Research: with a professor or at a summer program?

Mwfan1921
Thu, 16 Feb 2023 13:48:38 +0000

OP should do the program they are most interested in doing.

IME AOs at highly rejective colleges (that’s what we are talking about, right?) value research, and they don’t care where it comes from…with a prof at a local uni, or a paid program like through Polygence or Lumiere (both excellent, but there are many players doing this), or a selective enrollment opportunity. With that said, do they value research more than a job or other ECs? That’s a more difficult question to answer.

I haven’t heard an AO say they give any thought about how the student might have gotten the research opportunity or if they paid for it through a program (in some cases they would never even know that). I also haven’t heard the need to see a publication…the timing for many HS school students to be published before college apps are submitted often doesn’t work out, not to mention many opportunities don’t lead to published research, yet the experience is still valuable.

I also see and hear AOs referencing how many admits in their recent class did research, like Penn’s press release last year where Whitney Soule mentioned that one-third of admitted students did research. That’s a tell as to what they value.

She also shared that nearly one-third of admitted students did research during high school, 40% of admitted students worked during high school, and 80% engaged in community service activities.

thedp.com

Penn releases Class of 2026 regular decision results, withholds acceptance rate

This year's regular decision admissions cycle marks a shift from past years, given that the University is not publicly highlighting its acceptance rate for its incoming class.