<p>I’m not a PA resident, I’m not low income or a minority applicant, and I have no “hook”. Penn isn’t accepting unqualified applicants. You just don’t need to be intimidated by those who brag of 2300’s and 800’s on everything. Penn considers everything you submit to them, and scores are only a small piece of the puzzle.</p>
<p>Hey congrats on getting in @qwerty76 Was penn your first choice, and if so what was it about Penn that made it you put it number one? And I know that you haven’t started school there yet but is there anything you really dislike about Penn? And also what would be your advice for the supplementary essay?</p>
<p>Penn was by far my top school, and I got into several schools that were more selective/well known. I really loved three things about Penn:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The academic flexibility of the school. Not as rigid as Columbia’s, more structured than Brown’s, Penn’s curriculum allow you to take courses that interest you within distinct “sectors”. The “Physical World” sector requirement can be satisfied by any number of different courses, not just a specific intro science course. Penn’s One University Policy also allows you to take course for credit at any Penn Undegrad/Grad school— even med, law, vet, Wharton MBA, Fels MPA. Also–Freshman seminars have less than 14 kids usually, and you take them with star professors!</p></li>
<li><p>How Penn encourages balance of academic, social, and extracurricular endeavors (ask an alum/current student their favorite things about Penn-- they were able to make great strides in their extracurricular commitments, even with full schedules! From leading an acapella group, to volunteering in Philadelphia, to working in a lab (and probably all three at once!) Penn students can explore their passions in non-academic settings without feeling overhwhelmed (just happily immersed 
).</p></li>
<li><p>The People! Everyone I met who got in (and was attending) or already attended had a story. They were so interesting, funny, nice, and passionate. They did not have the elitist mentality I felt at other ivy’s/top schools (even the Wharton kids I’ve met weren’t elitist!). I knew I could have the traditional college experience I always wanted— just with some of the brightest students in the world. My visit after being admitted really solidified my decision since I could connect so well with my peers.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I haven’t started… so nothing I dislike about Penn yet haha… and I’m actually a pretty critical person. I’ve received a lot of advising for course selection, and I’ve met some incredible kids at local Penn Meettups who are in the Class of 2018 with me. </p>
<p>Supplement essay: Quality > Quantity-- Figure out a few specific, unique reasons why Penn is the school for you. This isn’t a long list. Make it very clear why Penn is the best FIT for you. If you can replace the school’s name with another college, and the specific professors/classes/clubs with those from that other college, you haven’t done well. Penn had some specific opportunities no other school has. Explore them! </p>
<p>could you chance me? my sat scores are similar to yours and im worried and having someone who isn’t lecturing my about my sat scores be refreshing bc i know they care about more than that and i would love an opinion from someone who understands that <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1678286-university-of-pennsylvania-double-legacy.html#latest”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1678286-university-of-pennsylvania-double-legacy.html#latest</a> 
</p>
<p>Did you have a consistent passion/interest shown throughout your application? I’m trying to figure out whether the lower stat non-hook kids had passions that strengthened their apps, so bio majors who shadowed doctors for 3 years, won science fairs, were in science olympiad and published research. Then there’s me who’s applying as a poli sci major, has won science fairs, gotten writing awards and is in Spanish honor society. I’m all over the place (most of it is humanities related, besides my science awards, but humanities is such a broad topic that I doubt it would be considered a passion). My M+R is below their 25th percentile but my composite is probably towards their 40th percentile. My course rigor and GPA are probably the best parts of my application (IB diploma candidate with 4.0 uw GPA). I don’t mean to make this a chance me post, but I’ve often been told that someone who does show consistent passion towards their major will generally be way more likely to be accepted because to the school they’re seen as less of a gamble and it’s evident that they will contribute to the department and school overall. From your experience with people from the school, do you think this is true? </p>
<p>But overall I do love this thread because a lot of people on CC seem to believe that 2250 is the magic number and that’s what you need to be competitive, but you’ve clearly proven them otherwise. It’s funny how CCers, the most stats obsessed people, don’t realize that 2050 is the 25th percentile so if someone has a 2080 like yours, that doesn’t make them an automatic rejection. I would agree that 2050 is probably the number for non-HYPS and 2100 for HYPS, if there even is “a number” that automatically puts you into consideration.</p>
<p>Chancing is stupid because what gets you in can’t be quantified or observed from a summary… also it just leads to false hope since 90%+ of the applicants are qualified for admission to Penn. Consistent passion/interest/intellectual curiosity— all are great to have. Also— not to be pessimistic- but many below the 25th percentile are minority applicants, big donors, legacy— so strive for around the mid 50%. </p>
<p>Hi!</p>
<p>Thank you for the information. They are very helpful. 
I am applying school of arts and sciences this year. May I ask what are the ways for us to find out more information with regards to courses and programme on the major I am applying for (Economics)? </p>
<p>@qwerty76 haha hi</p>
<p><a href=“http://economics.sas.upenn.edu/undergraduate-program”>http://economics.sas.upenn.edu/undergraduate-program</a></p>
<p>Admission to SAS is not major specific, so even if econ is what you put as likely major, it really does not matter very much.</p>