Okay so I am really anxious because I want to apply ED for CAS, but my friends say my extra curriculars aren’t strong enough to get accepted…
If I have good grades but only decent extra curriculars will that make my application feel imbalanced? (I know its a bit late to do something new but I just want to know what type of EC UPENN is looking for/like)
General Profile:
Go to a pretty competitive public school
GPA: 4.92/5.0 (weighted) – no class rank
SAT: 2240 (highest composite) or 2390 (superscore)
SATII: 760 (chem) 760 (bio) 800 (math2)
AP: 4 in Chem, 5 in Bio (We can only start taking APs junior year at our school but senior year i will be taking 4 more – stat, BCCalc, physics, Latin)
EC:
Head Track Manager all 4 years
Lots of volunteering at day cares and elementary schools
2 college art courses
won a few regional awards in art competitions
a few clubs I did all 4 years in high school
was a volunteer researcher at Tufts for one summer only
Your art might stand out. Is it strong enough so you would consider submitting an art supplement? You have good academic stats. ED is the way to go. Half the Penn Class is selected ED.
@helbear What school would you be applying to and what are you interested in studying? Do you have any ECs that relate to those interests? What is your race and sex?
I can speak for the admissions office, but It seems to me that “researcher at Tufts” is a somewhat impressive EC for a high school student. It may not have a total “Wow!”, but it is probably a lot more impressive than your average student.
@Helbear you are a competitive applicant for a school like Penn. You are not an outstanding applicant (like didn’t win the Intel science competition or the physics olympiad, found a cure for a disease, didnt start your own successful company, charity but guess what most applicants havent done these things either) like don’t expect to receive a likely letter, but i think you tick the necessary boxes to have a good chance for acceptance . there are many students with profiles like yours who get accepted to Penn every year. the only thing i would say is try to emphasize any leadership positions you may have had in your extracurriculars. like were you president/treasurer/officer in any of your clubs?
@fogcity I haven’t checked if they have an art supplement, but it sounds like a great idea. Thanks!! @Much2learn I was think college of arts and science because I am still undecided. I know I want to do something science or computer science related. Minoring in art too. I’m an asian, female. @Penn95 sadly, the only leadership position i hold is the head track manager. It’s something I really enjoy and something that I want to continue in college too. It’s like being a co-coach, and it’s really fun.
The only thing slightly alarming is the manager part of track manager. Usually (at least at my local high schools), the manager was a girl who had been or was going to be on the team who was injured and couldn’t run or play. It wasn’t something people typically returned to. It’s unfortunate you weren’t an athlete so you could join Penn’s running clubs, and unfortunate that you used that time as manager instead of joining a club with a transferable skill like debate, student government, etc. that would transfer to clubs/orgs at Penn.
What’s REALLY unfortunate is that while I think it may be looked down upon, it seems like you really like and would actually like to continue doing so if possible. I don’t know how you would, but incorporating more about your experience as manager in your app or indicating somehow that that’s something you’d like to continue at Penn, I think it’d be looked at a lot more favorably. It’s definitely not run of the mill, which benefits you. Perhaps you could interview? I don’t know how much those interviews actually matter, or if Penn even does them.
Being a creative person in CS could be a real plus. Remember that with CS you will have to decide between Engineering and CAS. I think you could minor in Art either way. Since you appear strong in science and math, I might apply to SEAS just because it is easier to move from SEAS to CAS, should you decide to, than to go the other way, but it is really which one you are most comfortable with.
Agree with everyone that being a creative person is a plus, and that submitting an art supplement would be a good idea.
My son was accepted to Penn as a Fine Arts major. He submitted two arts supplements, cello and animation. He didn’t have “big” ECs (national level, etc). He did a ton of music (soloist, high level orchestra, professional work as a freelance cellist, teacher, fund raisers, etc), regional level robotics team, and bowling for four years (high scorer), but not much else. (NM Commended, won a few scholarships) 2230 SAT I; 710 & 730 for SAT IIs. No APs; 39.5 units of community college, but nothing too difficult.
I was told my son was a “breath of fresh air” because of his creative endeavors (wants to be a game designer maybe).
I think you need to emphasize your strengths and don’t focus on weaknesses.
