My College Results!

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

It would have been helpful if I saw someone like myself last year, so that’s why I decided to post this!

Accepted:
UPenn (attending) - applied ED, deferred, accepted! + almost complete full ride, I think I only have to pay $1000 a year
Franklin and Marshall
Mount Holyoke
Drexel
University of Delaware
Washington and Jefferson

Waitlist:
Swarthmore
William and Mary
Bryn Mawr
Case Western Reserve University

Rejected:
Princeton
Cornell
Barnard

School type: Public
Location: Palmerton, PA (small town)
Race/Gender: White female
Major: Biology, premed
ACT: 29, didn’t submit lol
SAT: 1360, 1370 superscore (proves upenn really is holistic)
Class rank: 2/122
APs : Lit and Comp, Microeconomics, Calc AB (my school only offered these three and for seniors only)
Cumulative GPA: 4.355
Hooks: Low income/first gen, also both my parents dropped out of high school, and I identify as LGBT.

Common App Essay:
I talk about how watching a cow give birth redefined my definition of femininity and helped me to become confident in myself after struggling with femininity my entire life. In the end, I tie it into my passion for biology and working with women.

EC’s:

Volunteer- 4 years of volunteering in a nursing home, 1 year of volunteering in the attached hospital where I looked after patients coming out of surgery. Over 300+ hours in a hospital setting. I also helped out my friend run a free breakfast program at our local church for children 4-18 years old.

Leadership Roles-

  • Captain of Color Guard squad in school marching band for 2 years, Co-Captain for 3 years.
  • Captain of Volleyball team for 2 years, also aided in starting the team in my sophomore year
  • Captain of Boys Tennis for 2 years (our school didn’t have a girls team)
  • President of Mock Trial
  • President of Plural (LGBT club), helped with the revival of the club
  • Chief-in-Editor/President of Avenger (School Newspaper)
  • President of Leo Club

Also-
FBLA Nationalist
HOBY alumni
NHS member

Strong points-
I think I’m pretty good at interviews. My Penn interview was fantastic and I highly believe that helped me get in. Other than that, I would have to say my essays were very strong.

Weak points-
SAT definitely! I really should have studied more or something, but hey, it all worked out in the end.

Advice:
I think the essay is absolutely the most important aspect of your application. Talk about what you’re truly passionate about and let that passion become evident throughout your writing. A student tour guide once told me that in a room of 100 essays, your mom (or anyone close to you) should be able to pick yours out. That’s how personal it must be. Don’t get caught up in structure or the “essay format”, just write from your heart! Don’t be afraid to take risks!

Also for any other students that come from small schools/towns, please don’t give up. So many people told me that I had no chance at getting into Penn because our school academics weren’t strong enough and “no one around here goes Ivy.” BE THAT PERSON. PROVE THEM WRONG. If you want something enough, you will find a way.

2

Congratulations! Were you worried about mentioning being LGBT in your app? I’m a junior currently and debating on whether to mention it; I haven’t participated in any LGBT clubs/volunteering like you have, but it definitely posed a challenge to me throughout high school (b/c of unsupportive environment and all) and is something I’d like to write about in my essays. I guess I’m just worried that my app will happen to fall into the hands of an admissions officer who doesn’t like that kind of stuff. Do you think there’s any risk of that?

3

@tidalove Are you applying to U Alabama, Notre Dame, BYU, King’s College, Pepperdine, Texas A&M, Baylor, Auburn, or U Dallas? Then definitely not.

4

@penguin2 I’m mostly applying to California universities (Cal Poly SLO, CSULB, the UC’s, Caltech, Stanford) and MIT. Do you think it would be okay to mention it then?

5

@tidalove It would be Ok to mention it but it is in no way a hook.

6

That is an extremely low SAT score for a school like UPenn. Don’t take your blessing for granted and work on correcting your standardized testing skills. Being accepted into Medical school is all about GPA and MCAT scores. Best of luck to you.

7

For one, a couple colleges (including Penn) asked me how I identified in the application. As for my essays, I really didn’t focus on it. In my common app essay, I mention it indirectly, but again my main focus was my journey of defining my own version of femininity. In one of my Penn supplementals, I mentioned it again, but again I did not make it the center of my paper. I would recommend not creating your entire essay on the topic, as it probably is very common for admission officers to read. If you can blend it nicely into the essay, totally go for it!

8

I know, and I’m incredibly grateful that they were able to see something more in me. I certainly will be improving my testing skills as much as possible. I understand I have a long and difficult road ahead of me, but I’m ready to work hard and determined to get into medical school. Thanks for the luck!