<p>^ Also, @HvePassion, you seem to be forgetting that Penn has a TEN BILLION DOLLAR ENDOWMENT, and financial aid for undergraduates is perhaps THE most important priority of Penn’s president, Amy Gutmann, and Penn’s fundraising (again, I know this as an alum). Not to mention that almost half of Penn undergraduates are on financial aid, whereas Penn easily could admit an entire class of only well-qualified full-pay students from the 35,000 applications it receives every year, if that were its goal.</p>
<p>Bottom line: BELIEVE IT. Penn is need-blind for citizens and permanent residents of the US, Canada, and Mexico, and has been known for that probably longer than you’ve been alive. </p>
<p>@45 percenter Urgh, prep centers have been telling me that FA definitely plays a role in decisions, so I asked for 10k less FA then I should’ve…</p>
<p>Maybe in general that’s true, but you have to look at the stated policies–and endowments and financial aid statistics–of specific schools. Penn is absolutely need-blind for citizens and permanent residents of Canada (and the US and Mexico). Not so for other international applicants, however, as Penn readily admits. </p>
<p>But I wouldn’t worry about it, if I were you. First, if you are accepted, Penn’s Student Financial Services will determine what your “demonstrated” need is, regardless of the number you specified. Plus, your aid package can be adjusted every year, so if you can demonstrate more need in following years, your aid will be adjusted accordingly. You can also ask for more if you’re accepted, as long as you can show “demonstrated” need that justifies it. Acceptance isn’t a quid pro quo based on the amount of financial aid for which you asked, especially for applicants for whom the admissions decision is need-blind, and that would include you. ;)</p>
<p>@Remi56783 Yeah, we were all IB students and I don’t know other people’s scores. For Penn (and most schools) they’re really just looking to see that you took rigorous classes during high school, so if your school doesn’t offer IB, I wouldn’t worry about it. :)</p>
<p>@HvePassion: if a college has a stated need blind admissions policy, you can bet that it’s an enormous point of pride for the college and its alumni. Veering from that would get someone fired rather quickly. </p>
<p>The real issue is even with need-blind admissions, can the school afford to meet the demonstrated need? Only a handful of colleges can commit to that extra measure.</p>
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