<p>As the thread's title suggests I want to apply ED to UPenn (M&T/Wharton 2nd choice) and my parent's are against it. They even went far enough to say "Nothing ventured, Nothing gained."-Yeah pretty weird for parents who are not supposed to like take risks as much as their parents. But frankly, the way I see it, the only way possible I'd get into M&T would be thorough ED. From what I've seen, it's nearly impossible for anyone short of a genius to get in regular to M&T. My Dad (MIT alum), and my Mom less strongly, advcoate that I should apply EA to MIT and RD to UPenn. They say this because MIT has a better engineering school, which I guess is true, and a #2 business school and that I should dual degree there. Somehow though, it doesn't seem feasible considering MIT has a rep for being insanely difficult for even one major and to add a second one would be hell. However, it seems that M&T is more structured, but they won't believe it. Another reason they think I shouldn't ED at Penn is that they are "scaring" me into applying ED saying I have good enough stats and I shouldn't be scared. However, I think I should be very scared. Even though I have a 2370 SAT, 2400 SAT II's, and quality ECs including engineering research, I have gotten many B+'s throughout highschool...more than probably 70% of the Penn students. I'm scared that the adcom's may punish me for my grades RD but would be willing to "overlook" them ED because they are pretty much average for the average ED admit to Penn from my high school and I have pretty high test scores and I'm also Black. Lastly, and probably most importantly, my Dad says that M&T does not allow you to get a real engineering education. Even though this is completely false, I haven't been able to find out the curriculum of M&T. </p>
<p>So how can I convince my parents to let me apply ED to Penn, (pretty much shove a medley of facts down their throats that they can't dispute) because frankly I need my parents support ultimately? </p>
<p>:) :) :) Thank you in advance...this may be the difference between me being able to pursue my interests in business and engineering at a great university like Penn or being rejected everywhere (well hopefully not everywhere) RD. I sincerely value your help.</p>
<p>I applied EA to MIT. I applied RD to M&T, and am now a junior in the program. Neither is a bad choice, and you'll do well at either school. Penn does in fact have a real engineering school, and MIT does in fact have a business school that people actually attend and like. Figure out which school you like better - they are very different places socially (and academically) and some folks really prefer one or the other. I've hosted prefrosh for M&T who've gotten into both schools and it really depends on the person.</p>
<p>Don't let the rankings sway you that much. They're a simple number that doesn't convey the entire picture of the schools. Wharton and Sloan are very different b-schools with different emphases. </p>
<p>I will say this: don't feel that you have to apply ED - M&T admissions don't actually give preference to ED (or RD). You may see that the acceptance rate is higher for ED - that's because a huge part of M&T admissions is your essay on why you want to be in the program, and ED students know that stuff down pat.</p>
<p>Most importantly, work things out with your parents. You want them helping you get into college, not arguing with you.</p>
<p>And you're Black? You do know how few Black people are at Penn, right? The whole ED/RD thing is basically a non-issue for you.</p>
<p>Thank you a lot for the insight. How do Wharton and Sloan differ a lot academmicaly? I have heard Sloan has a very quanititative approach towards business but I thought Wharton had this too, if less so. As for your degree in enginnering, might I ask which you are pursuing? As for socially I know Penn is more preprofessional and it has demographics similar to my hometown (my hometown's 46% Jewish) and I didn't have any real problems. I know that for MIT, it has a big frat scene, but I thought Penn did as well. The ED information is very interesting... you've shed a lot of light for me on the issue. Yeah, I am Black and I could tell by your location what the majority ethnicity is. :) Thanks again for your advice; it's extremely helpful!</p>
<p>Wharton's all about finance. Sloan's about supply-chain management and the like. They're both great schools, but they have different specialties in business. Pick up the USNews college ratings and look at the rankings for business by specialty - this may give you an idea of what the schools offer. Additionally, look at the schools' websites to see what professors are publishing. Insight: 90%+ of wharton students concentrate in Finance, Management or Marketing, with 60%+ in finance alone. Another difference is that Wharton students are often the best students at Penn, and business students at MIT are looked down upon. This is totally irrational, but it's just the culture.</p>
<p>I'm studying CS, but I've got experience with all the programs in Penn's SEAS. What engineering field are you interested in? (Penn and MIT offer different programs there, and depending on your interests one may be better than the other). For example, Penn doesn't have civil engineering, at all. (What civil engineering even is anymore is beyond me, but I digress).</p>
<p>Really, try to spend some time on both campuses. The programs are similar, and you'll probably have similar academic experiences and get similar job offers. It'll really come down to the details and the atmosphere at each campus. (MIT has nerds, Penn has greek life (much more so) and sports. MIT's in boston, Penn's in philly)</p>
<p>The information about schools is quite intriguing...I was interested in finance, but I guess I would not really know so much if it's for me unless I took a few courses in it. The engineering field I'm interested in is Chemical Engineering but I heard Penn offers Biochemical/chemical engineering. I happened to visit both schools a few weeks ago and I enjoyed both areas quite a bit. The only concern I had with Philly is it's supposedly bad location, but I didn't get the vibe that it was in a bad part of town. I'm going to try to see if I can visit Penn once more when the school year starts considering I live only about 2 hours away. Thanks a lot for the last paragraph, it help put things more in perspective.</p>
<p>Not to be blunt, but you are African-American with a 2370, 800 x3 SAT 2's, and engineering awards?</p>
<p>Buddy, I don't think you have to worry about getting into either school.</p>
<p>rofl seriously, even without affirmative action, I would say you have a great shot at both of those without applying ED.</p>
<p>PKswmr: He's not just applying to UPenn or Wharton, he's applying to M&T which takes 50 or so kids. But still, as good a chance as a person could possibly get!</p>
<p>My friend at MIT says everyone makes fun of the business kids - even though he later found out they have really high ranked business.</p>
<p>Go to Penn!</p>
<p>go to penn for the girls. enough said.</p>
<p>Speak straight from your heart to your parents. Also, tell them that your stress levels would go dooooooooown if you are accepted ED to your top choice (for obvious reasons). Basically, tell them everything you told us.</p>