOT of leadership positions around school and I’m in NHS like pretty much everyone else applying. I’ve started up a writing club around school that takes up a ton of my time… umm theres more but I’m sure you don’t need/want to hear it all! </p>
<p>Oh and my rank is good I guess, but definitely not great. We have a little over 300 kids at my school and as of the end of this year, (thanks to my wonderful B+s!, ha) I think I am ranked 7th… which puts me in about the 2nd percentile. I am thinking that with all of my APs next year I will finish with a better ranking. I know colleges see rank after junior year but I’m thinking if I get deferred or something, I will send something in with my new rank.</p>
<p>Do you know if ED and a legacy status continue to help us if we are deferred? I know they consider legacy status much more when we apply ED, but I don’t know if this disappears once we are deferred. Do they still take into account that we applied ED, or do they look at us like any regular decision applicant.</p>
<p>Thanks for your help! Did you get in ED without getting deferred? Is next tear your first year? Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS!!! You are so lucky to be in! You should be really proud and thrilled!</p>
<p>Wow, your EC’s sound impressive, or at least they sound impressive to me. (It’s rare that I do chance thread stuff on CC but the leadership/four-year dedication/work experience all sounds pretty solid.) If you can showcase all that in the right light on your application then I’d say you have a pretty fair chance, but don’t go buying Penn sweatshirts and everything.</p>
<p>Idk about the deferral thing. If you do get deferred, then you can call Sweeten and ask, but let’s hope that you don’t have to. I do know that 10% of all applicants deferred are accepted RD.</p>
<p>Thanks! Yeah, I was somehow not deferred, and next year is my first year. I really didn’t think I had a huge shot but you never know. I was thrilled and crazy at first but once all that wore off and my friends were hearing from schools it hit me that part of that joy was just from achieving something I had made myself become so obsessed with, and that wherever you go you can make the best of it. That sounds cheesy but it is true, and keep that in mind just in case you get unlucky with Penn.</p>
<p>Yeah, I keep in mind that I’m not a shoe in by any means. So many amazing kids apply and don’t get in, and I’m pretty sure I’m a little “below”, I guess you could say, the average Penn applicant. I’m going into applying thinking I won’t get in, but absolutely hoping to get in! I know that there are TONS of great schools out there and that I don’t need to go to an Ivy or a school like Georgetown or Duke or Middlebury or Amherst to get an amazing education and to have a great time, but of course I still have my top picks, and Penn is definitely my first choice. I guess I just need to keep my fingers crossed. </p>
<p>If you don’t mind, could you go a little more into detail about your app and your time at highschool… for example, what activities you were involved in, GPA, which APs you took, general stuff. It is always nice to see what an actual admitted students time in highschool looked like. When I picture an admit at a school like Penn I picture a kid with a 4.0 UW, 2400, captain of all the sports team, student body president, etc. etc. etc. You know? So its nice to see a more realistic story. It puts things more into perspective.</p>
<p>Again, thank you so much for responding and everything! I know these chance me posts are kind of obnoxious… but sometimes it is nice to hear an “outsiders” perspective.</p>
<p>Omg, don’t apologize! You’re not being obnoxious at all haha. I really, really wish that I had discovered College Confidential way before I actually did. I would have been asking the same things. I pictured Penn acceptees as Gods and Goddesses and I kind of felt like I was shooting in the dark because I’d never seen what a successful application looks like.</p>
<p>I don’t have all the answers… I still feel like I just got a little miracle… but I’ll send you a private message with more personal stuff later when I have more time.</p>
<p>I normally never do these chance things, but I wanted to say that I feel like you have a very very good chance. I know I’m not the norm because I got in with a 2120 and a 3.6ish GPA (I don’t remember what it was really). I’m also a legacy, but I applied Regular Decision. I remember when my admissions officer contacted me, she told me that she was just really impressed by my leadership role (Student President this year) and my music. I think my music was the key thing that got me in since I’m so involved in Philadelphia’s music/arts scene. So I wouldn’t worry too much, if I had had your scores and EC’s, I would have been really happy.</p>