University of Pennsylvania

Admission Strategy

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University of Pennsylvania Admissions
Strategy

Admissions Criteria:

The factors Penn considers very important are: course rigor, GPA, standardized test
scores, application essay, recommendations, and character. Other important factors
are: class rank, interview, extracurriculars, and talent.

An index rating of 1-9 is assigned for two criteria, GPA and standardized test scores.
GPA is turned into an unweighted 4-point scale for ease of comparison. This scale
includes pluses and minuses, and grades from all classes in 4 years of high school.
Penn superscores SAT and ACT scores, and has no preference between the two.

Letters of recommendation are used to sort students with perfect scores who are not
intellectually vibrant from those who are curious and contribute positively to the
classroom. While interviews are not mandatory, the vast majority of applicants are
granted one, and they can influence the decision.

What is Penn Looking For?

What Penn is looking for most is students who will fit into their cultural climate, and be
able to succeed and thrive on their campus. That means first that they want students
who are academically prepared for the academic work the school will expect them to
do, and second students who will fit into the high-energy and academically curious
student body.

Applications to each of the schools at Penn are treated separately, and the schools are
looking for different things in the students they admit. Students should make sure they
are applying to the school they are best suited and prepared for.

For Wharton, students should demonstrate a deep passion for and interest in business,
along with displaying leadership qualities. These should be reflected in their
extracurriculars. They are expected to have a high degree of math preparation,
including calculus.

The School of Engineering focuses on the applied and practical side of sciences, while
the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) is more theoretical in its approach. Students
should determine which of these approaches they are best suited for when applying.
Engineering further expects a high level of preparation in both math and science
courses, and signs the student has involved themselves in the practical side of the
sciences.

The School of Nursing is looking most of all for students who are truly passionate
about helping others, and the field of nursing itself. Students with no clear idea why
they are interested in nursing or what the school is about are discouraged from
applying.

The dual-degree programs are even more competitive, and require the highest degree
of preparation. Students need to show that they would be able to succeed at two of
Penn’s schools simultaneously, and that they have the drive and background to back
up that claim. Penn looks for evidence of a student’s drive and ability to work in a
self-directed manner.

All Penn schools are looking for a few common traits in students however. These are
discussed in an article here, which we will now sum up. The gist is that there are five
traits colleges look for in students, and there are four traits students should consider
when deciding where to apply. First there are the five Is: identity, intellect, ideas,
interests, and inspiration.

● Identity is how you are seen, both by yourself and others. This is especially key
in picking letters of recommendation.
● Intellect is how you think, and how you approach new ideas. This should be
demonstrated through your essays.
● Ideas is what you think, and why. This is especially important when you are
interviewed, as your interviewer will want to know your thoughts, and see how
you form and present them.
● Interests are your passions. All schools like to see passionate students, and you
should demonstrate through how you spend time what your passions are.
 ● Inspiration is about what your motivations are. You don’t have to be inspired
merely by getting up in the morning, but you should show what drives you, what
fuels your passions, and where you draw your strength from.

There are also the four Cs: culture, curriculum, community, and conclusions. These are
how Penn suggests you evaluate the schools you apply to.

● Culture is what schools are about, at a base level. It is a shared set of

fundamental beliefs and worldviews that a school holds, explicitly or implicitly.
All schools look for students who will fit within their own culture, and shape it
into the form they want. Penn’s culture was shaped by Ben Franklin, and they
still strive for that spirit of discovery and drive to shape the world.
● Curriculum is the sum of the courses you’ll be taking, not just what you happen
to major in. Each school has their own slightly unique approach to academics.
● Community is the people, and their collective experience at a university. Each
collection of people is unique, but colleges try to build specific collections of
people. You should match up what you want from a community with what a
school is trying to provide.
● Conclusions is the outcomes of your college career. What are you achieving?
What are your goals and grand ambitions? What do you hope to gain from your
time in college, both in terms of knowledge and general life experience?

The five Is are what colleges seek to know about you, and the four Cs are what you
should strive to learn about a college when applying. By combining both, you will be
best able to find a school which fits you and your needs.

UPenn Strategy:

Assuming a student is highly qualified, the best way to boost admissions chances for
Penn is to apply Early Decision. The overall pool is smaller, and the school likes to see
the level of enthusiasm and commitment required for students to apply ED.

The supplemental essays are another important place for students to talk about how
they would fit in with Penn specifically. The more concrete and specific students can be
about how they would be able to succeed at Penn due to the resources, courses, or
peculiarities of the school, the more convincing their essays will be.
The dean of admissions’s blog suggests students talk about the specific school they
are applying to, and that they use the explore interests tool to find the school and
program which suits them best. Talk of academics should be balanced with discussion
of how the student will fit with Penn outside the classroom, and the various clubs and
opportunities they will explore. Exploring specific courses and research opportunities in
your essay will let Penn know you’ve considered this decision thoroughly.

If students have a great desire to study business, but none of their activities support
this, then Wharton is not the best business school to apply to. The School of Nursing
has a far higher acceptance rate, but many of the students who are turned down are
the ones who only apply due to its higher acceptance rate. Transferring between
schools at Penn is hard, so students should determine which school they have the best
chance of getting into at Penn, and whether or not they would thrive at that school
before applying.

Students who apply to a dual degree program should consider which of the two
participating schools they are most qualified for, and put that as their second choice.
Students who are not admitted into the dual-degree program will then be considered
for their second-choice school, as these programs often admit only a handful of
students each year.

UPenn Essays Analysis

Introduction

The University of Pennsylvania asks for two essays in addition to the personal
statement. The first is a mix between a Why Us and a Why Major essay, as they want
to know both what you want to study, and why you want to study that particular topic
at UPenn. Their other essay is a Community Essay, another common question by
colleges. We will provide examples of both essays, and discuss what the university is
looking for in responses.

Why Major Example

How did you discover your intellectual and academic interests, and how will you explore them
at the University of Pennsylvania? Please respond considering the specific undergraduate
school you have selected. (300-450 words)

“Multispection” (seeing from many angles) was never my strong suit. Instead, my innate
desire to solve problems as efficiently as possible often gave me tunnel vision. It wasn’t until
disaster struck my street during Hurricane Harvey that I learned the value of analyzing a subject
from all sides.
From dead animals floating down Williams Trace Boulevard to the threat of toxic
petrochemical spills, Hurricane Harvey turned my neighborhood into a scene from a sci-fi
blockbuster. Add the “effective immediately” evacuation mandates, and things turn truly
apocalyptic. Rather than drowning my faith in government intervention (or the lack thereof), I
used the three weeks trapped at home with dwindling food supplies and no access to
emergency services to wade into the muddy waters of public policy.
With the soundtrack of rainwater swooshing violently against my house, I pieced
together the concrete consequences of abstract decisions. In the 1970s, a flagship program
called “Housing Houston” mobilized so-called “explosive property development” on low-lying
lands. This get-rich-quick scheme prioritized economic growth over personal safety, not only
opening the floodgates for dangerous conditions, but later costing the city $125 billion in
Harvey-related damages. I was shocked at how these policies continue to wreak havoc
decades later. What’s more, the national flood policy has yet to be improved, inviting history to
repeat itself. How can we learn from disasters like Harvey to develop sustainable crisis
response methods in which personal safety concerns trump economic interests?
As with all contemporary social problems, adequately answering such questions
demands interdisciplinary action. A just and equal world requires our leaders to engage not
only with economics, political science, and government, but with business, philosophy, history,
psychology, and untold other subjects.
As a student at Wharton School of Business, I will hone my ability to “multispect” by
engaging with a wide range of perspectives from various disciplines. I am eager to take
advantage of Penn’s flexible curriculum, which emphasizes real-world applications rather than
focusing solely on theoretical knowledge. As an Economics Business and Public Policy major
following a Public Policy track, I will zealously dive into the dialectical relationship between
economic pursuits and moral responsibility. While classes like The Nonprofit Sector: Economic
Challenges and Strategic Responses will fuel my curiosity about how political systems can
advocate for social justice, courses like Urban Public Policy & Private Development and The
Economics and Financing of Health Care Delivery will ground my lofty ideals in concrete data.
Understanding general patterns in global trade, the profitability of various markets, and the
structure of industries will prepare me to address the most pressing policy issues of my
generation.
Why Major Analysis

UPenn wants to know why you are interested in which school you are applying to
within is, and why you want to pursue your academic interests at UPenn at all. They are
an academically focused school, and are proud of their prowess. This essay therefore
should be answered in two parts. In the first part, explain what draws you to the major
itself, or if not a specific major, then what draws you to the field of study as a whole.
The second part of the essay should then turn to what draws you to pursue that field at
UPenn in particular.

The essay above does this well. It opens with a strong hook, which shows how the
author naturally became interested in understanding economic incentivization, and its
intersection with public policy. This is tied together with a theme of “multispection”
which then serves as the bridge to show why the author wants to study at UPenn. The
multidisciplinary options offered by Penn will allow the author to fully explore everything
they are interested in. They back this up with specific classes and tracks they want to
take at Penn, demonstrating clearly why it suits their interests.

Specificity is key in the second half of the essay. The more clearly you can tie your
interest in a subject to what Penn offers, the more natural the conclusion that Penn is
the best place for you to go to school. Tying in your philosophical viewpoints, as the
author did, can help in this. The author here shows how they want to see and
understand a subject through both economic and public policy angles, and how Penn
will give them the perspective needed to do so.

Penn is a school which is very focused on academics, and they want students who are
eager to explore topics due to intrinsic motivation. A desire to learn for the sake of
learning, or in order to benefit the world at large is far more appealing than expressing
a desire for money or power for their own sake. While there's nothing wrong with
desiring a good career or political success, this is not necessarily the best venue to
raise those motivations.

Why Major Example #2

Science was as exciting to me growing up as going to a carnival. It filled me with wonder, much
like looking up at a brightly lit ferris wheel. After school, my parents would take me to their
laboratories, where they would don their white lab coats and powder blue gloves to conduct
experiments. My mom would make me fill pipette tip boxes, paying me five cents for each one
filled. When I became bored of watching Tom and Jerry on the computer, she would let me see
a completely different kind of show through the microscope: spidery dendritic cells splayed
across the well plate. Waiting to begin my own work felt worse than waiting in line for my
favorite ride.

In school, science was reduced to slideshows and flashcards. Any labs we did were
predesigned, reinforcing concepts that we had already learned. While I aimlessly flipped
through quizlets to memorize the parts of a cell, my parents were examining the cells they had
been growing for the past few weeks. I was anxious to take what I learned in class and apply it
to lab work, just as my parents were doing.

This summer, as an intern at South Dakota State University, I finally got to do actual lab work
myself, rather than just watch others. Using a pipette, we injected neon-pink nanoparticles into
a well plate filled with colorectal cancer cells. We later examined them under the microscope:
hundreds of little red dots surrounded each cell’s fluorescent blue nucleus. After many failed
attempts, the experiment was finally a success– the cells had taken in the nanoparticles! It was
then that I understood how rewarding research was.

UPenn’s emphasis on learning both inside and outside the classroom make it the perfect place
to nurture my passion for biomedical research. At the College of Arts and Sciences, I will
cultivate my interest by pursuing biochemistry, which will ensure I build a strong scientific
foundation through challenging courses like Organic Chemistry and Biophysics. Penn’s
emphasis on pairing undergraduate researchers with professorial mentors will allow me to take
what I learn in the classroom and finally make an impact in the real world. I dream of working
alongside Dr. Garret Brodeur, whose research on nanoparticle drug delivery for neuroblastoma
mirrors the work I began at SDSU into cancer nanomedicine. I would love to continue exploring
this field in college.

Meanwhile, through Penn’s one university system I can supplement my biochemistry major with
a minor in Healthcare Management from Wharton. Investigating scientific innovation from an
economic standpoint will equip me with a deeper perspective about the implications of
scientific research in society today.

Penn will be the biggest, most spectacular, carnival yet.

Why Major Analysis #2

This is the more involved of the two essays asked for by UPenn, and should be tailored
to the program to which you are applying. For this reason, we’re analyzing a second
example, to provide a broader view of the possibilities that exist for answering this
prompt.

This essay does several things well. The first is demonstrate the author’s deep love of
both learning and discovery, and shows their commitment to learning new things. Penn
prides itself on an intellectual atmosphere, and like all other top colleges, it looks for
intellectual vitality in the students it admits. This means it desires students who seek
knowledge as an end unto itself, who find joy in discovering new things, and learning
about the world around them.

The author shows their intellectual vitality by explaining their love for science as a
process. There is no single correct way to demonstrate a love for learning, but
whatever essay you write should show that you enjoy the pursuit of knowledge, and
that you wish to continue this pursuit at Penn.

The next thing this essay does well is develop one of the student’s extracurriculars.
While Penn gets the activities list from the Common App, and the second essay is a
good place to explore one extracurricular activity, many students benefit from further
exploring how they spent time outside of school. The author here introduces an
impressive research internship, and intertwines it with the narrative of the essay. This
both explains what they have done, and sets up the path for what they want to do in
the future.

Finally, the author concretely describes what Penn offers that they want to take
advantage of. Mentioning concrete research, courses, and professors makes an essay
more authentic, and makes your desire to attend a school feel more real. The more
explicit you are with this information in your essay, the more admissions officers will
see you as the right fit for their school.

Community Essay Example

At Penn, learning and growth happen outside of the classrooms, too. How will you explore the
community at Penn? Consider how this community will help shape your perspective and
identity, and how your identity and perspective will help shape this community. (150-200
words)*
 In 10th grade, my hip English teacher spent an entire class discussing nihilism. Despite
the harsh nature of a useless existence, his tirade reminded of a key passage from the
Bhagavad Gita: “You have a right to ‘Karma’ [actions] but not to any of the Fruits themselves.”
Although there is no substitute for hard work, the outcome itself cannot be controlled. It sounds
gruesome, but my newfound understanding of the sacred text of my childhood and the calm
“detachment” it produced in me was a direct result of recognizing my own finitude; in the midst
of incessant pursuit of achievement, I learned to value the process of immersing myself in a
vast array of perspectives.
In addition to further exploring this liberating blend of Eastern and Western thought
amongst a diverse group of fellow peers through coffee-fueled late-night discussions and
contributions to the Undergraduate Law Journal, I am eager to broaden my own intellectual
horizons by engaging with Penn’s Philosophy Society, Wharton Undergraduates in Public
Policy, and the Student Sustainability Association. Furthermore, Philadelphia is situated at the
heart of American history, and I am thrilled at the prospect of planting steadfast roots in the
City of Brotherly Love.

Community Essay Analysis

This question is asking you to describe how you will contribute to and interact with
Penn’s campus community. The easiest way to do this is to show how you have
learned from and contributed to other communities you’ve been a part of, as the best
indicator for future accomplishments is past success. Penn is looking to build a diverse
and intellectually vibrant community, and you should demonstrate how your values and
abilities make the communities you are part of better.

The author in the example above discusses their perspective on philosophy, a blend of
traditions, and the new perspectives on life this blending gave them. This ability to take
in multiple viewpoints, and merge them into a unique whole, is valuable. It shows that
the author is able to process and synthesize information, and is experienced in dealing
with new perspectives and worldviews.

The second part of the essay directly addresses how the author anticipates interacting
with the community at Penn. They mention clubs they want to join, and include a note
on Philadelphia as well. Their sentence about coffee-fueled discussions with fellow
students is also a good inclusion, as these happen on every campus, and are often a
key part of undergrad experiences. The author displays an eagerness to learn from and
teach their peers, sharing their unique views and picking up new ones.
You don’t need to answer this question in this way, but you should display an
eagerness to engage with the campus community at Penn. Life and learning at college
extends beyond the classroom, and Penn is looking for students who will contribute to
that kind of intellectual environment. You should be very specific about how you want
to engage with the community, and include clubs or opportunities you want to involve
yourself with. Further, you should include less formal ways you want to involve yourself.
While these aren’t as necessary, having a sentence where you mention library study
sessions, philosophy on the quad, or discussing Durkheim at parties can provide a
unique note to your essay.

Management & Technology Essays

Penn’s M&T program is a collaboration between the Wharton school and their school of
engineering. It is a very competitive program, admitting only 50-55 students each year.
It is designed to give students a background in technology and business, and the
overlaps between the fields. While only highly motivated and prepared students are
accepted, that should not discourage you from applying.

The program asks for two additional supplemental essays. The first asks about your
interest in business and engineering, and how you will explore this interest at Penn. The
second asks about an example of leadership you have displayed.

Why M&T Example

Explain how you will use the M&T program to explore your interest in business,
engineering, and the intersection of the two (400-650 words)

Who would think Houston, the oil capital of the world, would be pioneering the transition to
electric vehicles?
While interning with LDR Consulting in Houston during the summer of 2019, I worked on
EVolve Houston, a public-private partnership launched by the Mayor of Houston to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions through promoting electric vehicles (EVs). I coordinated several
working groups to develop an aggressive strategy to implement 30% electrification by 2030.
Specifically, I developed and conducted a workshop, engaging a broad group of stakeholders,
for the rapid adoption of EVs in large fleets. My work on research and best practices for initial
adoption and long-term viability was crucial to their engagement.
Their commitment would transform Houston’s role from a polluter to a carbon-neutral city. I
was challenged with maneuvering the intersection of business, engineering, and sustainable
living. Answers to complex engineering challenges are necessarily interdisciplinary and finding
technical implementable solutions requires a seamless integration with the business aspects.
I first experienced this convergence during my work with Houston’s METRO, where the key to
convincing Houston and METRO officials to build an extension to a bus rapid transit line was to
both demonstrate a return on investment through a cost-benefit analysis and to show that the
line would provide more equity for economically disadvantaged communities.
The intersection of business and engineering was always a logical avenue, given my love of
statistics and math. From an early demonstration of math skills to the development and the
creation of a microfinance business in my Montessori middle school, I have always loved
analytics and numbers. Through high school, everything from probability to Fourier analysis
excited me. Applying my math skills to the engineering side seemed inevitable.
My first true experience with providing financial models to applied engineering concepts came
during the EVolve Initiative. While I struggled to prove the financial viability of some fleet EVs,
the economics of EVs were always at the forefront of my discussions. Many fleet owners were
worried that the additional cost of infrastructure would not provide a positive return on
investment, and that profitable EVs were inherently impossible. I had to use statistics analysis
and engineering principles to prove otherwise and convert them as early-adopters.
The Jerome Fisher Management and Technology Program allows for fantastic and abundant
opportunities to apply large scale resources and research to the disciplines of engineering and
business, and to truly expand my horizons. Specifically, as the technology for transportation
such as Hyperloop is being transformed and defined over the next decade, I readily foresee
opportunities in the M&T program to embrace innovation and entrepreneurship and make those
complex technologies come alive in commercially viable ways.
Through the senior project in the Integration Lab, I will pioneer a cutting-edge future of
transportation at the intersection of business and engineering. Specifically, at the M&T summit,
I aim to present and learn from professionals on our technologically-driven commercial
solutions for transportation solutions. Personally, I would love to develop commercially viable
fast-charging electric vehicle infrastructure, utilizing the materials engineering background from
Penn Engineering. I want to make it a commercial success, and utilize marketing and
economics principles, enhanced at Penn, to create a successful startup. I hope to present my
findings at the senior summit, and use the Penn alumni as my first “customers,” receiving
valuable feedback and networking opportunities.
It is essential to bring commercial value to science and engineering projects with the crucial
integration with business principles and applications. The M&T program has been pioneering
this combination for over 40 years, and places a large importance on identifying and solving
problems through innovation.
The future of engineering is evolving. The complex challenges of the future requires innovation
in engineering and also business. With a Penn education and my passion for research, I hope
to transform a lot more than small-scale EV fleets.

Why M&T Analysis

This question is fairly straightforward. The program wants to understand your interest in
business and engineering, and see both your previous experience with the two fields,
and how you will approach them in the future. The program is looking for students with
big dreams and a desire to change the world; this essay is the place to show that.

In the example above, the author begins by discussing an internship they did which
combined the engineering challenges of electric vehicle implementation with the
business challenge of making electric vehicles financially viable. This is a common
problem; solutions which work well in a lab are not always economically feasible, while
established practices often have their own hidden costs. It requires someone who
understands the engineering challenges and business to implement new technologies
in an economically feasible way.

The author gives concrete examples of how they approached this problem, and the
successes they had. You should always use concrete examples where you can; the
best indicator you are able to do something is already having done it to some degree.
Here the author shows how they created a cost-benefit analysis for electric vehicles to
convince reticent businesses to adopt the new technology. Thus the author
demonstrates an understanding of the engineering challenges involved in electric
vehicles, and the economic challenges in their adoption.

In the second half of the essay, the author pivots to discuss the M&T program at Penn,
and their plans for the future. Here again the author is very specific, and ties their past
interest in and experience with transportation to opportunities at Penn. They give
concrete examples of future plans, and state their intention to continue their work on
electric vehicles and the associated infrastructure.

This specificity is good, and you should do the same. By tying your past achievements
to your future plans, you show how the M&T program specifically will help you continue
on your journey, and demonstrate to admissions officers why you are a good fit for the
program.
The author is clearly dreaming big, and has grand ambitions. This is good; the program
at Penn is meant for students who want to dream big, and to give them a place to
explore their ambitions. You don’t have to know exactly what you want to do, or how,
but you should give the general outlines of your future goals, and show how the M&T
program will let you achieve them.

Leadership Essay Example

Describe a problem that you solved that showed leadership and creativity. (250 words
maximum)

While volunteering at KIPP Connect in Gulfton, a disadvantaged neighborhood in southwest

Houston, I taught fifth-graders everything from fractions to debate. Though I initially joined to
fulfill my mandatory 10th-grade community service credit, I fell in love with the experience; I
adored fostering a learning environment for kids who had never experienced an educational
support system.
As I expanded my involvement in 11th grade, I identified a shortcoming: despite their school
curriculums shifting away from pencil and paper and towards digital teaching tools like Khan
Academy, KIPP still tutored the old-fashioned way. I sought out the head of the school to
discuss adopting electronic tutoring methods that provide more dynamic, customized
instruction. We found Khan Academy was perfect for this: the kids could learn the same
material as in class, even pushing themselves past their peers, while still working with my
fellow Kinkaid students.
KIPP’s Head of Community Services recognized my efforts to shift the volunteer work to
seamlessly extend their school activities, and appointed me to lead the activity for my 12th
grade. As a leader, I hope to inspire and encourage more underclassmen to join, and to
innovate and develop a variety of activities that promote participation and creativity in
addressing the kids’ problems.

Leadership Essay Analysis

This is a fairly straightforward leadership essay, and there is a good chance you will be
able to cross-apply another essay you wrote to answer this prompt. Note that this
essay is still for the Management and Technology program, and incorporating elements
into the essay that reflect that will help your application.
This program is looking for future leaders of industry, and as we stated above, past
performance is seen as the best indicator for future ability. Thus the element of
problem solving mentioned in the prompt. This may mean that you won’t be able to
cross-apply a previously written essay, or you may need to rewrite parts to better fit
what Penn is looking for.

In the example above, the author discusses a volunteering opportunity they

participated in, a problem they recognized with it, and how they strove to address that
problem. The fact that the problem and solution both involved technology
implementation is good, as it shows the author's understanding of technology’s place
in the world, and how to help others make best use of it.

You don’t have to discuss technology or business in your essay, and you shouldn’t
force it in if it doesn’t fit the story you’re telling. That said, if you have two possible
examples, and one involves business or technology and the other doesn’t, you should
go for the first option.

The essay’s focus on problem solving is also important. The M&T program looks to the
future, and the implementation of new technologies. This often requires intense
problem solving, and so the school is specifically looking for that attribute in admitted
students. Thus describing how you solved a problem, especially with business or
technological implications or implementation, is very valuable for this essay.

The essay ends by discussing the author’s future goals for their volunteering, and a
desire to impact people even more. This is a good way to finish, as it shows the author
is not complacent with their current successes, but is instead interested in building
upon them. You don’t have to go into great depth about future plans, but if you are still
participating in the activity discussed in the essay, you should mention it, if only briefly.