<p>Guys, can we not debate so close to the decision date? There’s literally nothing we can do to change our chances at all, and it’s not like we’re going to ever change public policy to make Ivy League admission purely “meritocratic” (unless one of us goes into politics or something).</p>
<p>Ahaha it’s just friendly discussion. I’m honestly just killing time until decisions come. </p>
<p>You’re right, at this point we can’t do anything to change the decisions. But it’s nice to speculate what ELSE I could have done.</p>
<p>I disagree, pixels. I know for my own essay, the 500 word limit was simply impossible. Therefore, my essay was just under double that length. Might that work against me? Most likely. Was it worth the risk? Yes, for me personally.</p>
<p>To be honest, who knows what is “Penn material”? For that matter, what is “Ivy league material” or “Duke material”? I think the college admissions process leads us to this false belief of what a candidate should be, that each school has a mold of students they are looking for. It’s a trap I would say a lot of us fall into, and colleges don’t say much to dispel that notion.</p>
<p>In the end, we’ll all be fine. The fact that we are willing and able to articulate how we feel to complete strangers, albeit not face to face, shows that all of us are on the right path. We obviously value our education and understand the importance of the next four years. But even knowing that we are on the right path doesn’t make the process suck any less.</p>
<p>An application can only give so much insight about a person. “Random” is a bit of a stretch, but college admissions is on that end of the spectrum. If we all have only a few people who really, truly know us, how do we expect a college admissions officer to know who we are based upon an activity sheet and a couple of essays? It’s the harsh reality of this process.</p>
<p>Very few colleges make any profit from their athletic programs. You can google it.</p>
<p>The profit colleges make come from the students who are drawn in due to sports.</p>
<p>^^I don’t presume they profit DIRECTLY from the programs, but from what I understand they do it to keep alumni happy and keep the donations flowing. But like I said, could just be another one of my conspiracy theories. :D</p>
<p>@Pixels</p>
<p>My mention of hooks was really about how having a hook is not that much of a boost to admission since almost all the folks with hooks that I see are fully qualified on the basis of GPA, SAT and class rank. Also, even when they admit someone a standard deviation off, those folks are still high performing academically, not slouches.</p>
<p>I may have communicated that poorly but you may also be a little sensitive about the issue also.</p>
<p>^The way you communicated seemed like you believed those with hooks weren’t deserving of getting in. I don’t know if thats what you meant, but it came off that way. As such, I had every right to express my opinion on the matter. I don’t think it was sensitive at all.</p>
<p>@eastcoastkid1, thanks. That’s exactly what I mean. </p>
<p>It’s unfair that we have to squish 4 years into 500 words. It’s hard enough that this is an almost foreign way of writing for most of us (expository writing is taught for four years, yet any creative or narrative work is usually neglected…), but we’re catering to an invisible audience. In fact, I often wonder why people complain about supplements. Supplements are just extra space for you to keep telling them WHY they should want you. Who would pass up that chance?! </p>
<p>When everyone is a National Merit Finalist, Intel Science Fair Winner, research intern, amazing artist/musician/dancer, and excellent student, there’s literally only our essays left to set us apart. </p>
<p>And what may be a charming essay to one person could be annoying to someone else. There’s nothing fair about baring our lives to complete strangers, only to be told we’re not good enough. </p>
<p>The college admissions process sucks. That’s why it feels so good to win in this crazy game. </p>
<p>Or maybe that’s just my competitive spirit talking.</p>
<p>^No one said to write about all of your 4 years in one essay. Rather, use what you learned in those 4 years to write a great essay about a question they ask. Simple.</p>
<p>Winning is ending up in the right place.</p>
<p>Meh. I’m not going to debate the semantics of the college essay prompts. </p>
<p>But I interpreted them as asking about our background, our present, and our aspirations for the future. All college essays should be written with the intention of giving the reader some information that they can’t glean off of your EC’s, test scores, and GPA. We are all more than numbers. </p>
<p>I personally didn’t write about the last 4 years of my life. But I definitely tried to show them that those 4 years were not wasted. I guess my essays were more like highlights - pieces of my life that I’m hoping are good enough to set me apart from other applicants. </p>
<p>Idk. For me, the essay was probably the most emotional and personal piece of the admissions process.</p>
<p>^That’s how I tried to approach my essays as well.</p>
<p>Just tossing in my two cents about the essay–I did not think the admissions officers would be interested in hearing my entire (dull) life story. I thought they would appreciate just enough information to understand how I work and how I think and how I live. Like everyone I hope the essays will help me, make me stand out–but who knows?</p>
<p>Ironically I think I’m becoming calmer as the decision date nears. I’ve done the best I could. I will have other opportunities. I am a ‘mover’; I will move forward regardless of the decision.</p>
<p>how many people out of the 4700 who applied early do you think they will accept?</p>
<p>Slightly less than 1200, most likely</p>
<p>^ I think about 1000 ish?</p>
<p>Does applying to a specific major such as literature or history increase your chances for ED to CAS?</p>
<p>Just curious, because history is the subject area I want to pursue in college.</p>
<p>No it shouldn’t increase your chances. It’s just a way for the admission officer to know what you’re interested in studying at Penn. You should show your passion for the intended major through your essays/ECs in which you are involved.</p>