<p>For the question about why Penn is unique to you, what did you guys write about. I mean I can see two ways to answer that. To show you have seriously looked into the school, you can talk about specific facilities and programs and statistics and location. Or you can talk about diversity, oppurtunities, intellectual environment, etc. Or maybe Im missing something and theres a totally different way to go about it. I just think that I dont want to name off things from the viewbook/website because its not creative or interesting and I dont want to pretend that Penn is the only school with diversity, which would be a lie.</p>
<p>I talked about the hot girls there and why they are teh win.</p>
<p>thats helpful, but anybody else have anythign?</p>
<p>You just gotta go with what's in you. If it isn't in you, then penn isn't in you. Y'heardle? =p</p>
<p>yeah if you're applying there you should know why you want to go to Penn. Think hard about it and you'll know why.</p>
<p>Ok, here's the deal. I talked with my regional rep when she visited my school and she said she's not looking for applicants to do name-drops. Meaning you don't have to get frantic and chase down some poor professor while you're visiting just so you can mention it in "Why Penn?"... it'll be obvious if you aren't really interested in the work he/she does. So you don't have to do that, unless you genuinely did find some person on campus who shed some light onto the university for you. She said to mention which of the schools at Penn you're planning to study at... apparently many kids forget to do that. And then here's my own suggestion: start with yourself first. About half of my essay described my interests and who I am. They're admissions counselors. They're primarily looking for YOU in this essay, not Penn. Think of the impact you will make at Penn. Mention that. If you mention diversity, don't explain that Penn is diverse; they know it. Show how you add to the diversity of Penn. And know that contributing to diversity does not solely mean belonging to a minority. Why Penn? isn't supposed to be you mailing them back every viewbook they sent you. Just throw yourself into it. Err on the side of telling them more about you than about Penn. They're curious about what you have to offer.</p>
<p>Yeah I agree. I talked about what I wanted to study, and how Penn was awesome at it and had resources no other college had. I wasn't lying either - I want to study Anthropology for some reason and Penn has a museum of Anthropology.</p>
<p>I also talked about how much I love Philadelphia, where I'm from. And then I talked about how Penn had diversity and had a poker club that I would like to join.</p>
<p>yea thanks TenBelow and chocoman, so im going to write about what i contribute in terms of culture, opinion, experiences and talents on what i would bring to the campus. And then talk about maybe why im applying to wharton. </p>
<p>But again, im not sure if I should use things like "wharton is the best undergrad business school", "wharton has great world renowned professors", "wharton has great facilities like the state of the art xyz building", "i like the city and the placement of the school". How appropriate is it to tell them that you think the school is great rather than how great you are? Does it sound too superficial to say you add to the diversity or like the area?</p>
<p>I mean Penn knows that students come to Penn because theyre an ivy, because theyre top 10, because theyre prestigious. So do you stay completely away from that. Also the question asks you to match Penn to yourself, so if you talk about yourself, dont you have to talk about why Penn would accomodate you?</p>
<p>just send them your why columbia essay. that's the type of out of the box thinking they're looking for!</p>
<p>I think a tip my friend gave me about "Why X" essays makes a lot of sense: "Just go like this, 'here's you (college), here's me (me), here's me and you (awww...)". Your essay should accomplish that.</p>
<p>this thread seems to be pretty helpful... keep it going guys!</p>
<p>hey kids: search the forums a few pages back for this shizzle. </p>
<p>when us ED kids were doing our penn apps, we posted 4000 threads about this essay topic, and there's a lotta good essays and answers and everything~! yay! let's use the serach function from now on!</p>
<p>lol i wasn't here for all that ED stuff
i wrote about the toilet paper
props to anyone who knows what i'm talking about =)</p>
<p>(i seriously love the tp)</p>
<p>Hey, maybe we RD kids want a part of the fun, desperation, and nervous breakdowns, too. I don't want to pick up the leftovers from the ED peeps, I'mma have my own party.</p>
<p>Haha, just kidding. Anu does give some good advice, though. There is some stuff you might find helpful in the archives. But then again, reading all the ED stuff made me really nervous. I suggest doing so in moderation.</p>
<p>ok I cant find any of the essay threads that AnuVX was talking about, does anybody know what to search for or anything else to identify it</p>
<p>I have this great college book from National Review that has a lot of cultural and academic stuff that other guides don't have. I'll be using that stuff, while relating it to myself.</p>
<p>I'm probably going to write it as a take-off on "It's A Wonderful Life," where some sort of guardian angel shows me what I'll be missing if I don't go there while I decide if I should put the application in the mailbox or not.</p>
<p>I'm thinking of ending with me coming back from my experience, only to see the mailtruck drive away, and me saying something like, "Hey, Clarence? What happens if I don't go?" and then cut to a little aside.</p>
<hr>
<p>"THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT IS AT HAND!" cried a grizzled, grungy shell of a man. "May the rats eat your eyes! THE DARKNESS COMES!"</p>
<hr>
<p>Quinton nearly trampled Clarence as he chased madly after the departing truck.</p>
<p>...Or something to that effect.</p>
<p>"I talked about the hot girls there and why they are teh win. "</p>
<p>You got to be kidding, right? EVer heard of the "Penn goggles"?</p>
<p>I dropped names and talked about specific programs
I also talked about the specifics of the school more than i talked about myself, but i did talk about myself and why I wanted to attend. I also mentioned certain food carts
but who knows if my essays got me in or not</p>