Penn Class of 2023 ED Results ONLY

[college010101]

[ color=green]Decision: Accepted - Nursing[ /color]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 33 (35 English, 32 Math, 32 Reading, 32 Science)
SAT II (subject, score): N/A
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 4.14 W, 3.84 UW (upward trend)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): AP Human Geo (4), AP Calc AB (3), AP World (4), AP Psych (5), AP US (5), AP Bio (4), AP stats (3), AP Lang (4)
Senior Year Course Load: I take all my classes through PSEO at umn: intro to personality, physics, intro to american government, medical terminology, intro to sociology, child psych, multicultural literature in the us, intro pharmacy class
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 3 maybe?
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): haha no
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Nothing special, AP scholar with distinction, academic letter all years of high school

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): competitive dance (18ish hours a week), teacher assistant at dance, volunteer at a hospital for 3 years, NHS, Key Club, link crew (freshman orientation club), co-chair of a tutoring committee at local elementary school (11,12)
Job/Work Experience: Summer job as a lifeguard, babysitting, paid tutoring
Volunteer/Community Service: Hospital volunteer (350+ hours), various volunteering through nhs and key club (200+ hours)
Summer Experience: Lifeguarding
Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10: AP human geo teacher freshman year and AP world sophomore year. I was really close with her and did really well in her classes. I still go talk to her after school often and she got to see me mature from a freshman to a senior.
Teacher Recommendation #2: 9/10: Freshman bio teacher and junior year AP bio teacher. She is also an advisor for a club I have been in all of high school. We talk sometimes out of class and I think she really likes me. Having her for two years also probably helped her see me mature from my freshman year.
Counselor Rec: 9/10: probably a better than average rec for a counselor at a larger school. We have a pretty close relationship for a counselor/student and I have gone in and talked to her about problems I’m having before. She has seen me overcome a lot so I think that was helpful for this rec.
Additional Info/Rec: N/A
Interview: 8/10: It was a pretty good interview, she seemed impressed with me but it didn’t last too long and wasn’t anything special. We had quite bit in common and I was well-prepared but i’m not sure if it really made much of an impact on my decision.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9/10: I made it very penn specific, talked about my visit, and made sure to show how excited I was about Penn and what it offers. I also tried to make sure I expressed how I thought I would fit into the school well. I’m not usually a huge fan of my writing but I thought it was pretty good.
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 7/10: Thinking about this essay makes me cringe. I talked about how I overcame obstacles from my childhood to present. I think I tried to fit too much of my life into one essay and it was kinda cheesy, but I think it showed how I have grown as a person pretty well.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/27/18
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Minnesota
School Type: Public 2000+ students
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: ~180k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): None

Reflection
Strengths: teacher recs, taking some of the hardest classes and course loads possible, maybe taking classes at a college my senior year?, my EC’s aren’t amazing but I am pretty involved, volunteering at a hospital surely helped for nursing
Weaknesses: GPA isn’t perfect, test scores aren’t perfect, not much prep in chem, no SAT subject tests
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Penn was my first decision
What would you have done differently?: nothing I guess?

Final thoughts: I am honestly so shocked that I got in. I really feel like I am just an average suburban white girl and there are sooo many more qualified applicants that didn’t get in. This is a dream come true and I never imagined that I could actually get in here. I’ve been creeping on every stats page for the last three years trying to find someone that wasn’t amazing and got in, so if that’s you creeping here you go. Congrats to everyone accepted!!

[kathleenc13]

Decision: Rejected - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1st sitting: 1440 (740M, 700E) 2nd sitting: 1470 (730M, 740E)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1480 (740 on both)
ACT (breakdown): 34 (36E, 31M, 33S, 34R) – only one sitting
SAT II (subject, score): 740 Chemistry
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: My school is weird; we don’t calculate UW (but I’d guess ~3.94), weighted is 4.16
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): US History (5), English Lang (5), Chemistry (5), U.S. Gov (5), Microeconomics (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, Latin IV independent study, Honors Physics, Wind Ensemble (band), AP Lit, AP Macroeconomics, AP European History
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): n/a
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Honor roll, AP Scholar with Distinction,

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Marching Band 9-12 (section leader)
Band 9-12 (two district awards, first chair in 10th)
DECA 9-12 (medals at district & state levels 9-11, state finalist in 11th)
National Honor Society 11-12
Latin Club 9-12 (class leader)
School Newspaper 10 (features & news editor for online edition, we received a state award for the website)

Job/Work Experience: I babysit for two families & have for two years, in 10th grade I had a job for six months as a camp counselor, lifeguard, and swim teacher for special needs kids

Volunteer/Community Service:
Church service – Children’s Liturgy of the Word leader, Vacation Bible School counselor, lector (9-12)
Services for Older Citizens (9, 10)
American Civil Liberties Union community organizer – started an initiative against solitary confinement, led youth canvassing groups prior to midterm elections (11, 12)

Summer Experience:
American Civil Liberties Union Summer Advocacy Institute – summer 2018

Teacher Recommendation #1: 7, I had a good relationship with the first teacher but I’m unsure of her writing skills
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8, a great writer but really swamped with letters to write so I don’t know how much attention mine was paid
Counselor Rec: 10, my counselor is a big fan of mine and knows me really well
Additional Info/Rec: article for local newspaper
Interview: I don’t think my interview was the issue – we got along really well and talked for about 90 minutes, often veering off of application-related topics

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9, why I felt PPE would help me in college and with my career goals
Any dual-degree program essays: n/a
CommonApp Essay: why/how my dad influenced my goal to become an attorney, 8, feels a tad generic

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/19/18
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Michigan
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: ~27k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): deceased parent, low-income

Reflection
Strengths: Essays, interview
Weaknesses: lack of leadership roles in my ECs, perhaps my rec letters, SAT/SAT II scores
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Have only heard back from Michigan State University, accepted into their honors college and a specialized political science program with a yearly stipend, staff assistantship, and scholarship
What would you have done differently?: re-taken my subject tests

[xochinelo]

Decision: Accepted - CAS
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1400 (YES IT’S POSSIBLE) (710 Reading)(690 Math)
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: UW:3.99 W:4.26
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 11/41
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc, AP Psychology Independent Study, AP Lit, Statistics (and a whole bunch of other electives)
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Recognition from The International Commision of Benedictine Education - I was selected by the International Commission of Benedictine Education to meet and speak with Pope Francis in Rome. I also got a photo taken with me shaking his hand!
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): First Honor Roll every semester for all 4 years

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
-Founder/ President of The African Culture Club in my school
-Part of my schools leadership team (like student council in a way)
-Part of Students In Action, a service club at my school
-Volleyball captain for all four years of HS
-Founder of Voices Of Passion, a singing group that welcomes young women of all grades and ages to showcase their vocal abilities.
-President of The Debate Club
Job/Work Experience: NONE
Volunteer/Community Service:
-Founder and President of Root of Hope for Nigeria, a non-profit organization that aims to empower the youth of Nigeria through educational opportunity. (I’ve organized many events for my NPO in my community, both here in America and in Nigeria)
-Alter Server at my church
-Volunteer at my local hospital
Summer Experience:
-Went on a mission trip for my organization, started a scholarship fund of 100,00 Naira per year
Teacher Recommendation #1: from my calc teacher. She taught me for 3 out of 4 years. I didn’t see it
Teacher Recommendation #2: from my AP psychology teacher. He taught me for 3 years. I’m doing an independent study with him this year (requested the class because my school originally wasn’t offering it) so I’m guessing it was good. I didn’t see it
Counselor Rec: I’m guessing it was good, she’s known me since sophomore year. I didn’t see it
Additional Info/Rec: from my AP USHIS teacher who left my school. I didn’t see it
Interview: interviewer said he was “impressed by me”. Had a good conversation. Lasted about 30 minutes. Wasn’t extraordinary or anything like that. It was regular but I could tell he thought highly of me based off of my answers. I hear people saying they spent an hour just talking with their interviewer but that wasn’t the case for me. It was straight forward and lowkey.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 10/10 (talked about specific courses I wanted to take and clubs I wanted to join. Also mentioned how my brother goes there and connected that with how i learned so much about the school and how I gained interest)
CommonApp Essay: 10/10 (very very personal and emotional. Talked specifically about my growth from my hardships and exactly what i learned & how I applied that lesson to my life)

:
Date Submitted App: October 18, 2018
U.S. State/Territory or Country: New Jersey
School Type: Very Small Private
Ethnicity: African American
Gender: F
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): URM, my hardships (I won’t go into detail), my experience meeting and speaking with Pope Francis (this is not an experience just any student can say they have done), Founding a NPO

Reflection
Strengths: My essays & recommendations, as well as my achievements revolving around my NPO
Weaknesses: I don’t see my SAT score as a weakness, even though others might, because 1. Yeah it may have been “low’ in the eyes of others but hey, I still got in so. & 2. I worked so hard to get that 1400 and it all paid off in the end. Just remember, they look at you holistically. Yes, they want good grades but you need to be a well rounded student.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: didn’t apply anywhere else
What would you have done differently?: Nothing at all. I truly believe that everything I have done has led up to this acceptance so I would not change a thing at all

[crunchybagels]

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 770M/660R/14
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1430
ACT (breakdown):
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score): Math 2-780, Biology E-630
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 91
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): didn’t submit
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, Experimental Neurology (honors), Anatomy & Physiology, Terrorism in the Modern World (History), New York Stories (English)
Number of other ED applicants in your school: at least 4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): none
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Honor roll freshman and sophomore year (no awards submitted though)

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

• Varsity soccer, starter from 9-12th grades
• JV Basketball, 9-12th, Captain 11th and 12th
• Tour Guide, 9-12th, Head Tour Guide 12th
• Disciplinary Committee
• Black Student Alliance member
  Job/Work Experience:
• Certified EMT
  Volunteer/Community Service:
• Big Sister in Big Brothers Big Sisters Program
• Traveled to NA reservation and helped plan summer camp
• Ambassador for initiative to educate young black girls
  Summer Experience:
• Cultural Immersion Program in Spain (1 month) sophomore year
• Online course with Brown sophomore year
• EMT training junior year
  Teacher Recommendation #1: 8/10 – favorite teacher, English teacher and recent graduate school grad, great relationship
  Teacher Recommendation #2: 6/10 – Biology teacher, less personal relationship, but worked really hard in class
  Counselor Rec: 7/10 – great relationship, fully supportive of my college choices
  Additional Info/Rec:
  Interview: 5/10 – couldn’t clearly read how the interview went, but I’m guessing pretty okay based off my acceptance! We really connected during the opportunity for me to ask her questions, so it’s really helpful to pre-plan possible questions for the interviewer, as well as improvise based on the course of the conversation.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 6-7/10 – I didn’t really feel good about this essay, it was a strange one to write, and I tried my best not to kiss up to the admission’s office at Penn. I showed how I fit Penn, and how Penn fit me.
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 8-9/10 – everyone I showed the final product loved it, and said it was very good. Not quite sure though, I’m bad at judging the quality of my own writing. I felt pretty good as it was entirely genuine, and felt completely individual to me. I wrote about a favorite past teacher of mine and his inspiration for my particular course of interest.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/17
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes, was deemed not eligible though
U.S. State/Territory or Country: PA
School Type: boarding
Ethnicity: Black (Caribbean)
Gender: F
Income Bracket Range:
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM

Reflection
Strengths: not quite sure, my essay perhaps, my school, unique extracurriculars maybe?
Weaknesses: Test scores, lack of award recognition,
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Temple University, was waiting to here back from other EAs but not anymore.
What would you have done differently?: I wouldn’t change anything, really. If I had spent more time preparing for the SAT, it would have interfered with other aspects of my life and strengths of my application, so I feel like all parts of my application were just right! I’m so stunned right now, it’s all unreal to me.

Other Factors:

[Boo_16]

Decision: Deferred - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1540 (790 M/ 750 R&W)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown): not taken
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score): 780 (Math II) (only submitted one)
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: we dont have GPA in school
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): unavailable but probably top 5-10%
AP/IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load:
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 2 (I think both others got rejected)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): i dont think we rly have those.
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): History special prize, O Level History, English, Math awards, an award for exemplary services from a community service org

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
-President of a volunteer board’
-Vice President of Academic Enrichment Society
-Student Coach of Rowing team
-Interned at a prospective MNA’s election office
-Taking part in a Future of Pak conference (youngest volunteer)
-Attending courses on Politics in different places (Brown/Oxford)
-Rowing at National, varsity level
-Introduced an initiative at an orphanage for academics
-Prefect on Student Council
-Exec Committee, TedX
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community Service:
-Organisation + Teaching at Summer camp for domestic staff students
-120+ hours at special needs school
-Initiation of first special needs Cafe in country
-Teaching weekly at initiated program at orphanage
Summer Experience:
-Brown Summer - US in world pol
-Ox summer - Leadership and IR
-Internship at election office

• Supervision of internships and organisation of events at special needs schools
  Teacher Recommendation #1: 8-9/10 She’s known me for 3-4 years and shes seen me develop into a passionate individual abt hist. But her way of looking at people is interesting / high standards but would have been a very real picture of me
  Teacher Recommendation #2: 7-8/10 econ teacher but idk how well she is at writing but she did particularly like me and was my head house tutor and wanted to make me a house captain also
  Counselor Rec: Not sure, she was nice but idk how well she knew me. 8/10
  Additional Info/Rec: -
  Interview: It was w an alumni who studied the same major I’d applied for, she was relatively new to the process so while i was comfortable talking to her, it seemed like she put up a wall

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: I used my uk ps for this, found it quite boring but was probs better bc i read it too much 7-8
Any dual-degree program essays:
CommonApp Essay: Was about food… I started hating it bc i’d read it too much but it was unique so maybe??

Other:
Date Submitted App:27th Oct
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: International -Pak
School Type:
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: $100k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): idk what would count as a hook for me

Reflection
Strengths: Possibly essay and focus towards my major?
Weaknesses: AID! definitely bc need aware, Possibly bc i didnt submit a SAT 2?
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:rn, ive been made an offer by UCL, Warwick, St Andrews and yet to hear back from Cambridge (had an interview), LSE, UCLA, UCB
What would you have done differently?: Maybe somehow got more money but i dont entirely regret it bc cambridge is my top choice but penn is an extremely good fit for me.

Other Factors: In my country, you can count the number of people who applied. However, interestingly noone has been accepted this year (this is the trend for the past 2 years. Before that 4-5 just got in from my school). This year, 2 people from the country got deferred (funny bc im related to the other deferral) and the other 2 applicants in my school were rejected! and in the rest of the country also so i think the deferral was either bc they want to assess all the people from my country together or because of aid as they werent sure about us being worth it due to aid esp b/c such less international students receive aid.

[cwb106]

Decision: Accepted - Wharton

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1560: (800 Math, 760 English), 23 Essay
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): same as above
ACT (breakdown): 35C: (36 English, 36 Math, 35 reading, 32 science, 12 writing)
ACT superscore (breakdown): 36C: (36 English, 36 Math, 35 reading, 36 science, 12 writing)
SAT II (subject, score): Math II 800, Bio M 750
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 99.31 u/w; school doesn’t weight
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3, but school doesn’t rank
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): Macroeconomics (5), Microeconomics (5), Spanish Language and Culture (4), Calc AB (4). All were self-studied sophomore and junior year since the school didn’t offer them.
Senior Year Course Load: School only offered 3 aps, this was the first year ever that they offered them. Advanced Language and Composition, Advanced U.S. Government and Politics, Advanced Calculus 1, Self-studying AP Calc BC, AP Physics 1.
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Member of Mensa International, NSDA Worlds Schools Debate Double Octa Finalist
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): LILT 1st Place Spanish Poetry Recitation, National Merit Commended, A bunch of debate awards at local and national tournaments, Bloomberg Terminal Certified

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

1. Work at my dad’s family business (9-12)
2. Debate (10-12), Captain
3. Economics Club (11-12), President
4. Yearbook (9-12), Managing Editor of Activities and Underclass Sections
5. Manager of my own Private Investment Portfolio (9-12)
6. Tutoring, Peer Tutoring Club, and at Homework Hub (9-12)
7. Self-teaching Spanish and Russian
8. Internship at PE Firm, summer before senior year
9. Sodality, weekly discussion group (9-12)
10. Columbia Summer Immersion Entrepreneurship Program, summer before senior year

Job/Work Experience: See Above
Volunteer/Community Service: see tutoring
Summer Experience: Working, Tutoring, Internship
Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10, my math teacher freshman and junior year, in his sodality group (we meet weekly) and I know him extremely well.
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8.5/10 Spanish teacher junior year, should be a pretty solid rec
Counselor Rec: 8.5/10, I would say slightly above average for this one
Additional Info/Rec: n/a
Interview: 35 mins, I thought it went ok

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9/10, very specific, talked about my passion for the environment and how it molds with business at Wharton
Any dual-degree program essays: n/a
CommonApp Essay: 9/10, wrote about how my job spurred my entrepreneurial spirit and desire to make a communal impact

Other:
Date Submitted App: Mid Oct
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: NY
School Type: Private Catholic
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: 200ish
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): Technically first gen, my parents only have 2-year degrees at community college

Reflection
Strengths: Academics, told a compelling story through my essays that linked my accomplishments and my passions
Weaknesses: ECs aren’t amazing, and I’m not the best writer
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Binghamton
What would you have done differently?: Spent more time on ECs and essays

Other Factors: n/a

[katnissjul]

Decision: Deferred - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1350 (didn’t submit)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): same as above
ACT (breakdown): 32 (35E 35R 27M 30S)
ACT superscore (breakdown): same as above
SAT II (subject, score): 700 bio M (took others but this was my only one submitted)
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 105.64 weighted, 95 UW
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/225
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): Biology (4) Stats (4) Lang (5) USH (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Psychology, AP Calculus AB, AP English Literature, AP Physics 1, AP Computer Science principles, French 4 online, Environmental science and political science online at a local CC
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 2
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): not really
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): Lots of DECA awards (3rd in state for my cluster, 1st for my test, 1st in South Jersey for regionals, several qualifiers, national competitor), Key Club distinguished VP, Scholar Athlete cheerleading award, student of the month, etc (most notable definitely being DECA)

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

• DECA President, several awards on the state level and a national competitor, leader of my school’s study sessions
• Key Club VP & editor, raised over $9k as an officer of the club
• STEM Club founder and president, mentioned the funding issues I faced founding this club, leader of Brain Bee study sessions
• Editor for a neuroscience journal
• School musical (4 years)
• Choir with national performances
• NHS, world language honor society
• Working at a wildlife hospital for sick and injured animals (am now on their fundraising committee but Penn did not see that when I applied)
• 3 year varsity cheerleader
• Tour guide and docent at local historical museum

(I have many additional ECs that I actually got after I applied for Penn. I now am doing research at a local college for BME, as well as am making an ethoscope to study fly behavior with a neuroscientist, and am doing quality assurance work with a local pharmaceutical company. Additionally, I am volunteering at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia and will be working with various types of animals and biodiversity. Penn also did not see that I got selected for the fundraising committee for my animal hospital. All of these things are being mentioned in my LOCI).

Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community Service: All of my community service was done through Key Club and NHS (yes, my school’s NHS chapter actually does things)
Summer Experience: I did a camp for the United Nations for a couple of days this summer.
Teacher Recommendation #1: 8/10 My APUSH teacher. She let me read it, I think she spoke very highly of me and showed my academic curiosity and how I extended it outside of the classroom by volunteering at the historical museum.
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8/10?? My AP Bio teacher. She loved me and thought I was extremely creative as I would make claymation biology videos for her class. She saw my love for biology as I took it outside of the classroom as well. However, we were not extremely close when she wrote the letter.
Counselor Rec: 7/10. My guidance counselor spoke very highly of me but did not really put any concrete examples of how I showed any of the traits she mentioned in the letter.
Additional Info/Rec: None.
Interview: 8/10. I was a bit nervous, but my interviewer seemed to like me a lot. She found my niche in bio/poly sci very unique and said we needed more people with my enthusiasm in politics.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 7/10. I felt it was unique and specific and really showed my niche, but I am not the best creative writer. I think showing my interest in bio and polysci set me apart.

Any dual-degree program essays: Nope
CommonApp Essay: 7/10, about me being a “hoarder” in the metaphorical sense. Made me come off as someone with a flamboyant personality whose mind is always racing a million miles a minute in the best way possible.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 11/1 at like 11pm lmao
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: New Jersey (South near Philadelphia)
School Type: Noncompetitive public high school, relatively bad
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: about $150k
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): My dad works in Penn’s hospital system. I think this is definitely the reason I got deferred instead of rejected.

Reflection
Strengths: Honestly don’t think I have many strengths. My interview was good. I think my niche of biology and political science sets me apart from other applicants.
Weaknesses: TEST SCORES. ECs didn’t get good until my senior year, which is what Penn didn’t see (but in the context of my high school they are amazing). Why Penn could have been more creative but still was pretty specific.
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted Pitt but haven’t heard back from anyone else yet
What would you have done differently?: So much. Would have started studying for ACT earlier. Would have tried to figure out what I wanted to major in my freshman year so I could have gotten more focused ECs (I sort of just did what I wanted). Test scores most important though. I wish I started studying earlier and could have submitted a better ACT.

Other Factors: My dad working at Penn no doubt played a part in me being deferred instead of rejected. Definitely a hook.

Reflection: I am very grateful for a deferral. I have the chance to send in my most recent SAT subject test scores in bio M and literature, and to send my December ACT which may have hit the 33 mark. I have a chance to send a LOCI about the research and volunteering I’m doing. The acceptance rate for deferred applicants is around 16% in the RD round, and that number doesn’t scare me too much at all considering it’s about the ED acceptance rate. I am very fine with my deferral and am glad that Penn is giving me another chance to show who I am.

[reeeeee1]

[ color=green]Decision: Accepted - CAS[ /color]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1530 (790 M/730 R/20) ← didn’t submit
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): ^that was my highest
ACT (breakdown): 35 (36E/36M/33R/36S) (first try!)
ACT superscore (breakdown): ^one sitting!
SAT II (subject, score): Math II - 800/Chem - 790
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 93.2 UW/97.6 W (had a rough freshmen year yikes but got better as the years went by)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top 10%? (hyper competitive high school)
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): (All 5’s) AP Gov, AP Chem, AP Physics 1, AP Lang, BC Calc
Senior Year Course Load: Georgia Tech Distance Math Linear Algebra, AP Physics C, AP Bio, British Literature, Mastery Orchestra, Economics, Physical Education
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 7
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):

• National Merit Scholar Semi-finalist
• 2018 Governor’s Honors Program Finalist
• Laurette Winner 2018 Georgia Philharmonic Concerto Competition
• Semi-finalist Ronald Sachs International Music Competition
• 2nd Place Augusta Symphony
• Honorable Mention at 2018 Georgia Music Teachers Association (GMTA)
• Competition - Junior Strings Category
• 2nd Place at 2017 GMTA Competition- Senior Strings Category
• Honorable Mention at 2015 GMTA Competition - Senior Strings Category
• 2nd Place at the 2018 Augusta Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition
• 3rd Place at the 2017 Samuel Fordis Georgia Philharmonic Concerto Competition
• A bunch of placements in USA Rock Climbing Competitions
  Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):
• AP Scholar with Distinction
• generic honor roll stuff at school

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Violin

• Played for 12 years
• many competitions/awards
• studied with a college professor
• played at a hospital for cancer patients every summer
  Rock Climbing
• 10th grade-12th grade
• member of climbing team
• many competitions/regionals
  Job/Work Experience: (n/a)
  Chamber Music Society
• 9th-12th
• Secretary (12th)
• held concerts for senior homes
  Volunteer/Community Service:
• Beta stuff
• NHS stuff
• Played violin in the lobby of a cancer center for patients for the past three summers
  Summer Experience:
• GHP 2018 - Violin major
• ^other than that, not much summer experience; had to spend most of my time caring for siblings
  Teacher Recommendation #1: 8/10 - Lang teacher; had her in freshmen year and junior year and she’s a super smart person and amazing at writing; got pretty close with her but not that close but I think she wrote a good essay
  Teacher Recommendation #2: 8/10 - BC Calc teacher; I honestly have no idea how this rec letter was. This teacher almost never wrote rec letters but I was lucky to have him write one. He liked me a lot because he’s really quirky and interesting person and I think that he wrote good things about me.
  Counselor Rec: 7/10 - Got to know my counselor really well during senior year; I didn’t have a 1st or 2nd period (online classes) so i would be in his office almost every day and talked to him. He told me that I was the first essay that he wrote and I think he wrote a little than better generic essay
  Additional Info/Rec: - Orchestra director from GHP - he is an amazing person and I basically lived with him for a month because of this summer program and I got to know him really well. He also attended Wharton for undergrad
  Interview: 8.5/10 - Overall went really well I think. Had a really chill interviewer and conversation was really natural. Got stuck on one question he asked but i think it was okay. He didn’t ask me at all “Why Penn?” but whatever lol

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 10/10 - I researched the crap outta Penn and talked about where my passion for medicine came from. Talked about some classes that I was looking forward to, research opportunities that I wanted to take, and a professor that I wanted to do research with. Definitely could not have used this essay for any other college it was really specific and showed my passion for Penn.
Any dual-degree program essays: n/a
CommonApp Essay: 8/10 - talked about violin and how I’ve learned to give everything I do my absolute best and stay determined because if you do, good results will come in the end, even if the results aren’t the ones you are initially expecting

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/30
Applied for Financial Aid? - yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: GA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: ~50k per year
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): sike

Reflection
Strengths: really good dedication to what I did (violin)
Weaknesses: not that many EC’s that were related to my major (Biochem)
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: really good test scores for science things on top of big dedication to violin showed AO’s that I had the potential to do really well
What would you have done differently?: nothing much really. maybe more science EC’s

Other Factors:

• submitted a resume and also a music portfolio; there were 3 songs I put in the music portfolio that showed my best performances

[karen0]

Decision: ACCEPTED, WHARTON
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown):
ACT superscore (breakdown): 35, only took once
SAT II (subject, score): math II 790, only took one subject test
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.6
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP/IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Stats, AP Modern Euro, AP Lit, Religion, AP BC Calc, AP Modern Euro
Number of other ED applicants in your school:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Job/Work Experience: DS worked every summer since 8th grade summer. He always had two jobs, one for making money and the other an internship
Volunteer/Community Service:
Summer Experience: working
Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10
Teacher Recommendation #2: 10/10
Counselor Rec: 10/10
Additional Info/Rec: DS lives with his teachers at boarding school, so they know him well
Interview: Alumni interview via Skype

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 10
Any dual-degree program essays:
CommonApp Essay: 10

Other:
Date Submitted App: 9/28
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: NYC
School Type: private, boarding
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range:
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development):

Reflection
Strengths: Work experience, leadership positions in clubs and athletics
Weaknesses: freshman year grades brought down cum GPA
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: UT-Austin
What would you have done differently?:

Other Factors:

[MissAllAmerican]

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 700/760/12
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1460
ACT (breakdown): NA
ACT superscore (breakdown): NA
SAT II (subject, score): 650 Biology-M, 690 Literature (Yes, really. Yikes I know!)
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 101.2/100 (Weighted, out of 100 at my school)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/90
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): At my school, AP’s are only offered senior year, so no scores yet!
Senior Year Course Load: AP Chem, AP English, AP Calculus (AB), AP US History, Honors Physics, Spanish 4
Number of other ED applicants in your school: None
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Scholar of the Year (Regional)… if that counts… maybe none
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NHS, High Honor Roll, etc.

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science (6 years, human behavior studies, perfect scores at regional and state level)
FBLA (9th-12th, Regional Officer, Chapter President)
Student Council (Student body vice president, class president in past years)
Mock Trial (Lawyer & Witness, since 10th Grade)
Varsity Cheerleading (9th-12th, Captain, All American)

Job/Work Experience:
Some job shadowing with a lawyer
Local restaurant busser
Cheerleading Camp store worker (summer)

Volunteer/Community Service:
Local organization to help my community (youth board)
Volunteering with my home municipality (Township of residence)
Helped organize a powderpuff game for breast cancer at my hs

Summer Experience:
None

Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10. Super thorough, she was so supportive of me and told me she put everything into the letter!!

Teacher Recommendation #2: 7/10. Prob not super well written or thorough or unique, but oriented around a club that relates specifically to my major so I used it.

Counselor Rec: 10/10. Very long letter, super in depth and many praises. So grateful for this one

Additional Info/Rec: 9/10. A guy who runs the org I volunteer for. He definitely made it pretty quirky, which is cool and different. He’s a retired HS principal

Interview: 9/10. I had a really great conversation! We stayed and talked for about an hour, and then the shop we were in closed! He had a lot of advice and insight and I thin i definitely portrayed my interest and passion super well. Def came off a little nervous, but maybe there’s nothing wrong with that!

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9/10 i think. Used my father and his favorite plant as inspiration for an essay that talked about how and why I came to the conclusion about what I wanna do… and why I need to be at Penn.

Any dual-degree program essays: NA

CommonApp Essay: 10/10. About a self-started project I’m currently conducting that sheds light on the elderly in my community by interviewing them and writing bios on their lives. I also included a bio in the additional documents section.

Other:
Date Submitted App: Oct. 31 prob
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Pennsylvania, USA
School Type: Small Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: Not sure exactly… middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): None, no legacy, no hooks

Reflection

PLEAASSEEE know this: you don’t have to be the very best, you have to be the very best FIT. I stressed so much about scores and how the odds were so numerically against me. Instead of being discouraged, I made sure that i outdid myself in all of the other aspects of my app. In general, if you know you belong at Penn, and you can make them see that… that’s the #1 most important thing. I would have never expected in a million years to be accepted, and I feel so honored and humbled to have been. It COULD happen, and you don’t have to be perfect at all. They really are looking for people who belong at Penn, not just wonderful scores and extras. Anyone please PM me if you ever have any questions!!! I would love to chat

Strengths: Essays and Recs
Weaknesses: SCORES for sure/Lack of AP classes/scores
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: no where prior to
What would you have done differently?: Looking back, especially being accepted, nothing. I gave my application absolutely everything I could and really proved to Penn that I belong there.

Other Factors: nothing I can think of

[hyang]

Decision: Deferred - Wharton

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1570 (800 Math/770 Eng/17 Essay)
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): see above
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36 Eng/36 Math/35 Reading/36 Science/10 Essay)
ACT superscore (breakdown): see above
SAT II (subject, score): Math 2 800, Bio-M 770
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.89/4.0 UW
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): ~15-20%
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): Music Theory (5), Chinese (5), Chem (4), Calc AB (5), Euro (4), Microecon (5), Macroecon (5), USH (5), Calc BC (5), Spanish (5), Phys C Mech (TBD), Phys C E&M (TBD), Stats (TBD), Lit (5), CS A (TBD)
Senior Year Course Load: AP CS A, AP Lit, Adv Journalism, AP Stats, AP Phys C Mech & E&M, Hon Adv Game Theory (S1), Behavioral Econ (S2), Hon Differential Equations (S2)
Number of other ED applicants in your school: ~20
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): IDK what quals as major so all my awards are going in the common section
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Nat Scholar, NM semifinalist, PVSAs, NatScho Art & Writing Keys, Intl & Regional MUN awards, State & Regional DECA awards, regional piano awards, regional Tae Kwon Do awards, NSPA Honor Roll, minor school awards

Subjective: combining ECs, work, and comm serv into one lol
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description), Job/Work Experience, Volunteer/Community Service:
-Non-profit org, 10-12, Pres/Co-founder, support education in rural areas: raised >$12,500 for school supplies, launched remote online teaching platform at 3 schools, ran annual holiday gift drive, expanded club membership to 55, organized various events/fundraisers
-Model UN, 10-12, Dir. of Mktg, expanded membership from 6 to >80 students, launched program at local middle school, organized 1st intramural MUN competition, won various awards
-DECA, 9-12, Senior Mentor, proof-read papers & coach mock presentations, won various awards
-Microfinance org, 10-12, Team Leader, interviewed potential borrowers & organized data into balance sheets/cash flow statements, issued 40 microloans with 100% on-time payment
-Journalism, 10-12, STEM Editor (11)/A&E Columnist (12), managed content of STEM section in newspaper and online site, edited articles, interview sources (i.e. 2017 Nobel Laureates of Chem and Physics), write articles
-Women in STEM, 9-12, Volunteering & Events Coordinator, organized science fairs at local elementary & middle schools, organized experiment booths at science symposium (>700 attendees)
-Tae Kwon Do, since I was in 4th grade, junior instructor, black belt 1
-Piano, since I was in 1st grade, Certificate of Merit with Branch Honors passed, won various awards
-KidiTech, 11, TA, assisted instructors during elementary picture programming lessons

Summer Experience:
-YYGS: Intl Affairs & Security
-Costa Rica Summer Biochem research trip
-ECs (the non-profit, microfinance org, Tae Kwon Do, piano, KidiTech)

Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10 - Hon Calc C/Multi-var Calc teacher, said I was his top student during parent-teacher conferences & sent a bunch of those “you are great” emails during the school year, I provided a detailed list of accomplishments/anecdotes/highlight traits, he wrote my summer recs
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8/10 - AP Microecon/Macroecon teacher, I wasn’t not an outstanding student but one of his top students, known as one of the best teachers in our school, he’s great writer overall, he wrote my summer recs, didn’t provide him with accomplishments/anecdotes/highlight traits tho
Counselor Rec: 7/10 - doesn’t know me very well, probably have spoken to her for a total of only 4 hours, but she knows all my ECs/accomplishments & I gave her a peer recommendation written by a friend so she can understand my unique traits/personality better
Additional Info/Rec:
Interview: 7/10 - M&T class of 2015 white guy, picked an overcrowded Starbucks, didn’t get to talk about more personal unique points, felt like I was kind of repeating my personal statement out loud, but overall the flow of conversation was smooth, I asked good questions, and we had one really good bonding moment when he related very well to me on a personal family struggle

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9/10 - very well researched in terms of programs/courses/clubs, polished over and over again, approved by a bunch of people, but didn’t focus on the Penn spirit aspect
Any dual-degree program essays: none
CommonApp Essay: 10/10 - worked on it starting June, extremely polished, touched upon unique background (moved 11 times, attended 9 schools, bipolar dad) that led to personal growth & leadership, approved by many people

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/30
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Silicon Valley in CA
School Type: Private (avg SAT 1480/1600…)
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: Cis-het female
Income Bracket Range: 7 figure income, but not Up There enough to be a donor lol
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): none

Reflection
Strengths: overall stats
Weaknesses: SAT essay score, counselor rec, interview
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: none so far
What would you have done differently?: schedule more meetings with counselor, pick a better interview location & talk more about unique personal factors, study harder for AP Chem/AP Euro/SAT 2 Bio-M

Other Factors: none

[astrolakers]

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1540 (790/750/15) - lol didn’t submit
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown):36 (36M/36E/35R/35S/8)
ACT superscore (breakdown):
SAT II (subject, score):800 Math 2, 750 Physics, 710 US History
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.85/4.53 was bogged down by substellar freshman first semester
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): top decile - but technically top 9% cuz ELC
AP (place score in parentheses): Physics C: Mechanics(5), Biology(4), Chemistry(5), Calculus AB(5), Calculus BC(5), Language and Composition(5), US History(5), Computer Science A (5), AP European History (3), AP Microeconomics - selfstudy (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Seminar, AP Statistics, APES, AP Literature, AP Macroeconomics
Number of other ED applicants in your school:1
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):lol none
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.):NM Commended, National AP Scholar, Junior honor guard, (basically nothing major)

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
President: Astronomy Club (10/11/12)
VP: Competition Physics Club (11/12)
Co-Captain: HS Science Olympiad (10/11/12)
President: American Cancer Society (9/10/11/12)
Head Coach: Middle School Science Olympiad Team(15 hr/week-35 weeks/year) (10/11/12)
VP: Math Club (9/10/11/12)
Board of Directors: Music based Nonprofit (10/11/12)
Director of Operations: Aerospace engineering program working with superintendent and over 100k in funds (11/12)
Pulsar Search Collaboratory Leader (11/12)
MTAC Level 10 Piano - 10 years Piano (9/10/11/12)
Tennis (JV/V) - 4 years - Captain(9/10/11/12)
College Courses(20 credits by senior year)

Job/Work Experience:none
Volunteer/Community Service: MS Science olympiad and ACS (see above)
Summer Experience: Summer college courses, SIP Summer program, COSMOS Summer Program
Teacher Recommendation #1: AP US History teacher (7/10) - highkey he and I were homies…but he turned in my rec letter on 10/31 at 10 PM so seems kinda late and rushed to me…
Teacher Recommendation #2: AP Physics C teacher (8/10) - he and I were really good friends and I think he spoke well regarding my physics knowledge…may have been from a template but I guess it did not matter!
Counselor Rec: 9/10 - Really an amazing rec letter that spoke to both my academic and personality traits. We spoke often and she kept me in the loop on how to skip classes and make my way to top classes. I also read this one and damn it was beautiful…
Additional Info/Rec: Parent for a kid I worked with in MS Science Olympiad (10/10) - I did not read it but she helped grade and review all my essays (for free mind you) and overall spoke well regarding my academic achievements. I think this spoke well to my extracurricular achievements and aspirations.
Interview: 10/10 - we basically had a lot in common and spoke about penn and academic aspirations I could achieve there. Virtual interview

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 8/10 - it was good but generic imo…could’ve definitely been better
Any dual-degree program essays:
CommonApp Essay: 9.5/10 - damn near the best essay i’ve ever written; really showed my critical thinking skills and my background. (had a typo tho).

Other:
Date Submitted App:11/1 - LOL Clutch
Applied for Financial Aid? yep
U.S. State/Territory or Country: CA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: 250k+
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): none

Reflection
Strengths: test scores, extracurriculars, rec letters, interview
Weaknesses: GPA, essays could’ve been better
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: deferred Caltech, haven’t heard back from UChicago yet but expecting rejection/deferral (not like it matters anyway).
What would you have done differently?: nothing…PENN 2023

Other Factors:
I’ll be honest, this was…unexpected.

[penngal2023]

Decision: Accepted - SEAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1590 (800 Math, 790 Reading) - one sitting
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
ACT (breakdown): N/A
ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (subject, score): Math II 800, Chemistry 800
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 4.59 weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): no rank at my hs, but definitely in the top 5
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): Calculus BC (5), Chemistry (5), Statistics (5), APUSH (5), Psychology (5), Physics 1 (4), Physics 2 (4), English Language (5), Computer Science A (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP French, Honors Anatomy & Physiology (rigor of an AP class), AP European History, AP Physics C, AP English Literature, AP Biology
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 5
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): N/A
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National AP Scholar, National Merit Semifinalist, National French Exam Gold Medal (3 years)

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
JV Cross Country Runner (9, 10, 11, 12): Senior Leader
Key Club (10, 11, 12)
National Honors Society (11, 12)

Job/Work Experience:
West Penn Hospital Internship (12): 8 weeks long, 7 hours per day, worked in various departments, especially in the Intensive Care Unit as an assistant for nurses. Also conducted research in a hospital environment and participated in planning and implementing initiatives to increase the efficiency of the hospital.
Private Academic Tutor (11, 12)

Volunteer/Community Service:
UPMC Hospital Volunteering (10, 11, 12): approx. 150 hours total
Allegheny General Hospital Volunteering (11): approx. 50 hours total
World Vision Volunteer (10, 11, 12)
Living Ministry Volunteer (9, 10, 11, 12): outreach events for the homeless in my city

Summer Experience:
Hospital Volunteering and Internship (see above)

Teacher Recommendation #1: 9/10 - (waived right to read, but…) AP Chemistry and Honors Organic Chemistry teacher, knows me really well, did great in both classes, talked outside of class
Teacher Recommendation #2: 9/10 - (also waived right to read) APUSH teacher, great guy, loved my presentations, did great in his class
Counselor Rec: 8/10 - (didn’t get to read) one of the top students, talked to her more than the average student, writes good rec letters, probably a little bit generic
Additional Info/Rec: N/A
Interview: 8/10 - really hit it off, interesting conversations, seemed impressed with me, was pretty well prepared, talked about a lot of her own experiences that I was interested in too, nothing amazing though

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 8/10 - very specific, talked about different experiences and programs on campus that would directly influence me and my career goals, emphasized interdisciplinary studies, collaboration, and innovation
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 10/10 - LOVED writing this, many people/teachers read it and helped me edit, talked about my hospital summer experiences, but also a difficult decision that challenged my character and integrity

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/30/18
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: PA
School Type: Large Public
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: ~100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): from PA?, female in engineering?, not quite sure if these really count lol

Reflection
Strengths: GPA, scores, essays, rec letters, passion really showed through my app
Weaknesses: extracurriculars were pretty limited…, lack of leadership roles in general
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: University of Pittsburgh - accepted (didn’t apply anywhere else yet)
What would you have done differently?: probably been more involved in extracurriculars

Other Factors: Honestly, I’m still completely in shock! I’m so happy I’ve been given this amazing opportunity. I’m so grateful to my teachers, family, and friends for helping/supporting me through this process. I’m so excited to meet my fellow classmates on campus soon! For those who are still continuing their college search, good luck, and I’m sure you will find an amazing and vibrant community that you will love and thrive in. For hopeful applicants, remember, you don’t have to be the best candidate out there to be accepted. You just need to show Penn why you are a good fit for them. Explain how passionate and committed you are! Good luck everyone!

[BokysEdits]

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
ACT superscore (breakdown): 35 (36R/36E/34M/35S)
SAT II (subject, score): 730 (Biology E), 730 (Math II)
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Top 1%
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): World History (3), European History (3), Calculus AB (3), Environmental Science (4), English Literature (4), Spanish Literature (4), English Language (5), Spanish Language (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, IB Calculus SL, IB Biology HL, IB English HL, IB Spanish HL, IB Theory of Knowledge 2, IB History SL, Activities (student government class)
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National Hispanic Recognition Scholar, AP Scholar with Distinction

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

• Class President (9, 10, 11, 12)
• Founded project to prevent gun violence and suicide in school by tackling social isolation in 3,500+ student high school (10, 11, 12)
• Varsity and club swimming (2008 - now) Captain of club for seven years and captain of school senior year
• Free swim lessons and life guarding for underprivileged children (9, 10, 11, 12)
• Church daycare group leader (9, 10, 11, 12) 250+ hours
• Best Buddies club (9, 10, 11, 12) Board member (11) Secretary (12)
• Interact club (10, 11, 12) Board Member (11, 12)
• Guitarist (2008 - now) Making videos on social media and performing at school events
• Beat boxing (2012 - now) Performing at school events (said I wanted to do a cappella in college in Why Penn essay)
  Job/Work Experience: Lifeguard for summer camp (10, 11)
  Volunteer/Community Service: Hospital Volunteer/Intern (9, 10, 11, 12) 300+ hours working in emergency department, transportation department. I cleaned rooms, took care of and transported patients, and translated for physicians
  Teacher Recommendation #1: Calculus teacher (7/10) She wrote it in 20 minutes but I think it probably spoke intimately about me since I have had her for 3 years
  Teacher Recommendation #2: Chemistry teacher (10/10) She loves me and always talks great things about me; said it was extremely easy to write my recommendation and actually ended up having to cut words because it was so long
  Counselor Rec: (9/10) My counselor loves me and was impressed by my activities so I think that means she wrote well about me. I also know her pretty well and from what she said, she wrote about my personal characteristics and drive
  Additional Info/Rec: Hospital Volunteer Coordinator (10/10) I have worked with her since freshman year and she told me multiple times that I am one of the best volunteers she has ever had. I helped her organize events and run errands on top of doing my volunteer work so I think that reflected in my recommendation.
  Interview: (9/10) Went great and was 40 minutes long through Skype. She was extremely nice and loved to hear my perspective on life as I enjoyed to hear hers

Why Penn: (8/10) I talked about very specific things that I learned at the Penn Early Exploration Program (PEEP) and what exactly I want to do at Penn for the next 4 years. This means what classes, clubs, sports, events and other extracurricular activities I want to be a part of. I also talked about my long term goal of becoming a doctor for Doctors Without Borders and how Penn will help me get there, as well as why I wanted to major in Biology (to prepare for med school).
Any dual-degree program essays: Life Sciences and Management (4/10) I wrote it pretty last minute and later realized I did not really make a good case for the program because the program is not really catered toward premed students (more for research science and entrepreneurship).
CommonApp Essay: (9/10) I used beat boxing as a metaphor for my lack of social skills when I was younger and how it was hard to learn the language of English after coming from Venezuela at 8 years old. I compared how I improved beat boxing (I used to suck) with how I improved my social skills and I was able to tie two of my most important EC’s (student government and my high school project) as well as details about my background.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/31
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Florida
School Type: Public, 3,500+ students
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: ~50,000
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Immigrant (came from Venezuela at eight years old), Hispanic, did Penn Early Exploration Program fly-in (PEEP)

Other Factors: PEEP fly-in helps so much!! PLEASE apply if you are a junior this year. You get to meet Penn admissions and your regional rep (aka the person who reads your app for the first time) which helps immensely. If you are accepted to PEEP it means that admissions likes you which helps you when you apply to the school for real. The fly-in also helps you see if you really like Penn and if you would want to apply ED. Getting into PEEP is not a guarantee of admission but it definitely helps. In the same way, not getting into PEEP does not mean you won’t get into the school. Also, if you love Penn, consider applying ED!! They really take in consideration that it is your first choice.

If you are reading this as a prospective applicant and have any questions, don’t hesitate to message me!!

[elena719]

Decision: Rejected - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1560, 800M, 760CR, 19 essay
SAT II (subject, score): 800 Math2, 670 Chemistry, 690 Spanish
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 4.0/4.4
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 in uncompetitive public school
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): 4s and 5s
Senior Year Course Load: 4 APs + 1 online AP
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): None
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): NM semifinalist, AP Scholar

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Just a bunch of clubs
Job/Work Experience: Tutored math freshman and sophomore years
Volunteer/Community Service: Did the minimum
Summer Experience: Various STEM camps
Teacher Recommendation #1: Probably good
Teacher Recommendation #2: Probably meh
Counselor Rec: Probably good
Additional Info/Rec: N/A
Interview: Seemed to go ok

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: Thought it was good
Any dual-degree program essays: No
CommonApp Essay: Thought it was good

Other:
Date Submitted App: Oct 29th?
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: California
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
Income Bracket Range: High
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athlete, development): None

Reflection
Strengths: Grades, SAT score
Weaknesses: Weak ECs, No hooks, Subject tests?
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: No where yet
What would you have done differently?: Should not have applied, or should have been more awesome.

[Doomfer]

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown): 32 (34 English, 31 Reading, 29 Math, 32 Science)
ACT superscore (breakdown): 33 (34 English, 35 Reading, 29 Math, 32 Science)
SAT II (subject, score): 720 Math II, 690 World History
Unweighted/Weighted GPA:
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/117
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): IB History HL (7), IB Economics HL (7), IB English A Lang. and Lit. HL (7), IB Spanish A Lang. and Lit. HL (7), Mathematics SL (7), Environmental Systems and Societies SL (7), TOK (A), Extended Essay (B). Overall IB Score 45/45.
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): NHSMUN NYC Outsanding Foreign Delegation Award, several school subject area awards (given to one student annually per grade level and subject).

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

• OPMUN (10, 11, 12), Co-founder: an organization that brought MUN to low-income schools.
• Business Professionals of America Honor Society (11, 12), President: created in-school businesses, profits went to charities.
• Trading Club (10, 11, 12), Co-founder and President: taught investment to school students.
• MUN (9, 10, 11, 12), Vice-president: organized several conferences, won many awards at both international and national levels.
• Marketing Intern at a company in my country (10)
• National Honor Society (10, 11, 12), member
• Student Body Government (10), Secretary
• School Newspaper (10, 11, 12), member
  Teacher Recommendation #1: IB Econ HL teacher- I’ve had her for 2 years and we have a close relationship. I’ve also only gotten 7/7 in her class, so I’m positive her letter was really good.
  Teacher Recommendation #2: IB English Lang and Lit teacher- Have had him for 2 years but we get along really well and I’ve excelled in his class, so I’m also sure the rec is good.
  Counselor Rec: Probably pretty good- we didn’t talk much, but all interactions were positive.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 8/10 I was extremely specific about the classes I wanted to take and the programs I wanted to do at Penn. I developed really well why I’m interested in the subjects I’m interested in.
CommonApp Essay: 10/10 I wrote about overcoming a disease of mine and the effect it had on my family. Started dark but ended up on a positive and empowering tone.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/24
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: International
School Type: Private School
Ethnicity: white/Latino
Gender: male
Income Bracket Range: upper class
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): international.

Reflection
Strengths: Extra Curriculars, IB Grades, Essays
Weaknesses: SAT Subject Tests, maybe ACT.
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: nowhere
What would you have done differently?: Nothing.

[archgal2023]

Decision: Deferred - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): 1530 in one sitting - M 800, EBRW 730, Essay 21
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 35 in one sitting - E 36, M 34, R 33, S 36
ACT superscore (breakdown): N/A
SAT II (subject, score): Math II 780, Chem 800
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.87/4.42
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): AP Calc AB (5), AP Chem (5), APUSH (5), AP Chinese (5), AP World History (4), AP Macro (4), AP Micro (4), AP Bio (4)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics 1, AP Stat, AP Calc BC, AP English, Architecture, Peer Group Leader
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 5 that I know of, probably more
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.):

• Grand Prize for an international art contest
• CSPA Gold Circle Award in Computer Generated Art/Illustration
• CSPA Newspaper Critique 2x Gold Medalist, Highest Honors in Visuals
• 2nd at county tennis tournament 3 years in a row
• Regional tennis award by local newspaper
• Silver medal at a hackathon
  Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): National AP Scholar, National Merit Commended Scholar

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):

• Student at local art studio since age 5, won regional/national/international contests (9, 10, 11, 12)
• Founder and owner of design business (9, 10, 11, 12)
• Design and management intern at a pharmaceutical company (11, 12)
• School newspaper editor (9, 10, 11, 12)
• School food magazine editor (11, 12)
• Varsity tennis, captain (9, 10, 11, 12)
• Volunteer youth assistant coach at local tennis club (10, 11, 12)
• Senior Peer Group Leader (12)
  Job/Work Experience: the internship thing
  Volunteer/Community Service: the tennis coach thing
  Summer Experience:
• STEM summer program
• Internship thing
• Spent a good chunk beefing up my art portfolio
  Teacher Recommendation #1: 10/10 - Calc AB teacher and Peer Group advisor. I sat in the front and was always helping the girl next to me who struggled in class. Recommended me to be a tutor (didn’t take the offer cuz senior fall was kicking my ass oof) and recommended me to be a Peer Group Leader. Talked to her a lot outside of class.
  Teacher Recommendation #2: 8/10 - AP Econ teacher. I was one of the few who ever participated in her class, asked a ton of questions. Not the best grades but tried really hard, always led group projects. Didn’t talk to her much outside of class though.
  Counselor Rec: 9/10 - This one I was scared of cuz I had a different counselor every single year of high school (maternity leaves, temporaries, etc) but I think we connected pretty well after a few conversations. Super nice woman, very understanding. Saw my art portfolio and said it made her emotional, reminded her of her art days. Loved writing my rec.
  Additional Info/Rec: 10/10 - varsity tennis coach. Doesn’t have much experience writing recs but knows how much I love being on the team and how hard I work.
  Interview: 6/10 - Idk about this one. Lasted a little over an hour. I ended up asking more questions than he asked me, and he didn’t seem that impressed by my accomplishments. I said some stuff about our education system, idk if that was a red flag.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 7/10 - Your standard “why ___” essay, talked a lot about courses and professors I want to work with, wish I hadn’t stressed the academics so much
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 9/10 - Unconventional but genuine topic that showed my character, related it to my family situation. Everybody who read it said it was good but idk I was never really satisfied with the writing style

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/28
Applied for Financial Aid? Yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Northeast
School Type: Very competitive
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: N/A
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Art portfolio, showed the depth of my thinking and my exploration in a wide range of media

Reflection
Strengths: Rec letters, Common App essay (?), portfolio, the character I communicated across
Weaknesses: Quality and range of ECs, Math II score, UW GPA, interview
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: N/A
What would you have done differently?: Amped up all my ECs, studied harder the first time I took the Chem subject test (copped an 800 in October but I was stressed out of my mind), edited my Common App essay until I was satisfied (I did for later apps), rewrote my Why Penn essay

[Scholar2023]

[ color=red]Decision: Rejected - CAS[ /color]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): Did not submit
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):
ACT (breakdown): 32 (35 E, 34 R, 28 Math, 32 Sci)
ACT superscore (breakdown): 33 (35 E, 35 R, 28 Math, 32 Sci)
SAT II (subject, score): did not submit
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.86 / 4.11
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 121 / 405
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): AP Human(2), AP World(4), AP US Hist (4), AP Eng Comp (3), AP Psyc (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Env Science, AP Macro Economics, AP Eng Lit, Anatomy, Pre-Cal/Trig, Chorus
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 0
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): Varsity All American (sport)
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar,

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): 2 sport 4 year letterman; Captain Senior year for both teams, strong ECs across the board. Top 40 Cheerleaders in State
Job/Work Experience: 11th grade retail job; babysitting 9-12
Volunteer/Community Service: 3-4 diff organizations; averaging 75+ hours per year
Summer Experience:
Teacher Recommendation #1: 9
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8
Counselor Rec: Unknown - she knows me fairly well. I’m guessing an 8.
Additional Info/Rec: None
Interview: Excellent - truly a great interview

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details): 8
Why Penn: 9
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 8

Other:
Date Submitted App: Oct 10th
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: Georgia
School Type: Elite Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: F
Income Bracket Range: Not submitted
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): Legacy

Reflection
Strengths: Well rounded - 2 sport 4 year letterman, 9 APs, solid ACT.
Weaknesses: Class Rank - my school is super competitive and ranks on unweighted GPA without count for AP/Honor. Lack of leadership roles. Most A’s were lower 90-93, not higher.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Most pending - Accepted at safety school Univ of Miss.
What would you have done differently?: Add more leadership into my activities than I had.

Other Factors:

[cinderh]

[ color=orange] Decision: Deferred - CAS [ /color]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): didn’t take SAT
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 36 (English&Math 35, Reading&Science 36)
ACT superscore (breakdown): ^first time
SAT II (subject, score): Math II 800, Chem 770
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 3.82/4.16
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): No ranking at school; maybe top 15%-20%?
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): AP Biology (5), AP Lang (5), AP Seminar (5), AP Chemistry (5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Research, AP Spanish, AP Calc BC, AP Macroeconomics, Regular English, Media Arts
Number of other ED applicants in your school: 4
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): NHD China Research Paper 2nd place, Certificate of Distinction for University of Waterloo Pascal & Hypatia math competition
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar with honor, high honor roll for most semesters in high school

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description):
TEDx (10-12): currently lead organizer
MUN (9-12): treasurer this year; BD once, chair thrice
Photography club (10-12): treasurer last year
Track & Field (9-12)
Scientific magazine (11-12): part of editorial team
Mini mobile application (11-12): co-founded an application for buying&selling textbooks within our school
Piano (1-12): participated in several competitions; took & passed examinations such as ABRSM level 8
Freelance designer (9-12): informally designed visuals, such as logos

Job/Work Experience:
Baopals (2 months during summer after 11th): marketing intern at an ecommerce startup that helps expats in China purchase goods on Taobao (China’s Amazon)

Volunteer/Community Service:
-Teacher assistant at school summer camp for one month (9th grade)
-Mini app (see above)

Summer Experience:
-Internship (as listed above)
-SCAD summer seminar: week-long workshops related to graphic design and illustration
-HKU finance & leadership summer camp: two-week summer program that introduced me to finance, marketing, and leadership
-TA at summer camp (as listed above)

Teacher Recommendation #1: 9.5/10 I’ve known this teacher since 9th grade. He’s our MUN director and has taught me for 2 years consecutively. We’re pretty close.
Teacher Recommendation #2: 8-9/10 I’ve known this teacher since 8th grade. Was my math teacher for three years. I didn’t excel in all of his classes, but I think he has a pretty good impression and understanding of me since I help outside of class.
Counselor Rec: 8/10 My counselor probably also has a good impression of me, but since he’s responsible for writing a rec letter for all the students in our grade, I doubt that the rec was really personalized.
Additional Info/Rec: 8.5/10 Written by the boss of the company I interned at. Pretty standard letter explaining my contributions and personality.
Interview: 8.5/10 I was a bit nervous in the beginning, but the almunus was nice and understanding. I was able to answer most of his questions confidently. We later ended up having a pretty casual conversation that lasted for around an hour.

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: 9/10 I’d say it’s fairly solid. Explained my interests in research, graphic design, and mathematical economics (the major I selected) and connected them to a clear vision of what I’ll do at Penn. Spent weeks writing & revising it.
Any dual-degree program essays: N/A
CommonApp Essay: 9.5(?)/10 In my commonapp essay, I discussed how I’ve become a detail-oriented person by learning Chinese characters with my grandmother. I liked it, and the friends & teachers I’ve shown it to also did.

Other:
Date Submitted App: 10/25
Applied for Financial Aid? No
U.S. State/Territory or Country: China
School Type: Private international school
Ethnicity: Taiwanese
Gender: F
Income Bracket Range: 60k ish
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): N/A

Reflection
Strengths: I think my essays and rec letters were pretty strong. Had substantial extracurc activities.
Weaknesses: GPA, awards, volunteer exp
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to Santa Clara University. Didn’t EA any other schools.
What would you have done differently?: Improve GPA, participate in more renowned competitions related to my major

Other Factors: Our school is not well known, and no one from our school has been accepted to UPenn before. The lack of any indication of ranking also makes my GPA look less impressive, even though few students in our grade have 3.9+.

[goodvibes7]

Decision: Rejected -M&T
Decision: Deferred- SEAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):N/A
SAT I superscore (breakdown M/CR/W/Essay):N/A
ACT (breakdown): 34. took twice:
1st time: 36S 36R 35W 30M
2nd time: 33S 35R 35W 33M
ACT superscore (breakdown): 35
SAT II (subject, score):N/A
Unweighted/Weighted GPA: 4.6 Weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): Decile: 1
AP/IB (place score in parentheses): APUS(5) APChem(5) APenglang/comp(5)
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc B/C, AP Spanish, AP Physics 1/2, AP environmental, AP Lit, Orchestra and PE
Number of other ED applicants in your school: around 15
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel, etc.): N/A
Common Awards (AP Scholar, honor roll, NM things, etc.): AP Scholar, honor roll, community service

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (name, grade levels, leadership, description): Biggest achievement is starting a 501©3 nonprofit. All honors societies, RHO kappa secretary(11th grade), NHS VP, Orchestra VP, STEM club co-founder, Orchestra
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community: Did a program at PA hospital, stuff for honors societies etc.
Summer Experience: Traveled, worked on nonprofit, STEM counselor, volunteered at a hospital
Teacher Recommendation #1: AP 11 English teacher. I would say 8-9/10
Teacher Recommendation #2: AP Chem (11th grade) teacher. I would say 7-9/10. IT was my best class. Had an A+
Counselor Rec: Should be pretty good. 7-9/10
Additional Info/Rec: DId not submit an additional rec letter
Interview: was on the phone which was not what i would have preferred but I thought it went pretty well

Writing (Subject, 1-10 rating, details):
Why Penn: Kind of formulaic but had a lot of specifics and a nice metaphor. Showed why I fit ) (9/10)
Any dual-degree program essays: 2 M and T… I thought mine were unique butI knew applying to M&t was a stretch and very unlikely (10/10)
CommonApp Essay: My inspiration for my nonprofit and what I learned from the experience etc… (9/10)

Other:
Date Submitted App: mid november
Applied for Financial Aid? yes
U.S. State/Territory or Country: PA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Mixed. Asian and Hispanic
Gender: Female
Income Bracket Range: Middle Class
Hooks (URM, first generation, recruited athelete, development): URM

Reflection
Strengths: Grades, leadership
Weaknesses: Did not submit subject tests or win major awards
Were else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: did not apply anywhere else yet
What would you have done differently?: Worked even harder on my nonprofit and tried to win a major award. Also submit subject tests but they were not that great so I decided not to

Other Factors: