<p>i was recently a victim of the tsunami in phuket, where I lost my brother and I’ve been devastated ever since…i just got back home, to L.A. and i’m just not sure what to do…i am applying to U PENN only because i really cant bring myself to go to a place i dont want to be after this tragedy…im just really confused about my life…ok…so</p>
<p>SAT: 1580
SAT II: Spanish - 800, Writing - 800, French - 800, Physics - 770
AP’s: I’ve taken 8, i have 7 5’s and one 4…the 4 was AP French Literature
Class Rank: 2/1458
extracurrics: volunteer work (member of UNHCR), 8 MUN awards etc…</p>
<p>if i dont go to penn i’m likely not going to go to university…what are my chances?</p>
<p>hefetus, firstly please allow me to extend my most sincere condolences to you and your family. to be real, there are simply no words in the english language to describe what you must be feeling. contrary to what others might say i do not "know how you feel" and to take what noeb said one step further, i can't even imagine what you must be going through.
when i lost someone dear to me, i was looking for explanations as to that omnipresent, "why." a fiction book i suggest you read that glances on this issue is "As a Driven Leaf" (the story is historical fiction having to do with judaism, just a warning). the answers i found that comforted me (although they may understandably be insufficient to you) are as follows. firstly, i believe there are heavy epistemological limits to human consciousness. we cannot know or understand everything and anything and the reasons G-d does what it does. i believe that trying to explain away these things is one of the biggest sins that one can commit (at least according to my theodicy, which is heavily influenced by the existentialist Camus and by the Jewish religion) (i can send you an essay i wrote in english class examining this issue in terms of literature if you want). as the talmud (a collection of jewish commentaries on the oral torah and the oral torah itself) says, "the G-d of truth hates lies." trying to sugar coat how you feel will not work. trying to explain these things, the talmud says, "is a rickity ladder." listen to your heart, be sad, be angry, and don't lose faith in humanity (or if you believed in G-d before this, especially don't lose your faith in G-d). i could type on for ages, but i'll let my slience signify, well cicero puts it best: "cum tacent, clamant,"</p>
<p>Anyway, I think you have a great chance. I'd alert Penn and tell them of your situation. Perhaps you could write a pithy essay relaying your circumstances and situations.</p>
<p>maybe you should take a year off and just make sure that you sort out your emotions and stuff. it might not be the best idea to plunge straight into college as a way to forget about your hardships, it could end badly.</p>
<p>don't you just hate it when people with near perfect scores ask you their chances? what are we supposed to tell you, that your 1580 on the SAT might make your application look terrible?</p>
<p>Hefetus, I am very sorry to hear about a loss in your family. The tragedy was one so enormous as to affect millions of people around the world. As to your chances, you are very solid. You should tell Penn about your misery. This will help convey to them your interest in the college. GL</p>
<p>Thats what i meant I LIKE THE THRILLS. I meant tell them in the essay. Not call em up and be like, "I want to go to UPENN, and I had a death in the family. Can I get in??"</p>
<p>"penn is not going to weigh in sympathy"
Reality is, is that if you're a ruthless admissions officer with the power to give or take an acceptance, you actually may want to help someone who is suffering. These people are humans. If Penn is your dream, after such a nightmare- I'd say you deserve it no matter what. But then again I'm not into competition (why I don't really fit in at Penn to begin with), so I'm sure my opinion differs entirely on the matter.
As to notifying them, I'm not sure what that would actually accomplish. If your grades have dropped (or are dropping), you have every right to explain what has happened. If you've had to quit certain commitments to grieve, all the more reason to notify Penn. I am sure this has affected your senior year greatly enough that you have a given right to notify them- or even if not- because if you continue to do well, despite such a tragedy, that displays an innate drive so powerful, that you'll succeed in anything.
If you have no moral qualms about doing so- (I am guessing you've added this into your post to garner some opinion)- do it. </p>
<p>I am so sorry for your loss; sending hugs and kisses from a stranger over the internet.</p>
<p>In this rare case sympathy could work. Usually I would disagree, but this is very current and in the news; it's not like his familly's loss was local news or anything. It's on an international level.</p>