keithwhitener

Ahoy there. I am currently a student at community college in NJ. I haven't really been looking at colleges, but my history professor recommended that I check out Upenn. I am 21 and didn't do very well on my SATs when I took them about 4 years ago. I went to one of NJ's "career academies" so they didn't do class rank. I think I got a 1260. I am currently an honors student with a 3.9 GPA majoring in philosophy. That probably doesn't set me apart. I am, however, a published humor author who has been featured online , and in print in The Best of McSweeneys by Vintage Press and am also a journalist whose work has been frequently featured in print and online in venues such as Philly City Paper, Time Out New York, and Pittsburgh City Paper. My work was also nominated for an award by a journalism association. I am also a first generation American. Princeton Review said they have one of the best student papers in the country and I'd love to contribute to them since I have an interest in investigative and gonzo journalism. I've also done a co-op for some celebrity gossip site (groan) where I got to interview people like Ashlee Simpson, Adam Mckay, Lewis Black, and Steve Guttenberg . I mention all this because I know how much Upenn values extracurricular activities, talent, and character. How likely that this sort of hibbity would get me in? I was thinking I could get a letter of recommendation from my philosophy professor (he went to Cambridge!) and a celebrity that I've befriended such as Andrew WK or TJ Miller (Hud from Cloverfield). Something. I just want to go to a good school, get a high quality education, have a place where I can have my writing exposed, and live in a city where I can take advantage of their live comedy and music. In fact, I'd love to do stand up myself. Since I am a frequent contributor to Philly City Paper, they'd probably hire me to join their staff and report for them. Is this the sort of thing that Upenn cares about, or am I not going to be able to compare to polymaths from India who can recite Goethe in the original German while juggling?

I am planning to continue with philosophy and some sort of double major.

keithwhitener

I wanted to re-write this post, but I wasn't allowed to edit. So here's a newer version:

Ahoy there. I am currently a student at community college in NJ. I haven't really been looking at colleges, but my history professor recommended that I check out Upenn. I am 21 and didn't do very well on my SATs when I took them about 4 years ago. I think I got a 1260. I went to one of those "career academies" in NJ for high school, so there wasn't a class rank. I probably wouldn't have been in the top 10% since, as philosopher Simon Blackburn says, "How you think about something affects how you do it or if you do it at all," and I thought that school was a waste of my time in junior year, so I didn't try much. I actually didn't try much my whole time in school, although I did get plenty of As . I was, however, on the class council. I was co-president one year and VP senior year.

Fun story: my average in bio in senior year was so high that I decided to not do the term paper and just take a B for the year. They said I couldn't do that or I wouldn't get credit, so I choose ADD as my topic and handed in a sheet of paper that said, "ADD is a disease characterized by the inability to maintain attent". Not even a period! They didn't care for that, so I wrote a paper that I didn't do any research for and used the word "genetical" twice to make sure I earned my F.

I took two years off from school after that. I needed time to grow up and change my attitude. I would only return to school when I knew it was something that I wanted to do.

I am currently an honors student with a 3.9 GPA majoring in philosophy. That probably doesn't set me apart from other applicants. I am, however, a published humor author who has been featured online and in print in The Best of McSweeneys by Vintage Press. I'm a journalist whose work has been frequently featured in print and online in venues such as Philly City Paper, Time Out New York, and Pittsburgh City Paper. My work was nominated for an award in 2007 by an organization that promotes excellence in the field of comedy. I am also a first generation American, in case that means anything.

Princeton Review said UPenn has one of the best student papers in the country and I'd love to contribute to them since I have an interest in investigative and gonzo journalism. I've also done a co-op for some celebrity gossip site (groan) where I got to interview people like Ashlee Simpson, Adam Mckay, Lewis Black, and Steve Guttenberg. I had a Zine in high school that got me into my local paper a few times and wrote for my high school paper as well.

I mention all this because I know how much Upenn values extracurricular activities, talent, and character. How likely that this sort of hibbity would get me in? I was thinking I could get a letter of recommendation from my philosophy professor (he went to Cambridge!) and a comedian or musician that I've befriended such as Andrew WK or TJ Miller (Hud from Cloverfield). I just want to go to a good school, get a high quality education, have a place where I can have my writing exposed, and live in a city where I can take advantage of their live comedy and music. In fact, I'd love to do stand up myself. Since I am a frequent contributor to Philly City Paper, I think they'd put me on their staff and I'd be able to be active in Philadelphia's journalistic community.

Is this the sort of thing that Upenn cares about or am I not going to be able to compare to polymaths from India who can recite Goethe in the original German while juggling?

I am planning to continue with philosophy and a second major I am currently unsure about.

Thanks in advance to anyone who made it through this post.

dlesk

you're definitely not the typical applicant, but obviously you are smart and penn is always looking for "something different" you have nothing to lose by applying

ilovebagels

Hey, I like your attitude! It strikes me as very Penn--sardonic and clever

I think it is worth a shot. Even if you are compared to the polymath uberstudents, remember that there are a hundred of them and only one of you. Penn thinks of diversity (or at least diminishing marginal returns...), and your experiences would enrich the student body at Penn more than uberstudent #1856

Given your age (21...you may as well need carbon dating to check your age!) Penn might redirect you to their College of General Studies (CGS) as opposed to the regular CAS school. I'd definitely ask the admissions officers on that one.

I for one certainly hope you apply. That ADD essay thing is the sort of thing I always wanted to do but never had the guts.

45 Percenter

As ilovebagels suggested, call the admissions office about your situation and see what they say. If admission to the regular undergraduate program is not appropriate, you should definitely check out CGS:

University of Pennsylvania's College of General Studies | Undergraduate Programs at Penn

keithwhitener

Is a degree from the school for general studies not worth as much as a degree from the school of arts and sciences?

keithwhitener

I'm applying for the fall to the school of general studies. They said I can find out within two weeks!

Rister_Chutophs

oh dude, i hope you're coming to Penn!

ilovebagels

Penn's CGS is very well-integrated into Penn and held in equally high esteem.

45 Percenter

Yo, Keith: it's COLLEGE--not School--of General Studies. Make sure you get it right on your application.

keithwhitener

I wouldn't want to make that mistake!

Would it matter if I went to the New School in NYC in the past but withdrew before getting any credits?

keithwhitener

The answer is, yes, yes I can get in. Now it's time to see who gives me more money: Penn or Columbia. If I can't afford either, looks like it's State School for this guy!

Eloquence

Did you get into the College of General Studies or SAS or what?

keithwhitener

I got into GS.

MissBarbara

congratulations! i hope penn's financial aid comes through for you.