<p>My friends mom is good friends with someone at Penn and said if Penn is truly my number one choice then let her know at the end of the summer so he can talk to me. Penn is my number one and Im applying ED to SEAS for engineering. Im not sure if the person is on the admissions board but he definitely has weight there. I just wanted to know how much of a difference this makes, if any at all?</p>
<p>and Im not relying on it, so dont come on here saying to just rely on my grades, etc. I already am, Im just inquiring about this, thanks!</p>
<p>I don’t think it’ll make any difference unless the person your mom knows is Eric Furda or Amy Gutmann. To get admitted it doesn’t take just one person…it takes a group of people to agree on your admission. Also, I’ve heard the actual people making the decisions are not given names of the students that they’re admitting.</p>
<p>“My friends mom is good friends with someone at Penn…”
"how much of a difference this makes, if any at all? "</p>
<p>Committees don’t work like that. You’re assuming that this acquaintance somehow feels beholden to compromise his/her professional integrity for the disconnected friend of a friend. Rotsa ruck.</p>
<p>If anything, that person will recuse himself/herself. That situation happens all the time.</p>
<p>Your friend’s mom’s friend will get into trouble (ethics) if he influences any admission decisions. Do you think he will risk that for you?</p>
<p>I think a lot of these responses are very naive.</p>
<p>Connections can make a big difference.</p>
<p>I know someone who told me that he got his son admitted to Harvard as a transfer student because of connections.</p>
<p>While it is true that there is an admissions committee, that doesn’t mean the committee doesn’t take orders from higher ups.</p>
<p>fd: I’m not saying any single human group is immune from questionable influences. I’m saying in the OP’s scenario – a twice removed acquaintance – isn’t going to lift one finger to risk a single thing for the applicant.</p>
<p>It would also probably depend on what kind of connection your mom has to this friend of hers. </p>
<p>Your mom’s friend might value his/her career over their friendship.</p>
<p>All I know is, if you do talk to him, it will only help. Of course, unless you say something incredibly atrocious or offensive.</p>
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<p>Who does your friend know? It’s that easy? Most universities have hundreds of high level employees and people connected to them have automatic admissions? </p>
<p>Unless that “connection” knows you very well, and is willing to stick his neck out for you, no, generally it does not work.
Notice, the OP does not personally know anyone working at the admissions office, it’s a friend of a friend of a friend.</p>
<p>I don’t think we are naive. </p>
<p>I personally know of a development case and a promised donation of $8M did not get an admission for one particular Ivy. But another took it.</p>
<p>You’d be surprised how far connections get you. I’ve seen many kids get into many top schools because of well connected (note: rich aristocratic families) parents and/or rich private schools. Penn included. Actually Penn especially, since I live in PA so that’s where I see a lot of these people apply and have connections to.</p>
<p>I know “connections” is a vague term and is obviously based on speculation but trust me it happens a lot. </p>
<p>But in the case of the OP, I’m skeptical whether if that will work</p>
<p>Didn’t one of Trump’s kids NOT make into Wharton as a freshman? I thought he is well connected and also graduated from Wharton right?</p>
<p>^
Yes but what was his GPA, ECs, and SATs?
If they weren’t reasonably high Penn wouldnt want to risk losing part of their reputation to some one just for the last name ‘Trump’
I say talk to them. It might not make any difference but if your a competitive applicant anyway then it’s up to you to do everything you possibly can.</p>
<p>Now there is a big difference between belonging to a respected, aristocratic family and having a friend whose mother knows “someone” at UPenn. If you donate millions of dollars a year to the school or someone of that stature can vouch for you personally, in that case, connections would help. However, knowing someone on the admissions board will not affect you at all. There are hundreds of professors, admissions officers, etc. for UPenn, if the system was so easily influenced by nepotism, it would be filled with legacies and friends and not with the very brightest students that are needed to keep UPenn at the top.</p>
<p>Knowing someone, and having them think highly of you, can (and often does) get you into grad school. </p>
<p>As for undergrad, well… no one knows how that stuff works really. But I highly doubt it works the same way. You don’t develop a relationship with a faculty member in college like the relationship you develop with your thesis adviser in graduate school. </p>
<p>Also SEAS (and engineering in general) tends to base acceptances more on merit than on random crap like CAS does. </p>
<p>Also, knowing someone means on an academic level, not on a through-another-person level. That’s just ********.</p>