I’m an international student, but I live and go to a public school in New York.
I was wondering which regional team (Northeast Region team or International Region team) will read my application.
Northeast (since the purpose of regional officers is so that they are familiar with your school), but you will be considered an international student.
This is if you are applying for aid, if you are not applying for aid it will not matter
@ireallyhop You mean that international students living in the US that aren’t applying for aid will be treated like domestic applicants?
Incorrect. Without permanent residency, an international applicant attending HS in the US will be considered an international applicant for both admissions purposes and FA purposes.
Which means, in part, that your chances for admissions are lower than as a domestic applicant (6.6% vs. 9.4% total for the class entering 2016, as an example)
https://www.upenn.edu/about/facts
In terms of who will evaluate the application, @wildesfeuer is correct, it will be read by the team handling NY.
No. See my response above.
@skieurope
“If you do not pursue aid at Penn, you will not be filling out a FAFSA or any assorted financial aid documents. For foreign citizens or nationals (other than those from Canada and Mexico), your status as applying for aid is determined by marking that part of the Common Application. In answer to your second question, we evaluate applicants based when where they attend high school (regardless of their citizenship), so your application will be considered in the context of Florida, and read by the regional admissions officer for Florida (in this case, me).”
This is directly from a Penn admissions counselor. The reason for a distinction between international and domestic applications is that for international penn is need-aware whereas for domestic they are need blind. Thus you will be seen in the context of your high school (like a domestic applicant).
Not correct, international applicants will be in international pool when they decide how many to admit, no matter where you go to high school.
@skieurope Isn’t the lower acceptance rate for international students a result of limited financial aid? Many students are simply rejected for financial reasons, which drops the acceptance rate. If @dreambig22 isn’t applying for aid, I would assume his/her chance of being admitted is the same as that of domestic applicants.
@ireallyhop which says absolutely nothing different from what I said. “Considered in context” does not equate to equal chances of admissions. If the OP and another NY student have identical apps (not likely, I know) but Penn has reached its international limit, I’d posit that the domestic applicant will get the nod. You may interpret differently.
No. While FA is a factor, and intl students not requiring aid will be at less of a disadvantage, the reality is that Penn, and its peer schools, imposes a cap (either hard or soft) on the percentage of international students to the total, usually between 10-13%. Penn is on the higher end of the scale. I don’t believe (but nobody outside of admissions has the data) that the international full-pay admissions percentage is statistically the same as the overall rate. YMMV.
Of course, the whole discussion is moot if the OP needs FA.
@skieurope I did not apply for FA. I’m hoping that since Wharton tends to fill ~20% of its class with international students, I won’t be at too much of a disadvantage.
Best of luck. At this point, it’s just a waiting game until December. 