As probably many of you in this forum, my D who is currently a junior has been getting lots of emails or mails from all kinds of colleges/universities. She did well in the December SAT, and since then, she has received communications from Ivies like Harvard, Yale and Princeton. But realistically, we both think she will have a better chance at UPenn and she also likes UPenn more than most of the other Ivies. But what concerns me a little is that she has never received such email/mail for prospective students from UPenn. Maybe UPenn does things differently than other Ivies, but I’m wondering if that’s a sign that UPenn doesn’t identify my D as a potential fit? Should we be worried about the lack of emails/mails from UPenn aimed for prospective students? By the way, Duke has been sending her emails on a weekly basis, which makes me worried more about UPenn.
No. Read nothing into receiving info or not receiving info. It’s marketing, plain and simple.
skieurope, thank you for your reply! I know universities try to make them look more selective by getting more students to apply through such marketing campaign, so we didn’t take the emails from Harvard, Yale or Princeton seriously. But it’s good to know that NOT receiving such emails from her dream school, UPenn, doesn’t mean anything, either. Thanks again!
My son, a straight A-/B+ student (I say proudly), received mailings from all those schools. Much to the chagrin of his far more studious sister, who would have been horribly offended if he had dared to apply to any of them.
As an aside, I suggest you encourage your daughter to avoid thinking of a single dream school. That mindset often leads to unrealistic expectations and disappointment.
My D20 did great on her tests as well, has a 4.0 uw, top class rank, and has also received mail from every other ivy plus Stanford as well, but nothing from Penn. She’s even a double legacy and has already visited! I’d read nothing into it. Some schools market themselves more than others. My D20 is still planning to apply.
Lindagaf and chb088, thanks for sharing your personal experiences. Very helpful insight!
And Lindagaf, appreciate your suggestion about having more than a single dream school. Fortunately, my D likes one of her safety schools as much as UPenn. She told me she would be just as happy to get into that Safety school as getting into UPenn.
2 current students with same experience: glossy, wordy, thick booklets and one course description book sent from Penn’s peers. Even their formal acceptance notifications were a folder and only a couple of pieces of paper.
We hated the college mail volume and are glad to be on a short hiatus, but enjoyed some of the unique marketing of paper puzzles, static back, pop-up cards or cube, talking card.
Try not to stress about it too much. My D received very little mail from Penn even after subscribing to the mailing list and visiting campus. She will be matriculating there this fall. Some colleges just send more mail.
KLSD and mountainsoul, thank you for your replies.
mountainsoul, congratulations to your daughter!
Best of luck to your daughter, @JuneSnow!