***** University of Pennsylvania ED Class of 2020 Results Thread *****

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
41

Decision: Accepted (CAS)

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown):superscore: 2270 (710M, 770CR, 790W) took it three times, each score came from a different sitting lol
ACT (breakdown): didn’t take
SAT II: 660 Biology, 670 Chemistry, (both of these scores .____., but i was an underclassmen and had no idea what i was doing) 700 Math I, 720 Spanish, 730 Literature
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.83
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): Spanish (5), English Language and Comp. (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: Calculus AP-AB, Honors Physics, Spanish 5, 2 English courses (not official AP, but AP level)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended Student

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Yearbook editor, food bank (head), tutoring (head), dance, piano, voice, black student affinity group (leader)
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Food bank, tutoring
Summer Activities: Research summer before senior year
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App: probably like an 8.5/9 idk, I was happy with it, but not like really happy…it wasn’t my first choice prompt but I struggled a lot with this one. Penn Supplement: I would personally give this one a 10 lol, it was really specific (it helped that i spent time on penn’s campus as part of a fly-in program, so i had a good amount of experience/insight).

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: Probably really good, came from a teacher who is also my advisor, so he knows a lot about me as a student and a person.
Teacher Rec #2: Probably really good for the same reason as above, lol, but this was at a semester away program I did, so he got to see me in a different setting/assess how I adapt, etc.
Counselor Rec: Probably great…my counselor is awesome and my school is small (my grade is tiny, fewer than 60 people), so the counselors get to know you really well.
Additional Rec: I actually sent three additional recs which you’re not supposed to do, but i needed a non-humanities one, and then I got one from a research mentor and a final one from a family friend who went to Penn (this one doesn’t really count though)…i would say they were all probably good, but not necessarily key to my admission.
Interview: …not great. It was over the phone and my phone actually cut out and disconnected twice lol. We kept talking over each other and it was just kind of awkward, but I think I communicated my thoughts pretty well. I actually didn’t really ask any questions, just: why did you choose penn? (kind of dumb, probably could have had more to ask)

Other: did a semester away from home

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Urban Studies
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private
Ethnicity: Black/African American
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: to be honest, no idea.
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, half first generation? my dad didn’t go to college, single parent household, spent time away from home before, did a fly-in program at penn

Reflection

Strengths: probably my hooks, esp. my semester away. my recs were also probably good, supplemental essay, demonstrated a lot of interest (through the fly-in program)
Weaknesses: GPA is not great (although my school is kinda hard), not taking ap science this year because my schedule got messed up when i went away, don’t have great ECs, crappy bio and chem scores, possibly sent too many supplemental materials.
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I honestly don’t know and don’t think I can speculate. Some of it is probably just fit (i just know in my gut that Penn is the place for me). Penn was just literally my dream, so I made this as clear as possible, and made sure to discuss not only what I can get from penn, but also what i can give to penn.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: nowhere

General Comments : I am honestly stunned that I got in because the competition is fierce. Congrats to all the members of the class of 2020, and good luck to everyone who is applying elsewhere!

42

Rejected: SEAS:

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2360, 2240 single sitting. 2400 superscored
SAT II: 800 on Math 2, 780 chem, 760 bio
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.96
4.76 weighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): most likely top 5%. School doesn’t rank, so no idea.
AP (place score in parenthesis): BC Cal, chem, bio, lang, us history, nsl, world. 5s on all except lang (4 on lang).

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): ap scholar with distinction, nmsqt, academic decathlon national finalist 2x. some science fair stuff (dunno if it counts as major)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

academic decathlon team captain, its academic team captain, science bowl team captain (state-level awards in all of them)

all state and local level clarinetist.

Volunteer/Community service: hospital, camps. tutoring as part of some honor societies. over 1000 total hours.

Summer Activities: Did research at NIH for 2 summers. honorable mention at science fair.

Essays (rating 1-10, details): who knows
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): average? idk.

Interview: went rly well. lasted for an hour.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: bioengineering
mid-atlantic.
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: public non-magnet.
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: male
Income Bracket: 300k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Really wasn’t expecting a flat out rejection :frowning: Nothing I can do now though!

43

Decision: Deferred

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):Just took it in December (I know, late af) so n/a
ACT (breakdown): 35C (36 Eng, 33 Math, 35 Reading, 36 Science, 33 New Writing )
SAT II: Math Level 2 660 & Literature 710 (Really mediocre. Just took them because they were “recommended,” which I heard basically meant required, and I had no time at all to study)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.73UW, 4.31W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): US History 4, Cal AB 5, Chem 4, Lang&Comp 5
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Econ/Govt, AP Cal BC, AP Bio, AP Lit (and a “field study” period which I use as a microbiology lab research period)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit, AP Scholar with Honor, but I doubt these truly even matter in the context of the Penn pool

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Senior Class President, French Club (Secretary), Multicultural Heritage Club (Director, started our school’s first multicultural fair), NHS, National French Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, Indian Dance Group, and some other generic stuff
Job/Work Experience: I’ve been interning in a microbiology/nanotechnology lab at a local university where I’ve been working on my own project since summer before senior year
Volunteer/Community service: Nothing spectacular, but I did a lot of service opportunities through NHS
Summer Activities: shadowed a physician, worked in research lab
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App: I’d say 8/10 being modest. I wrote about failing in research and how I overcame that (probably not unique enough though lol) and then Why Penn was an 8.5/10, wrote about how I wanted to explore my interests in international studies and not restrict myself to the sciences

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

I took FERPA seriously haha. I really didn’t want to see the recs in case they weren’t as good as I wanted so I wouldn’t potentially get disappointed. Probably not the best strategy, but it’s given me peace of mind. Ignorance is bliss.

Teacher Rec #1: Junior AP Lang teacher, she was like the first person to ever see faith in me as a writer so we got pretty close in that sense
Teacher Rec #2: Junior AP Cal teacher but I started to expect a pretty generic one from her after I sent out the application
Counselor Rec: She seems to love me, but I really don’t know how “stellar” her rec was
Additional Rec: My research mentor, maybe like a 9.5/10, wrote some really unique stuff
Interview: I’d say no better than an 8/10, no worse than a 6/10, though I don’t know what exactly Penn looks for in interviews. It was extremely late in the game (I was contacted like November 28) so I was expecting to not get an interview, and I was on vacation when I got the email for a skype interview so I didn’t get as much opportunity to plan as I would’ve liked. Still, the interviewer was super relaxed, and he’s only 5 years older than I am so the advice he gave was really relevant. I don’t think I was able to truly convey “Why Penn” as clearly as I wanted to because I was just so nervous. It was really conversational though, so we were able to talk for like 1.5 hours primarily about Penn and his experiences/ things I might want to do.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:Yes, though I didn’t scan in all of the forms or fill out CSS
Intended Major: Cognitive Sciences
State (if domestic applicant): Alabama
School Type: Academic Magnet, we were the US News #1 magnet at one point recently
Ethnicity: Asian (Indian)
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: $130k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): LGBT, though not sure if thats factored in as a hook

Reflection: Well, I’m expecting my 100% full ride financial aid package and acceptance offer March 31, so even though there’s a delay, it’s NBD. Lol no, seriously, I was expecting total rejection so even to know I was being somewhat considered is the biggest honor. I’ve gotten extremely attached to Penn in the last few months, and I’m not going to let go now. Even still, hopefully I’ll get in somewhere else I apply. My world isn’t going to end because of this. (though I wish I could say my obsession over Penn would end…deferrals are such teases)

Weaknesses: SAT SUBJECT TESTS. Man, those sucked. I might retake in January since Penn lets RD applicants send Jan scores. My recs probably weren’t as stellar as required for a school of Penn’s caliber, but that could just be my own self-pity talking. Essays could have been better. The usual things
Why you think you were deferred: I don’t know, haha. I hoped that my ACT score would help me, so maybe that’s what’s even keeping me in the running. I know Alabama isn’t super well represented, so I was sort of banking on the chance that maybe I’d be the only Alabama applicant and they’d have to accept me because of statistics. Oh, and my grades sucked freshman year.They probably just want to read over my application again because it was so good they can’t let go of it even to accept me. It’s whatever. :wink:
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: accepted to state school honors college, but that’s just the safest safety I have. I am procrastinating on supplemental essays as I am writing this post.

44

[asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted [/color][/size]

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2210
ACT (breakdown): 35
SAT II: Ecological (800), Math Level II (760), World History (800)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 UW, 4.13 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/372
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Biology (5), AP World History (5), AP US History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc BC, AP English Lit & Comp, SUPA Public Affairs, AP Macro, AP Environmental Science
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Hispanic Heritage Foundation Youth Award (Gold) in Innovation & Tech, Hispanic Rec. Program Scholar, Senate Youth Program Semifinalist

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Founder/CEO of online game, President of Foreign Language Honor Society, VP of Science Honor Society, President’s Council of Student Council, Leadership Council of Safe School Ambassadors, Founder of scholarship blog & biotech blog, President of Academic World Quest
Job/Work Experience: Food prep/customer service in two summer jobs over past four years (70+ hour weeks)
Volunteer/Community service: Volunteer Website Monitor @ Biotech Non-profit, Hispanic educational development for teens
Summer Activities: Summer work (above), LEAD Summer Business Program @ Wharton
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10/10 (said best student ever had in 20+ years of teaching)
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10 (English 11E teacher & worked with me on my online game)
Counselor Rec: 10/10 - Developed a very close relationship with my GC.
Additional Rec: My boss of 5 years; certainly an amazing recommendation.
Interview: 8/10 - Seemed to go well, nothing too extraordinary.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics & Biology
State (if domestic applicant): NY
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Rural public
Ethnicity: Hispanic
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: N/A
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, First-generation

Reflection

Strengths: devotion to Penn (spent a month on campus with LEAD), academic qualification, entrepreneurial experience
Weaknesses: attend a small-town, unknown public school, lack of research opportunities
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: ability to express why Penn is the best fit, entrepreneurial experience
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: N/A (don’t know yet)

General Comments :

45

**Decision: Deferred (Wharton) **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2140 (720 M, 670 CR, 750 CR). 2120 Single Sitting (720 M, 660 CR, 740 W, 11 E)
ACT (breakdown): 33 (35 M, 35 E, 35 R, 28 S, 32 W)
SAT II: US History- 780, World History- 690
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.97
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 19/550
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chemistry (3), English Language and Composition (4), US History (5), World History (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus BC, AP Government, AP Economics, AP English Literature and Composition, Korean 5H, Journalism
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Honor, Presidential Volunteer Service Award in Gold

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

Boys Basketball (Head Team Manager)
CSF (Tutoring Committee)
Taekwondo Student Instructor (3rd Degree Black Belt)
Hollywood Christmas Parade 2014 Participant
Journalism

Job/Work Experience:

Private Math Tutor for Middle School Students
Intern (Unpaid) for LA City Council Campaign

Volunteer/Community service:
Pacific American Volunteer Association (Interim President)
Moo Goong Hwa (Korean NPO Nature Conservation group)
CSF Tutor

Summer Activities:
Volunteering
Private tutoring

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 9. Answered the common app prompt on failure very well and brought out who I am. That simple. Writing supplement was good, but I could’ve made it much more unique. I still brought out the passion I had for Penn in my essay though,

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Korean teacher: 10. Known her for 4 years and counting and have been consistently one of her best students in her class. Knows me both personally and outside of school.
Math Teahcer- 9. Had her last year for Pre-Calculus H and have her this year for Calculus BC. One of her favorite students and have gotten to know her personally. Also I am one of the people who is doing well in BC.
Counselor- 8. I am one of the students that she actually remembers out of 150. Got good input from other teachers and basketball coach (dean of students).
David Ryu (LA City Councilman)- 7.5. Got to know him well during his campaign, but did not intern as much as other people did.
Interview: Don’t know. Interviewer seemed to like me but I did mess up on some questions. Good?

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Finance/Business Economics and Public Policy/Legal Studies and Business Ethics
State (if domestic applicant): California
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Korean
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 200k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): NONE

Reflection

Strengths: GPA, Different EC’s than other people would have with demonstrated passion, Essays, the fact that no one ever applied ED to Penn from my school before, recs and interviews
Weaknesses: Test scores, lack of SAT Math II, lack of business activities, few EC’s, course rigor
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strengths barely outnumbered weaknesses, so I got deferred. Passion for the school saved me where stats could not.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Applying to UCLA, Berkeley, SD, Irvine, Santa Barbara, Riverside, Cal Poly SLO, CSULB, NYU Stern, Columbia, Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Brown, USC, Princeton,

General Comments : SUPER SURPRISED that i got deferred. Was expecting a rejection but stoked with a deferral. Can’t wait to hear on March 31.

GOQUAKERS

46

Rejected: SEAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1870: 610 CR, 680 Math, 580 Writing
ACT (breakdown): N/a
SAT II: Math lv 2: 660, physics: 580
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): N/a
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Calculus, AP Statistics, AP Physics, AP Language, Concert Band, Desktop/yearbook publisher, and P.E.
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Induction into National Honor Society, Nominated and Accepted into Lehigh university’s summer Entrepreneurship program, National History Day school competition winner (website category), best musician award 2015.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Varsity Track & Field 9, 10, 11, 12 (captain) have 2 school records to my name
Varsity Soccer 9,10 and 12 (Vice Captain)
Green Team 11, 12 (Vice President)
Math Club 11, 12 (Vice President & President
National History Day 11, 12 won the school competition and represented school in the international conference
National Honor Society 11, 12 Chosen based on G.P.A, leadership, community service, and character
Fitness Club 9, 10 (assistant advisor)
School Band 9, 10, 11, 12

Job/Work Experience:
Internship at SIUT (charity hospital)
Internship at SKMF (NGO)

Volunteer/Community service: (210 hours overall)

  • Created running trail on my school campus
  • Special Olympic: held games with handicapped men and children.
  • Kamps Schools: Played cricket with underprivileged kids, and funded their equipment and rented official stadium for the matches.
  • Helped an NGO set up a rain water catchment purifier in a rural area of Pakistan home to 12,000 people.
  • Charity hospital: talked to patients, made beds, and organized filing system.
  • Taught math and physics at underprivileged school
  • National Honor Society community service: raised money and set up a water purifier at underprivileged school, Tutored students in math, and organized events like the talent show.

Summer Activities: Nothing really, some of my community service was done in summer though.

Essays (rating 1-10, details):

  • Common App: 8
  • Penn supplement: 9

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 9
Teacher Rec #2: 8
Counselor Rec: 8
Additional Rec: 9
Interview: 8

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Mechanical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Pakistan
School Type: Private American International High School
Ethnicity: South Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: 70,000 dollars per year
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: my recommendations, interview, essay, activities to some extent
Weaknesses: Test Scores no doubt…
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Rejected: Test scores are the standout. Everyone thing was either good or at least average for Penn.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted into Seton Hall University for dual program in engineering and physics on 92,500 dollar scholarship. Applied to UIUC, UVA, UT-Austin and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

General Comments : Teachers and counselors say SAT doesn’t matter that much but I guess when your up against people who have 2200+ having an 1870 does significantly decrease your chances. Also my subject test scores weren’t good either but only had half a semester of AP Physics before the AP, Math lv 2 was a bit disappointing though. To be honest no one in my entire school has done well with SATs. The highest score from my school is a 2020 and there are lots of us who have GPAs of 3.9 and above.

Would love feedback if anyone is willing. Gonna be trying my luck at duke, NYU, dartmouth, Princeton and cornel as well. Mainly because they give need-based financial aid to International students and that’s the only way I’ll be able to afford a US education. Please don’t say improve SAT, because it just won’t happen. Any other suggestions would be great! :slight_smile:

Congrats to everyone who got in!

47

**Decision: Accepted to Wharton **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Superscore: 2290 (R690,M800,W800) 2 sittings
SAT II: Math II (730), Physics (670)

Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Weighted GPA: 4.63
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 22/699
AP (place score in parenthesis): Chem (3). World History (4). US History (5). Lang (5), Physics C (5), Physics 1 (4) Calc BC (5), Psychology (5),

Senior Year Course Load: AP Gov, AP Econ, AP Lit, AP Stats, MUN Teacher Assistant, AP Spanish Lang, AP Music Theory, Orchestra (Honors), AP Physics E&M,
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Hispanic Recognition Program, AP Scholar with Distinction (1 point away from national AP Scholar whyy AP Chem), National Merit Commended Student, High School Honor Guard (Honors the top 20 students in grade level, National Model UN champion

Subjective:
Extracurriculars:
Founder and president of a charity club that has done national and international work and raised thousands of dollars for charitable causes such as orphanages or indigenous tribes.
MUN (most 1st place awards in my school), National MUN champion, MUN Teacher Assistant (competitive position)
Black Belt in Karate - 11 years, Assistant instructor, won numerous gold medals
Eagle Scout
Played violin for 8 years in school’s orchestra as a first violin, nominated best string player
Part of selective club that mentors students with social pragmatic disorders
AP Physics Tutor

Job/Work Experience: Paid chemistry lab assistant
Summer Activities: Summer programs at UCLA, UCI, and Georgetown (all college credit)
Essays: Common App essay (8/10) about mission trip through my club (not cliche I promise), Why Penn (8/10) (talked about my interest in microfinance and how it can help the world with Penn’s microfinance club. It’s unique but maybe too specific)
Teacher Recommendation: Both amazing
Counselor Rec: Slightly more than generic
Additional Rec: From professor from Georgetown: unsure how it is… but the class I took from him relates to what I want to study

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Business Economics and Public Policy
State: California
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Hispanic (South America)
Gender: Male
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection

Strengths: SAT I, ECs, Recs
Weaknesses: SAT IIs, I still am not sure how my essays were. By the 10th draft i couldn’t stand to read them lol
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Good test scores, unique and stand-out ECs, recs
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: nowhere, beauty of ED :slight_smile:

General Comments : So excited!!! ahhhh

48

**Decision: Accepted SEAS **
Rejected M&T

Objective:

ACT (breakdown): 36 super score (36 Math, 36 Reading, 34 English, 36 Science) , 35 single sitting
SAT II: 800 Math 2, 790 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.86
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesnt rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): 17 AP tests

Senior Year Course Load: Full time at University of Minnesota: Thermodynamics, Java, Intro to Circuits, Financial Accounting, Finance Fundamentals, English Lit, World History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Intel ISEF and other science fair awards, 2nd place at state in Science Olympiad, 5th at Science Bowl state, National AP scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Science Olympiad( Captain), Science Bowl (Captain and co-Founder), Quiz Bowl( Captain of 2nd team/12 teams), Science Fair, Tutoring
Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: Tutoring at summer school
Summer Activities: Particle Physics Camp at Stanford, Nanotechnology camp at IUPUI, Materials Science camp at University of MInnesota, and M&TSI at UPenn
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CA essay 7-9idk, UPenn engineering essay 7-9, Why M&T essay 9-10, and Leadership essay 5-7

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: My Physics teacher absolutely loved me but he isnt as good of a writer.
Teacher Rec #2: I had this teacher for 3 years in a row plus she is my coach for Science Olympiad. Very good.
Counselor Rec: He liked me a lot and probably wrote a very good letter.
Interview: We had a good conversation but he didn’t seem very impressed.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: No
Intended Major: Electrical Engineering
State (if domestic applicant): MN
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: large public
Ethnicity: Indian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: idk
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection

Strengths: I went to camp at UPenn the previous summer and was able to use those experiences in my essay.
Weaknesses: Low GPA and no business ECs.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to the University of Minnesota and Purdue.

49

Decision: Deferred M&T/Wharton

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2260, 2300 single sitting, 2340 superscored
ACT (breakdown): 36 (36E, 35M, 35R, 36S), writing 11/12 all sections (so 31 on new scale)
SAT II: 800 on Math II, 760 World History and Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.77, weighted 4.52
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a, assuming top 2%
AP (place score in parenthesis): 5s on Calc BC, Gov, Human Geo, World History, Macro, Micro, Stat, Physics C Mechanics, Lang, Span Lang, US History, 4 on Chem, 3 on Physics C E&M
Senior Year Course Load: Discrete math (class after lin alg/diffyq), AP Biology, AP Spanish Lit, AP Lit, required classes for graduation
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none
Minor Awards: National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar, Silver in National Spanish Exam, regional math awards, state stock market awards

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

(Internet gaming businesses): pulling in roughly 100k annual revenue, 40k profit
Model UN (Officer position): presided over several conferences, won the standard best/outstanding/honorable mention delegate awards
FBLA: Won #1 in state for computer-related competition, several #1 in district for math/calculations

Volunteer/Community service: School tutoring for roughly 25h from sophomore year, not much else

Summer Activities: Internship at university research institute - no paper, just software development. Lots of business activities.

Essays (rating 1-10, details):

Common App - 8/10, about major leg injury
Why Penn - 9/10, lots of research
M&T - 9/10, definitely showed passion.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

US History - 10/10
Chem - 7/10 (B in class, Naviance wouldn’t let me reassign teachers)
Counselor - 9/10
Employer/business partner - 10/10, probably gave lots of good examples

Interview: Lasted for 45 minutes, talked a lot about interviewer’s workplace and managing software developers. Went decently.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer science, operations management
State (if domestic applicant): CO
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Large public
Ethnicity: Chinese
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: <100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A

Reflection

Strengths: Business extracurriculars (everything except revenue figures are easily confirmed on the internet)
Weaknesses: Mediocre science/math grades from sophomore year (Bs + 1C), average in-school ECs, lack of volunteer work
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Average science teacher rec + weaknesses
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: CU Boulder - Accepted, waiting for UChicago and Caltech

General comments: Meh. Guessing I have a chance after the senior year transcript + better teacher rec are submitted.

50

Decision: Rejected (Wharton)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2320 (R760M780W780, superscored)
ACT (breakdown): n/a
SAT II: Math II (790), Chinese (800)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): n/a, 4.51(weighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): n/a
AP (place score in parenthesis): Stats (5), Micro (5), Macro (5), Calc AB (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: AP Lang, AP US Gov, AP Calc BC, AP Psych, Logic, Java
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar w/ Distinction

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Swim (captain), School Newspaper (Editor-in-chief), MUN (chaired, reporter, editor, editor-in-chief), Orchestra (section leader), Entrepreneurship Program (Marketing Head)
Job/Work Experience: n/a
Volunteer/Community service: NGO stuff
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8, decent
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): don’t know didn’t look

Teacher Rec #1: don’t know
Teacher Rec #2: don’t know
Counselor Rec: don’t know
Additional Rec:
Interview: Pretty decent

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: nope
Intended Major: Mgmt
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant): Int’l
School Type: International (private)
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): n/a

Reflection

Strengths:
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: honestly I guess I’m just pretty average
Where else are you applying to: UVA, UMich, Cornell, UC, Washu, USC, Notre Dame, NYU, UChicago, Northwestern

General Comments : first result… burns.

51

[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted [/color][/size]**

Wharton

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):2100 CR:680 M:690 CW:730
ACT (breakdown):C:34 M:31 EN:34 R:33 S:36
SAT II: Math II :690 Chemistry: 690 Math I: 740
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.76 Weighted:4.5
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):18/555
AP (place score in parenthesis): Psychology(5) APUSH(5) English(5) Statistics(3) self study, Chemistry(3)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:AP US Gov, AP English lit, AP Spanish language, AP calculus AB, AP Microecon, APES
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Mostly school awards like principals honor roll etc.

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): California Scholarship Federation-3 yrs-(VP)- I brought a scholarship help service to my school to inform students on how to search for scholarships.
Red Cross Club 1yr(Pres)- Reinstated Red Cross and brought CPR training to my school.
Cross Country/Track-4 yrs-(Varsity)- ran all 4 years on a state title achieving team.
Key Club-4 yrs- racked up 150 volunteer hours here.
National Honor Society-3 yrs- volunteer work
Gay Straight Alliance-2 yrs-(Events Coordinator)- expanded our club in members five-fold and changed dress code at my school.
Job/Work Experience: I work about 28 hours per week now, but didn’t put it on my application.
Volunteer/Community service: ~175 hours most from clubs and the rest from Steven’s hope for children Charity similar to goodwill.
Summer Activities: Traveling to visit family in Europe(most summers), Volunteering, recruiting club members, Cross Country practice.
Essays (rating 1-10, details): CApp: (9/10) same essay I used for PEEP but slightly tweaked it got me into both!
Penn:(10/10): I think the opening was really great. Everyone who read it was super surprised and intrigued.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:(9/10) She really put a lot of time in and asked a lot of questions.
Teacher Rec #2:(10/10) We love each other so I’m pretty sure this one was awesome
Counselor Rec:(7/10) She’s really nice but we only spoke about 3 times before the rec.
Additional Rec: none
Interview: I think it went pretty well; he matched my interests exactly and we went in depth about some societal issues.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:Yes
Intended Major: Econ/Marketing/Finance
State (if domestic applicant):CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:Public ~2000 students good sports but mediocre academics
Ethnicity: African/South American
Gender:M
Income Bracket:70-80k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, attended PEEP

Reflection: I really think PEEP had a big impact in my application. I was suprised I got in to Wharton because math is my weakest subject, but I’m so excited to attend!

Strengths: ACT, weighted GPA, essays
Weaknesses: Math scores and grades, no major awards
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: because of my humanities scores and attending PEEP/ good essays
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Haven’t heard From MIT, UC Berkeley, or UCLA yet but I’m not applying anywhere else obviously.

General Comments

52

Decision: Accepted SEAS
Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1970 (super score) (CR 660/M 690/W620)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: bio-m (690), math-2 (720)
GPA (out of 6.0): 4.78
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 16/210
AP (place score in parenthesis): bio (4), us history (3), stats (3), spanish (5)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: ap chem, ap calc, ap physics-C, honors bioE, graduation requirement classes
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): ap scholar with honor, national honor society, winner of the Bayer School of Natural and Environmental Sciences Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry award
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): varsity tennis captain, vice president of the forensics society, creator of the Advanced Society of Science(educational outreach program), Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science , tennis coach assistant at the Inner City Junior Tennis Program, Senior member of Crossroads Foundation program that helps freshmen adjust to high school
Job/Work Experience: Summer intern at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, junior counselor at PRYSE summer refugee academy
Volunteer/Community service: +300 hours of tutoring through two different programs
Summer Activities: internship, summer classes,junior counselor at refugee summer camp
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Commonapp: 10/10 I thought it was my best writing to date; I talked about how being an immigrant to the US left my identity to be defined as an immigrant, and education helped me establish an identity for myself.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Penn essay: 9/10 I did tons of research about penn and incorporated key penn traits and why penn was the school for me.
Teacher Rec #1: 10/10 biology teacher of 3 years, he is the one who got me interested in bioE. He has known me for 6 years and is something of a mentor to me.
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10 trig teacher, I was a pretty good student in his class but he was also very impressed with my resume and wrote me a great letter.
Counselor Rec: 7/10 I assume it was pretty good, I don’t know her that well but she was very enthusiastic about helping me get to penn.
Additional Rec: 8/10 debate coach, he has seen my progress in debate and school since freshman year and he is familiar with my personal life; I assume it was a pretty good letter.
Interview: My interview was fantastic, it lasted about 45 minutes and I had already had extensive answers to every questions she asked. By the end she said penn would be a great place for me.
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: bioengineering
State (if domestic applicant): pennsylvania
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: private
Ethnicity: latino
Gender: male
Income Bracket: <50k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection

Strengths: I’m sure that it helped a lot that I’m latino, but besides that I have +300 hours of tutoring hours, and roughly 450 hours for debate in senior year alone. The UPCI internship I did after sophomore year probably helped too, as well as the Advanced Society of Science group I created(my friend who helped me run it also got into penn!) Also my recs and essays
Weaknesses: sat I and II scores,GPA
General Comments :
I have gotten so much help from collegeconfidential.com that I felt it was only right to post my decision, I am not the smartest kid at my school and I by no means have the highest test scores. I love the holistic approach that penn takes, and to all future penn applicants don’t be afraid to apply just because you don’t meet the quantitative requirements, the admissions people know that’s not the only, or most important, thing that defines you!

53

Decision: Deferred (Wharton)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1930 (610R 710M 610W)
ACT (breakdown): 32C (both sittings) 33C (superscore)
SAT II: N/A
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92 (UW) 4.48 (W)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): N/A
IB (place score in parenthesis): IB Diploma Candidate (Econ HL, Math HL, History of the Americas HL, English HL, Bio SL, Latin SL, and Theory of Knowledge)
Senior Year Course Load: Look at section above
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Latin Exam I (2nd place winner), National Latin Exam II (2nd place winner), National Latin Exam III-IV Poetry (4th place winner), National Spanish Exam Level 2 (Honorable Mention)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Rowing 9-12 (coxswain), Band 9-12, Student council 10-12 (class secretary), School Newspaper 10-12 (Photo Editor), Key Club 9-10 (Public Relations Committee Chair), Key Club 11-12 (Program Committee Chair), Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Movement
Job/Work Experience: Intern at Mystic Valley Elder Services 9
Volunteer/Community service: General Volunteer for Soccer Nights and New England Kids Triathlon 9-12 (100 hours)
Summer Activities: Placed them under the previous sections
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Common App: I talked about one of my first races as a coxswain. It was about leadership and making a tough decision due to the weather. I think it was unique in the fact that the race was during Hurricane Sandy. I remember having a typo in it though. 7-8
Penn Supplement: I somehow managed to use a song lyric from high school musical and tied it into my prospective academic pursuits at Wharton. It was very specific in that I mentioned classes that I look forward to attending and professors. well researched. My guidance counselor said that it was better than my common app essay. 8.5-9
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
I’m not going to rate because i honestly dont know
Teacher Rec #1: didn’t see it but my math teacher usually puts really nice comments on my progress reports. usually mentions my enthusiasm in class. this is my 3rd year of having him as a math teacher.
Teacher Rec #2: didn’t see it and idk
Counselor Rec: my school is pretty small. Im not her favorite but she likes me
Additional Rec:
Interview: lasted about 30 minutes. I mainly talked about my interests outside of school because I figured that the admissions board could just see my in school stuff in the rest of my application. My interviewer was very nice and we had a good conversation and ended up talking about TV shows.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Economics with concentration in Finance
State (if domestic applicant): MA
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: public charter school
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 70k-90k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): nah

Reflection

Strengths: I had a lot of leadership positions in high school, and my extracurriculars showed my commitment a lot because I have been doing some of them since middle school or elementary school. my gpa?
Weaknesses: didn’t really have any business extracurriculars, no hooks, my standardized testing
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: wasn’t good enough. higher GPA? Maybe if my ACT scores were higher or if I had a really good Math 2 score.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: haven’t gotten anymore notices.

General Comments : I didnt expect to get accepted, and looking at this thread, Im surprised to even get deferred considering the people who got rejected. Congrats to everybody who got accepted!!

54

Accepted- Wharton!

Objective
SAT I (breakdown): 2150 (680 CR, 720 Math, 750 Writing
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 740 Math II, 600 Spanish (Placement purposes)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/476
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Calc AB (5), AP Lang (4), AP Micro (4), AP Macro (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Psychology, AP Statistics, AP Physics C E/M, Physical Education/Health (mandatory), Honors World Cultures, AP Spanish Language, AP Literature, AP Calc 2 (Calc BC and some of Calc 3)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): AP Scholar with Honor, Commended Merit Scholar, National Latin Exam Gold (3 years), local awards (Spanish Academic Award, Latin Academic Award)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): All of my extracurriculars are community service soo:

National Honor Society

Renaissance (President)-Hold an ice cream celebration for students on the honor roll, Senior Pinning: An event to honor the seniors: People’s Choice Awards, Teachers nominate students who have made a personal impact on them
(Gala Head Student Volunteer)- *, the Renaissance advisor, chose me to be the head student volunteer at the ** Gala, which honored a boy from my high school who lost his life to cancer, and raised money for various charities. I helped recruit student volunteers and check them into the event. I also helped plan activities for the event. I also served food, painted faces for children, and helped with the raffle on the night of the event. I also made sure volunteers received their community service hour certificates.

Community Service Club (Relay For Life Captain)
I started doing Relay for Life my freshman year, to honor my Mom who was battling cancer. I raised over a thousand dollars for the American Cancer Society during each of my first two years. I was responsible for popularizing Relay for Life at Lenape. Because of my efforts, Mrs. *** named me the team captain for Community Service Club. I was in charge of creating participation meetings at school, fundraising by selling raffle tickets, asking for donations, and selling baked goods and face painting at Boscovs. Also, I was responsible for publicity at our school and I was in charge of collecting money and paperwork.

Interact (President)- works with rotary
Hold a dinner for the low-income families in community, make decorations, cook food, ask for food donations, and served food to the families. I also colored and helped entertain the children who went to the event.
event coordinator when I was a junior
Serve Breakfast to the community on Palm Sunday
Delivering Valentine’s Day gifts to those living at a Senior Center
AIDS walk volunteer and committee member- Help plan, publicize, and fundraise for the annual AIDS walk held at school. On the day of, I check in the runners, give instructions, and make sure everything is running smoothly. Also, I run the event’s 50/50 raffle, which is a large part of the fundraising.

Peer Tutor
I work at the tutoring center every other Wednesday

SADD- Students Against Destructive Decisions (President)
Responsible for our club’s social media accounts. I would tweet reminders, events, or pictures about our club’s efforts.
Organize club meetings and the event for each month
Created schoolwide events and campaigns for Eating Disorder Awareness Month
Don’t Text and Drive campaign for Prom
Social Recreation Holiday Party- throw a holiday celebration with food and activities for the Special Education students
Middle School Outreach- Visit in June and teach 8th grade students about the dangers of drinking, taking drugs, and texting while driving. Also, talk about strategies to avoid destructive behavior, such as smart social media strategies. Also, talk about the transition from middle school to high school and answer any questions the students may have.

School Leadership Academy participated in leadership lessons and team building activities for three days

Peer Group Connection- Teach leadership lessons to the Freshman health classes

Freshman Orientation

Camp
Leader of filming the Freshmen Welcome Video
I was chosen to work with the rising special needs freshmen to help transition them from middle school to college
Three days of group icebreakers and activities, and tours. Also discussed Lenape’s clubs, classes, and bus system.

Principal’s Council
Chosen by one of the principals as one of four sophomore students
Met with him four times a year to discuss issues around the school
Chosen to go to a High School with him and other administrators to observe their schedule
Gave presentations to the student body about the new schedule for this coming year

Job/Work Experience: Camp Counselor for one summer, tutor for a few months, Legal Assistant- Volunteer at the non-profit law firm Organize paperwork, organize packages for their technology conferences, etc.
Summer Activities: Brown Leadership Institute- Leadership and Global Engagement

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
CA Essay: 8/10- Did the “What problem you would like to solve” prompt and discussed my few close friends who are afflicted with eating disorders and my plan, which is very thought out. My compassionate nature shined through:)
Why Wharton: 10/10… I worked so hard on it and everyone said it was a really well done essay. I tailored my interests in politics and international relations (majors that would typically be found at CAS) to how I could apply it at Wharton, and also talked about my love for economics. I wrote about specific concentrations and how I could fit into the program. I also discussed specific organizations and activities I am interested in and why I’d be a good fit. At the end, I talked about how I will use the tools that Wharton will give me and how I will make Penn a better place in return. Specifics are important!!!

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9/10 I didn’t read it but I love this teacher and she went to Penn and her mom teaches there and got an educator award so I think that helps
Teacher Rec #2: 10/10 My English teacher’s letter was really personal and discussed my strengths and contributions in class. It was so well written.
Counselor Rec: I didn’t read it at all so I have no idea but it was probably really good
Additional Rec: 9/10 My club advisor for one of my leadership activities! Her letter was so personal and discussed my strong leadership skills.

Interview: It went so well!! The interviewer ran out of questions because I was tailoring all of my answers about extracurriculars, academics, etc. to how they would fit in at Penn/Wharton. She said my enthusiasm makes her want to go back to Penn.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: I mean yeah but it’s hard to get any
Intended Major: Behavioral Economics, Business Economics & Public Policy…
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: like 2000 kids
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: upper middle class
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy

SATs are not as important as you think! Don’t let your score scare you (because they scared me)
Strengths: Grades and strength of courses, Extracurriculars, Essays, Interview
Weaknesses: SATs!!!
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: My extracurriculars were different than what the normal Wharton applicant would have (no business experience, completely community service based). My essay was really personal and strong so that definitely helped. My class rank also helped.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: ED so nowhere:)

General Comments :

55

Decision: Accepted CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2230, CR 720, M 800, W 710 and essay 11
ACT (breakdown): never took
SAT II: Math 2 800, Chem 800, Chinese 800 (first language), Math 1 760 (…)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 5/517, so top 1% yay
AP (place score in parenthesis): USH (5), Chem (5), Stat (5) (school offers most APs to seniors only)
IB (place score in parenthesis): n/a
Senior Year Course Load: AP Bio, Calc, Euro, Computer Science, Honors English and Orchestra
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): none. I have honor rolls and school awards like STEM award, STAR award, perfect attendance, and presidential fitness awards. Also an AP scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Violin Performance (made it to states in PMEA competitions, concertmaster 11&12. assistant concertmaster 10, president 12)
Quartet (founder and first violin 10-12)
National Art Honor Society (Treasurer)
Astronomy Club (Mayor)
Junior Academy of Science
National Honor Society
Aevidum (community service)
Key Club

Job/Work Experience: Worked in the summer for a short while
Volunteer/Community service: Tutor ESL kids English and give free violin lessons to kids that can’t afford lessons, volunteer at local hospital 4 hrs/wk
Summer Activities: nothing much

Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App 8.5/10, talked about passing out while shadowing a surgeon and learned that failures aren’t the end if you get back up and try again. It really showed my passion for the medical field; Why Penn 7.5/10? Specific but not that passionate. Should have started it earlier
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1:AP Chem teacher 9/10 He loves me and said I was the most gifted and talented student he has ever taught in his 22-year teaching career
Teacher Rec #2:AP Stat and Honors Geometry Teacher, 8.5/10, he said good things but not as good as chem teacher
Counselor Rec:counselor 7.5/10, it was generic but still good
Additional Rec: none
Interview: only 30 minutes… It was virtual… I thought the interviewer liked me but we didn’t get to talk much.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undecided Natural Science, I want to be a surgeon and talked about it in my Common App and Why Penn
State (if domestic applicant): PA
Country (if international applicant): n/a
School Type:Public with about 1800 kids
Ethnicity: Asian, Chinese
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: <40,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): PA applicant?

Reflection

Strengths: SAT II, GPA, teacher recs, essays
Weaknesses: SAT scores, being Asian
Why you think you were accepted: I think my app was decently strong overall except for my SAT scores…
Where else were you accepted: Nowhere. Applied to Pitt as safety but haven’t heard back (will withdraw app on Monday)

General Comments: I’M SOOOOOO HAPPY!!!
For future applicants: If you have any questions, feel free to PM me, I will be happy to answer them!

56

**Decision: Accepted **

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2320 (CR 790/M 740/W 790)
ACT (breakdown): took it twice C 35 (E 36/M 33/R 36/S 35) and C 34 (E 36/M 35/R 33/ S 33)
SAT II: Bio M 800, Math II 800, Spanish 740 (not a native speaker)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): school doesn’t rank
AP (place score in parenthesis): Euro 5, APUSH 5, Calc AB 5, Lang 5, Spanish Lang 5, Phys C Mech 4
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Anatomy/Phys, AP Bio, AP Calc BC, Psych, English Lit Electives, Spanish Lit Electives (I ran out of APs at my school unless I doubled in math and tripled in science, which is just… ugh)
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): not sure these are major but - NMS Semi-Finalist, AP Scholar w/ Distinction, Cum Laude Society, Mt. Holyoke Book Award

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

  • Elected Deacon at fairly prominent church
  • Pres. of service club for Guatemala (went there for a mission trip)
  • Secretary/long time member of prominent diversity club
  • Cello for 9 years - 1st in orchestra, private lessons, teach at summer camp, the works
  • PMEA honors, district, and regional orchestra festivals (got sick at regionals and bombed hard)
  • Perform with semi-pro orchestra
  • Youth group
    Job/Work Experience: none
    Volunteer/Community service: 4 mission trips to 3 places (East St. Louis, North Carolina 2x, and Guatemala), leaving on a 5th soon to India, which I mentioned in my interview
    Summer Activities: Mission trips and teaching at my teacher’s cello camp
    Essays (rating 1-10, details): Don’t want to rate them, but CA was about being biracial, Why Penn? was very specific but perhaps a bit dry
    Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Didn’t read them so I doubt I can rate them
    Teacher Rec #1: 9th grade Hon. Bio and 12th Anatomy teacher - probably quite good, but he’s a bit wacky so who knows
    Teac/her Rec #2: 10th grade Spanish and 12th grade Span. Lit teacher - probably excellent, he likes me and is also the dean of the high school
    Counselor Rec: not sure, but likely quite good.
    Additional Rec: from Penn alum/surgeon who has known me for a long time from church and went on a mission trips with me- he offered to write it without me asking and said it’s the best rec he’s ever written (he writes a lot for med school students)
    Interview: Good, not great. We connected but I was nervous and talking super fast. She asked for my resume later

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yeah, but it was a stretch (and I turned in the app very late)
Intended Major: Biological Basis of Behavior
State (if domestic applicant): PA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Private, small, #1 in my area supposedly
Ethnicity: half-white, half-Asian
Gender: F
Income Bracket: high
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy (grandfather)

Reflection

Strengths: Legacy, GPA (esp. in context of my school) and scores?
Weaknesses: ECs, didn’t double in any classes until senior year
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: I’d like to think that my app was decently competitive and my ECs were passionate if not phenomenal, but I’m not oblivious to the fact that legacy was a big plus
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Nowhere! I’m withdrawing my apps to Pitt, Case, and Northeastern on Monday

General Comments: I’m so excited!! I reread the letter so many times to make sure it was real. And I’m glad that this awful process is over. Good luck to everyone still going through it. I know you’ll end up somewhere great.

57

**Decision: Accepted **

Jerome Fisher M&T

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): didn’t take
ACT (breakdown): 35, (36 superscore, 36 math, 36 science, 35 reading 36 writing)
SAT II: 800 Math II 800 Physics
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0 (weighted 4.7)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): no idea, maybe top 5?
AP (place score in parenthesis): AP Gov (4), AP World Hist (4), APUSH (5), AP BC (5), AP BIO (5), AP Physics 2 (5), AP Lang (5)
Senior Year Course Load: Multivariable/Lin alg, AP Phys C, AP Comp sci, AP Lit, Spanish V, AP Macro/micro
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Not really much, couple state awards at Science Olympiad, DECA, etc. but not really any super big awards

Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): DECA (President), Science Olympiad (Captain), Read 2 Lead Tutoring club (President/founder), OASIS (Christian Fellowship) (President), Youth Group Student Leader, regional symphony concertmaster, NHS, Table Tennis Team, and a couple other clubs
Job/Work Experience: Research at a lab studying nanostructures
Volunteer/Community service: Lots of volunteering and community service- maybe 250 hrs?
Summer Activities: Research, took programming courses at local community college, learning various instruments
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 8/10, unique topics and pretty personal- wanted to highlight character and initiative over my accomplishments and skills

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: 8/10 Physics teacher liked me, knew him well personally
Teacher Rec #2: 8/10 English teacher liked me
Counselor Rec: 7/10 nice, but didn’t talk with him much
Additional Rec: none
Interview: went pretty well, talked for a really long time. I was pretty nervous, but I think I hid it pretty well

Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Computer engineering and statistics maybe?
State (if domestic applicant): IL
Country (if international applicant): US
School Type: Large (>3000)
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: around 100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): none

Reflection
Strengths: Grades, essays, and extracurricular leadership- was more well rounded than really focused in one area
Weaknesses: No major awards, didn’t truly excel in one particular area
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: No idea- I was really really surprised
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Didn’t apply anywhere else yet

General Comments : I’d LOVE to get to know all of the other accepted M&T students, so if you’re out there, shoot me an email at my gmail account upennthrowaway

58

Decision: Accepted- Wharton
Rejected Huntsman

SAT I (breakdown): 2250 (730 math 780 cr 740 writing)
SAT II (place score in parentheses): Mandarin Chinese 690 US 740 Math 2 730
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):3.5 - weighted 3.3 unweighted
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parentheses): US, Euro, English lang- 5 Chinese-4
IB (place score in parentheses):
Senior Year Course Load: AP econ, Chinese Independent study, Ap Lit, Honors Spanish 4, AP Calc AB
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Scholastic, AP scholar with distinction, National merit comended

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Student body president, Founded a company that works with fashion designers. Varsity basketball captain, Intern for a non profit, Model UN President and others  
Job/Work Experience: CEO of company
Volunteer/Community Service: Nigerian political intern
Summer Activities: LBW, Taking classes Traveling with family
Essays: My common App I thought was very honest and at times looking back I thought a bit too honest. My Why Penn i thought was really good and likely one of the things that helped me get an acceptance/
Teacher Recommendations: pretty good from My Chinese teacher and my Econ teacher. Some people told me to get a math recommendation or I wouldn't get into Wharton. i went with my gut and choose the two teahcers who knew me the best
Counselor Rec: good
Additional Rec:
Interview: Went really well. She was nice and I am sure helped me get in also. We had a great conversation and she really seemed to take an interest in me. IDK tbh

Other

State (if domestic applicant): TX/. Northeast boarding school
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:Northeast boarding school
Ethnicity: Black (African dual citizenship)
Gender: F
Income Bracket: no need based financial aid
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection

Strengths: test scores and being semi fluent in mandarin
Weaknesses: SAT 2 scores and gpa
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Honestly I do not think I am quite the  typical applicant for Wharton. I am not particularly strong in math but I do truly love the subject. I met some of the most amazing people during this process but honestly it is a really crappy process i my opinion and way too much stress for a 17 year old.  I think going to LBW helped with getting a better idea for the school and helped em right an amazing why penn essay but for sure isnt a true ticket to acceptance.
Where else you are applying or have already applied: Got into Tulane and a full ride to Upitt but clearly none of that matters now.
General Comments/Advice/Hindsight: honestly thought I was a better candidate for huntsman than for wharton generally but i guess the comittee disagreed. either way I ended up at my dream school and wouldn't change a thing. For those people who feel they dont have high enough grades or are not good enough at math or w.e. just relax and be you. Whartons aw that I had something different to offer and they are trying to make a well rounded class so they will see your uniqueness and hopefully  that will be exactly what they need that year. Future applicants, this is all crazy game try not to get too lost into it and remember to enjoy yourself and work hard and life will work its self out

Hopes this helps someone feel free to PM me with any questions!

59

Decision: Accepted - CAS

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2280 single sitting (740 M + CR, 800 W)
ACT (breakdown): 31 (35 E, 31 R, 31 M, 29 S )
SAT II: 730 Math 2, 740 US History, 640 Latin
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): ~3.8-3.9, W 4.46
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 15%
AP (place score in parenthesis): APUSH (5), Calc BC (5), AP Physics Mechanics (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Government Studies III (part of a learning community thing), AP Lit, AP Gov Pol (it’s actually We The People: The Citizens and the Constitution if anyone knows what that is), Calc III, AP Art History, AP World History
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): Nothing major, Magna Cum Laude on National Latin Exam, National Honor Society, AP Scholar, Latin Honor Society

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Model UN, Treasurer of Civics and Government Institute (learning community), Secretary of Global Action (CGI), JV XC and Shotput/Discus
Job/Work Experience: Bagger at grocery store (summer), independently tutor algebra
Volunteer/Community service: tutoring algebra, coach for javelin at recreational track program for kids
Summer Activities: working, World Philosophy course at Brown
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Common App 9/10 (wrote about activism and leadership in a dress code protest at my school), Supplement 9/10 (wrote about my meetings with a lot of professors and all the interests I have that I can explore at penn)

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): (all guesses)
Teacher Rec #1: 9/10, Latin teacher I had for three years, probably wrote about how I skipped a level (only junior in class with all seniors) and always one of the top in class, consistently worked hard when seniors were (understandably) slacking, ran out of Latin curriculum at my school
Teacher Rec #2: 9/10, Calc teacher I had this and last year, probably wrote about my perseverance when I wasn’t doing too well but turned it around, able to stand up for myself
Counselor Rec: 8/10 doesn’t know me that well but no counselor at my school knows anyone that well, seemed impressed by me in meetings, probably wrote about my interests and hard classes.
Additional Rec: classics professor I emailed and had a meeting with offered to put in a good word because he thought I was intelligent, passionate, and would fit in well at penn
Interview: 10/10 went really well, lasted an hour until she had to leave, talked about topics I was interested in and showed my depth in knowledge, very friendly

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Classics (changed my mind but applied for this)
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~150,000 but little to no income for 3 years before that
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy

Reflection

Strengths: SAT/AP score, class load, application centered around major, essays, interview
Weaknesses: GPA/rank, ECs (compared to others), awards, always got Bs in math (hope that was overshadowed by AP exam score and that I always took the hardest math)
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Probably legacy and professor, other objective and subjective stats secured me a place to be seriously considered but that’s why I got in over others, able to show passion about certain topics
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: first decision I got was penn

General Comments: Feel a little bit bad that other people may have deserved to get in over me since I despise things like legacy and sports recruitment, but I have a little impostor syndrome anyway so maybe I could have gotten in without legacy.

60

**Decision: Accepted-CAS **

Objective:

SAT I (breakdown): 2170 Superscore (710 Reading, 660 Math, 780 Writing and 670 Reading, 680 Math, 690 Writing)
ACT (breakdown): 35 Single Sitting (36 English, 35 Math, 35 Reading, 35 Science, 31 Essay)
SAT II: 790 Math II, 770 Physics, 760 Molecular Biology
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 12/418
AP (place score in parenthesis): Biology (5), Microeconomics (5), Macroeconomics (4), Physics I (4), U.S. Government and Politics (4)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics II, AP Chemistry, AP European History, Calculus II (AP level class), World Cultures, Band, AP Psychology, AP English Literature
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): N/A
Minor Awards: AP Scholar with Distinction, National Merit Commended Student, DAR Good Citizen Award, National Honor Society

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Varsity Lacrosse (Captain), National Honor Society (Vice President), Engineering Club (Co-Founder), a BUNCH of other things that probably weren’t as individually significant (but were definitely collectively beneficial)
Job/Work Experience: Interned at Construction Management Company, Babysitting, Refereeing
Volunteer/Community service: Typical stuff, nothing outstanding
Summer Activities: Job, Club Lacrosse
Essays (rating 1-10, details): Can’t really rank essays on a 1-10 scale, but I felt confident about them. Common App was a funny story about a trip I took, and Penn Supplement was a pretty straightforward listing of the reasons I wanted to go to Penn.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): Not sure, but they were all probably pretty good. They were from my AP Bio teacher, my CP English teacher, and my Gifted teacher.
Interview: Went fairly well. It was with someone who knew of me through mutual family friends, which probably didn’t hurt.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Undecided CAS
State (if domestic applicant): Pennsylvania
Country (if international applicant): N/A
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Gender: Male
Income Bracket: ~$100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Legacy

Reflection:

Strengths: Standardized Test Scores, Rigor of Senior Schedule, Essays
Weaknesses:
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: Strengths, and being Legacy certainly didn’t hurt.
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected: Accepted to Pitt and Penn State

General Comments: Good luck to all future applicants! Make sure you put enough time and thought into your essays, as they’re extraordinarily important.