Legacy Penn Question

steven696 · 01-18-2008, 11:55 AM

My daughter has numerous cousins,aunts and uncles that are Penn grads
but not parents or gparents.Wanted to know if this will be considered.

broetchen · 01-18-2008, 01:08 PM

From the Penn website:

What is a legacy?
Children and grandchildren of all University of Pennsylvania degree recipients are considered legacies during the undergraduate admissions process.

So, officially - no. But her relationship with these people and their experiences at Penn could be worked into the Why Penn? essay.

atvqueen · 04-23-2008, 01:12 PM

This is also good if they give money and could write a strong letter of recommendation.

Muddslinger · 04-30-2008, 01:20 PM

I'd put those under the legacy section anyway. Penn may choose to disregard it, but my guess is that they'll consider it to your advantage anyway.

Worst case scenario is that they ignore what you wrote.

interested1 · 05-08-2008, 06:49 AM

don't waste your why penn essay by bringing up who went to penn in your family. this essay is about why you want to go to penn and giving a list of those in your family that went to penn is not the right thing to do

broetchen · 05-08-2008, 07:22 AM

^
Well, I wouldn't waste a lot of space in the essay talking about other people's experiences, either. But the applicant's connection to Penn and how that might help her make the most of her experience there could be mentioned in a few words.

Master Dad · 05-08-2008, 12:40 PM

steven696 -

I will tell you that I am a Wharton grad alumnus and my son expressed interest (two visits) in Penn's Huntsman program last fall.

He did not apply early and he was wait listed for regular decision.

We think his wait list outcome was a retaliation for not expressing "sufficient interest" by applying early decision. His credentials are off-the-chart and blow away the credentials of a lot of the kids who got in.

Penn's arrogance is pretty apparent to us.... So if you show too much interest and don't apply early it may work against you.

ilovebagels · 05-08-2008, 06:43 PM

its not retaliation, its explicit university policy. You want legacy bonus, you apply ED. the real arrogance here is thinking your son is entitled to the ridiculously competitive huntsman program.

45 Percenter · 05-08-2008, 07:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ilovebagels

its not retaliation, its explicit university policy. You want legacy bonus, you apply ED.

Indeed, as stated in two separate places in the legacy admissions web pages:

Quote:

Legacies receive maximum consideration under the Early Decision Plan. This is because an Early Decision application reflects the student's heightened personal commitment to Penn, independent of any family influence.

Penn Alumni: Admissions for Legacies FAQ

Quote:

While legacy applications receive careful consideration throughout the selection process, they receive maximum consideration under the Early Decision Plan. This is because an Early Decision application reflects the student's heightened personal commitment to Penn, independent of any family influence.

Penn Alumni: Admissions for Legacies : Programming and Events

savishar · 05-09-2008, 11:20 PM

I have studied at Penn and have a daughter in 10th grade, who might benefit from legacy status.

However, I have not been very diligent at giving money to Penn every year since graduation.

Will the fact that I have not been a good donor hurt my daughter when she applies ED ? (note: I am planning to give this year and the next 2 years, but it will not make up for all the years when I didn't give).

Thanks for your insight on this matter.

45 Percenter · 05-10-2008, 07:35 AM

I'm not sure that makes any difference--at least I've never seen any formal acknowledgment that it does. If you were a BIG donor (hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars), on the other hand, that might make a difference--children of such donors are euphemistically called "developmental admits" in the college admissions biz:

WSJ.com - Many Colleges Bend Rules To Admit Rich Applicants

For a more authoritative answer to your question, I'd recommend that you contact Penn's Alumni Council on Admissions (answering alumni questions is one of their main missions):

Penn Alumni: Admissions for Legacies : Staff and Contact Info

Master Dad · 05-12-2008, 08:04 AM

ilovebagels -

You miss the point. I didn't say he should have been accepted into Huntsman. I also didn't say he should have been accepted because of the "Legacy" tag. I'm saying that when he expressed initial ED interest and then pulled back (i.e., didn't apply ED), he was penalized for it.

45 Percenter · 05-12-2008, 10:31 AM

Master Dad, he wasn't necessarily penalized--he just didn't get the extra benefit that Penn's stated policy explicitly bestows only on legacies who demonstrate commitment to Penn by applying ED. And in terms of his credentials "blowing away" the credentials of other applicants who were admitted, a quick review of the ED and RD admission threads in the Penn forum quickly reveals that many kids who appear to have objectively superior credentials are waitlisted, deferred, or rejected while other kids with objectively "lesser" credentials are admitted. Like all top schools, Penn's undergraduate admissions process is holisitc and extremely subjective, and many factors--such as essays, demonstrated interest in Penn, the need to create a balanced and well-rounded class that reflects diverse backgrounds and interests, etc.--are taken into account in addition to objective credentials (SATs, GPA, ECs, etc.). Further, the overall RD acceptance rate is in the 10-12% range, and is even lower than that for Wharton. Also, for the Class of 2011, Penn rejected 62% of the valedictorians who applied and 75% or more of the applicants with 750-800 on one or more of the SATs.

With all due respect, the only arrogance apparent in this situation is the apparent expectation that a particular legacy applicant should get special treatment in RD admissions, even though all other legacy applicants are given such treatment only if they demonstrate a reciprocal commitment to Penn by applying ED.

Master Dad · 05-12-2008, 11:44 AM

45 Percenter -

That he is a legacy really isn't the point. Ignore that fact. And I know that the Penn undergraduate admissisions process is "holistic and extremely subjective." So is every other school's. Nothing new there.

I don't want to go into details but there was every indication that he was expected to apply ED. This is based on email exchanges, two visits, and favorable feedback provided to the Admissions office from the Huntsman kids he stayed with. The opinion here is that his failure to apply ED was taken as a lack of sufficient interest and that's why he was waitlisted.

midatlmom · 05-12-2008, 12:18 PM

MasterDad

I'm not sure what your point is. Although I think it unlikely that your son was "penalized" for not applying ED (I think that you're reading quite a lot into some fairly normal contacts), it is definitely true that ED applicants are accepted at a higher rate in general. I don't exactly see how that is arrogance. Rather, Penn has made a decision, and it is one made by many other schools, that they will give a slight preference to kids who are willing to commit to them early, whether legacy or not. Since your son did not apply ED, he, along with thousands of other kids, did not receive that preference. Seems pretty straightforward to me and not arrogant at all, unless you believe that all admissions decisions have a touch of arrogance about them.