How to Get into Penn Economics or M&T Program

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

Hey guys. I’m new to this forum so I apologize if this is posted in the wrong section.

Why I Posted:
Well, I posted because I wanted information on how to get into the M&T Program, which was my dream program since 6th grade, and Economics, which is my back up but still something I really want to go to.

Some Things about Me:
I’m a freshman in Marlboro High School in Marlboro, New Jersey which is competitive:
http://www.frhsd.com/district/index.php?q=node/2924
and has around 500 kids for each grade.

I was accepted into our school’s competitive program called the Business Administration Learning Center, or BLC, which has a 10% acceptance rate of 30 kids out of 300. The program incorporates business classes into our state-mandated curriculum resulting in a basic college-level business experience.

This year, I am taking Honors Economic Geography, Honors English I, Honors Algebra II, Honors Business Principles and Practices, Honors Business Computer Systems, Italian I, and Honors Lab Biology.

I did pretty bad first MP with:
E.G. - 86.00
English - 87.80
Math - 90.80
Business - 94.20
Computer Systems - N/A (second semester)
Italian I: 95.7
Biology: 80.2

I did somewhat better second MP but also did worse in some classes with:
E.G. - 90.00
English - 88.9
Math - 90.8
Business - 92.8
Computer Systems - N/A (second semester)
Italian I - 91.9
Biology - 87.3

Almost all of my teachers like me, especially my biology teacher after I improved and also my math teacher since I was the only freshman who had an A- or better in MP 1.
The only teacher that doesn’t is my English teacher because, well, because she hates everyone and said it to our faces.

Also, my weighted GPA, according to the scale in school, is a 4.73 and I have a unweighted GPA of 3.71.

Some clubs, sports, and volunteer stuff I do are:
DECA - I came second in South Jersey Regionals and am preparing for States (My event is Principles of Business Administration and Management)
FBLA - I am the leader for my grade for FBLA and I made and would have been going to states as well but DECA and FBLA dates conflict so I chose DECA
Golf - I am trying out for our varsity golf team and am confident that I will be excepted and probably will be captain in two years
Speaker Series - I am the “C.E.O.” of Speaker Series, which is basically a committee within the BLC that invites business professionals to come speak to our school
National Junior Forensics League - I came 6th in the country for Declamation and 8th in the country for Congressional Debate in middle school. I am going to join our high school team next year.
Celtic Charms - I volunteer 5 hours a week at a therapeutic riding center for disabled children
Investor’s Club - I am thinking of starting a Investor’s Club in our school, which many people will be interested in joining.

Other Things:
I took an official SAT at my local high school in 7th grade for practice and got a 1800 (even though I didn’t study for it before)
I learned the basics of Robotics, C Programming, Algorithms, and JAVA.
I am applying to MIT Launch and hope I get in.
I am Indian male, my parents are immigrants and we have an annual income of $180,000, and I was born and raised in America
I am also applying to the Stanford LEAD program over the summer for computer science

The AP Courses that I know I will Take in the Following Years of High School:
AP Macroeconomics (Junior Year)
AP Microeconomics (Junior Year)
AP Psychology (Sophomore Year)
AP Computer Science (Senior Year)
AP Statistics (Junior Year)
AP Calculus BC (Sophomore Year)
AP Government and Politics (Junior Year)
AP Italian (Senior Year)
AP Chemistry (Junior Year)
AP Physics (Senior Year)
AP Biology (Maybe Sophomore Year)

I am so sorry for all this information but I really want to go to the M&T Program. Please give me any advice you have.

2

Even with my lackluster grades, due to my school’s hard curriculum, I am easily the top 10% of my grade.

3

This is the link to my Business Administration Learning Center: http://www.frhsd.com/district/index.php?q=node/301

4

You’re only in 9th grade. You should not be focused on one school/program (M&T or Penn in general). Just try to succeed in your academics and extracurriculars and find a balance between school and social life. That’s it for now.

5

Thanks for the quick reply. I do realize that I should balance my social life and academics, which I believe I am. However, in my school, which produces at least 10 Ivy League students every year, everyone is incredibly competitive and is always doing whatever they can to reach their college goals. Therefore, to even have a chance in this race, I need to start this year. I did not try as hard as I should have for first marking period and half of the second marking period, which was entirely my fault. Is there any course I should take or anything that I should do now so I can stick to it for 4 years and be able to get into Penn.

6

Why is Penn Economics your back up rather than Penn Engineering or Wharton? M&T is a duel degree with Wharton and SEAS.

7

The thing is, I want to go to a program that integrated computer science with the business program and only M&T effectively does that in my opinion.

8

The University of Michigan also offers a dual degree in engineering/business similar to M&T

9

You may not realize, but there are many schools in the tri-state area that send 10+ students to Ivy League schools annually and have very motivated students. Your school is not unique in that sense, so trust others when they tell you that you should not be super-focused on getting into M&T at this point. M&T is incredibly competitive, and if you spend your four years of high school with the idea of M&T or bust, you will likely end up disappointed.

Part of the reason I initially suggested just trying your hardest to succeed academically rather than focusing on Penn/M&T is that your grades don’t seem quite at the level they need to be. However, you seem to have acknowledged that, so if you really are set on Penn/M&T (which I don’t agree with you doing, but it’s your choice), I’d say just try to stay involved in your business oriented groups (FBLA, DECA, etc.) and work on improving your grades. Also, since you’ll be taking AP Calc BC as a sophomore, take multivariable calculus at your high school if they offer it, or find somewhere else to take it junior year.