<p>I was just recently deferred from Penn. My mom and three of my grandparents went to Penn. I have two questions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Does Penn defer legacy applicants just so they do not upset their families? Or are they really re-considering me in the RD round?</p></li>
<li><p>Will Penn consider my legacy in the RD since they know I applied early decision?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks, and congrats to everyone who was accepted! =]</p>
<p>1) I don’t think that penn defers legacy for this reason. They will be reconsidering you in the next round and if anything, your legacy may help you get in!</p>
<p>2) I sort of just answered your second question, but yes. They take legacy seriously here.</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>unfortunately</p>
<p>penn automatically defers all legacies if they aren’t accepted just so they wouldn’t be hearing complaints from parents/grand parents</p>
<p>the deferral allows the students to get into other schools, so they have little to complain about</p>
<p>^ are ANY legacies admitted after being deferred? I want to believe I was deferred because of merit, and not because of legacy… i have pretty decent stats and very unique/convincing essays.</p>
<p>I have heard of legacies being admitted after deferral if a large donation accompanies additional information…yes, it’s true unfortunately, especially for those from the NY/NJ area…</p>
<p>You are a great candidate for any school; try to find others that you will succeed at in addition to Penn…good luck!!</p>
<p>NOT all legacies are deferred ED if not admitted. There are definitely some who get rejected. If you showed no promise, you would have been rejected. And yes, some legacies get in after being deferred (even WITHOUT donating tons of money). Some of the answers that you have gotten are so grim and so unmerited. </p>
<p>I’ve seen your posts before and you do have good stats. You might want to contact the ACA and ask if they have any tips for you. They’ll probably suggest that you send a letter in a month or so expressing your continued interest and that you update Penn about any achievements. I can’t remember your exact testing scores… but if you think you can raise your scores at all, you could try retaking. Also just try to keep your grades up.</p>
<p>You definitely have a shot!! I wish you the best of luck! I could tell by your earlier posts that you were very interested in Penn and I’m sorry things didn’t work out the way you hoped. I’m sure you know though, that admissions are SO random. I might be remembering incorrectly, but I think you might have even had better stats that I have. I think a lot of it comes down to luck and how admissions officers perceive your essays and recs, (I think recs are so much more important than we often expect… I think my recs and a couple of my essays are what ultimately got me in). </p>
<p>Anyways, best of luck! Again, you wouldn’t have been deferred if Penn didn’t see something in you!</p>
<p>^ Well I am definitely open minded about other schools. I am applying to Harvard, Brown, McGill, Colgate, and UConn. In addition, I have already been accepted to rutgers honors program. I have a strong passion for evolutionary biology and there are many other schools that will be great for me. For instance, Harvard has an entire department devoted to human evolution!</p>
<p>Although I am excited about these other schools (I will even be plenty happy if I went to the honors program at Rutgers), Penn has been my dream school since I was a little child. I would like to think there is still some hope. I am definitely going to show a continued interest no matter if it is a lost-cause or not.</p>
<p>I know of a Penn legacy who was deferred ED and then was accepted RD, so it definitely does happen (and no excessive donation was made). You have a good attitude and a good plan–show a continued interest and update the school if you receive any awards or honors or become involved in anything worthwhile or unique.</p>
<p>Hi Ben,</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I am receiving many messages just like yours. I wish more legacies could be admitted. They deny about 200 legacies each fall, so the rumor you heard is a myth. I am also receiving messages from legacy students who have been denied. Your application will be reviewed again during Regular Decision, so at least there is a small chance for you.</p>
<p>I am sending out a message this afternoon to all legacies who have been deferred. I think it will answer all of your questions, but please feel free to follow up if you think of anything else.</p>
<p>Sincerely,
Steve Hamilton</p>
<p>Was that a response from the ACA?</p>
<p>yes… then they sent out an additional response about an hour or so later</p>