Hi CC! Prospective Penn student here, with a few questions regarding the LSM program and Penn as a whole.
The first question is regarding my chances. Clearly no one can predict if I will get into a program as selective as LSM (or even Penn in general), but I was wondering if one factor might skew my chances. I took the ACT in December and received a composite of 34 (36 E, 34 M, 33 R, 36 S, W 11). I am taking the ACT again this weekend, but am worried that if I do not score higher than a 34 this may hurt my chances for such a selective program like LSM. I am hoping to at least raise my scores in math and reading because Penn superscores, but if this does not happen, I was wondering if it may hurt me in the long run. For any LSM students or people who know LSM students on CC: is every student in LSM someone who had a perfect academic track record in high school? Or is it based more on fit for the program?
Besides the ACT score, I feel my GPA and extra-curriculars are sufficient. I don’t really feel the need to get too specific, but my GPA is ~97 unweighted and ~105 weighted (we do not find out ranks until senior year at my school, but I am hoping to be in the top 1% out of a class of 750). My in-school activities are pretty typical: several leadership positions in clubs, varsity sport, student government, etc. My out of school activities are kind of unique; last year I did an independent research project that involved shadowing at the FDA and was selected as a finalist in the MIT Inspire research competition (placed 2nd in my category). Over the summer I had an internship at a research lab at Harvard involving the NASA Twins Study, and won a regional award for the research. I am now currently in the process of starting an NGO with the contacts I made through my research project last year that focuses on access to cancer care in developing countries. This is kind of irrelevant, I just thought I would give everyone a little background on my interests/research.
Anyway, for any LSM students out there: How do you like the program? Is it stressful/an insane workload? Are you able to manage the work and a social life? How is the guidance/opportunities through the program?
I’d also love to hear about how anyone else’s experiences were/are at Penn. I hear the environment is pretty competitive, but I doubt it is too cutthroat. Does the campus feel purely urban? Or can one still get the sense of a traditional college experience at Penn?
Sorry for this super long post, but thanks for getting this far! Any comments are greatly appreciated.
@confusedcolleges Your stats are definitely competitive for Penn and also LSM specifically. Also you have good ECs. Scoring higher on the ACT will help for sure but you are already within the feasible range for admission. To answer your question about scores vs fit for LSM, both are important. I knew many LSM kids during my time at Penn who had absolutely perfect SAT scores and GPAs and were absolutely brilliant. In fact that smartest people i met at Penn were LSM. On the other hand I also knew LSM kids with less than perfect (but still great) scores. LSM looks for extremely accomplished students with a clear interest in life sciences and business. So yes fit matters a lot but you need to be a top notch applicant to have a chance.
About Penn in general, it is competitive but not cutthroat. People misunderstand the meaning of competitiveness as it applies to Penn. Penn people are competitive with themselves not against each other. They grind hard, juggle many different things and are very driven. However they are not competitive or mean against other people, they in fact are quite collaborative and helpful towards one another. The reputation for being competitive stems from the fact that most people push themselves to achieve a lot and do a lot of things well so there is some peer pressure to push yourself. But there is a lot of collaboration happening for classes and interview prep for jobs and people are willing to help out.
Regarding the campus: While Penn is located within walking distance of the Philly center, it is not right in the middle of the city and it has a well defined campus. There is definitely a strong campus feel and community (often referred to as the Penn Bubble). So you kind of get the best of both worlds.
A 34 ACT will certainly be in range for LSM. I’m not sure that re-taking will really help that much. More importantly, your “kind of irrelevant” outside ECs and achievements are very relevant, will make you stand out, and will give you a legitimate shot at LSM, which is all anyone can realistically hope for with a program so competitive. What you will need to do more than anything is to put together a coherent and compelling application that presents yourself and makes a clear case for why LSM is a good fit for you, and you for LSM. Good luck!
@Penn95 Wow, thank you for the detailed response! You truly make Penn seem special, and have gotten rid of any concerns I had.
@renaissancedad Thanks for your response as well! I apologize for making it seem like I was saying my extra-curriculars were “kind of irrelevant.” I don’t think my extra-curriculars are irrelevant at all, I think they actually make my application - I just meant that I didn’t think giving so many details about my extra-curriculars is relevant in a thread with questions about a program. I also do think that I have a coherent and compelling application. If you’d like to hear how all those projects are related, please PM me!
@confusedcolleges, LSM looks for extremely talented and ambitious young men/women who are genuinely interested in life sciences and business and would like to be nurtured to be the next generation leaders in the fields. It is highly competitive without (or little) cutthroat among LSMers who are closely peers and indeed friends. By the way, LSM is fully merit-based admission.
‘‘Penn practices need-blind admissions for citizens and permanent residents of the United States, Canada, and Mexico, which means admissions decisions are not affected by a family’s ability to pay. All Penn aid is need-based. Penn, like all other Ivy League institutions, does not award merit-based or athletic scholarships. Instead, all aid is devoted to helping families who need financial assistance to afford Penn.’’ http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/costs-financial-aid/financial-aid-at-penn
@enjoyourlife, let me make a clearly explanation: “LSM is fully merit-based admission” means that there is no around 20% quotes for some background kids (e.g. Asian and Asian-American applicants). In total kids admitted to Penn, there are a little more 20% Asian and Asian American. But in dual degree programs, there are not. If you are an Asian/Asian American applicant, you are not necessary for worrying about “the around 20% quotes” in dual degree programs such as LSM.