University of Pennsylvania Panel

Webinar Transcription

2024-05-15 – University of Pennsylvania Panel

Anesha: Hi everyone and welcome to tonight’s webinar. My name is Anesha Grant. I’m a Senior Advisor here at CollegeAdvisor and I will be your moderator today. Today’s webinar is a University of Pennsylvania Panel. Before we get started, just to orient everyone with the webinar timing, our presenters will introduce themselves and then share a bit about their experiences at their respective institutions and then we will open up the floor to respond to your questions in a live Q& A.

On the sidebar, you can download our slides on the handouts tab and you can start submitting your questions whenever you get ready in the Q& A tab. Just as a heads up regarding Q and A, we cannot give you a personalized admissions assessment. So please don’t share your profile in the questions. We cannot summarize your chance of getting into Penn.

Now let’s meet our presenters, Chelsea. Um, hi, Chelsea. Can you kick us off with a brief introduction about yourself and your background?

Chelsea: Hi. Um, I went to UPenn in the College of Arts and Sciences. I studied international relations and I am now a senior advisor here at CollegeAdvisor.com.

Andrew: Thanks, Andrew. Yeah. Hey, guys. My name is Andrew. Um, I also went to Penn. I also went to the College of Arts and Sciences where I majored in biology and biochemistry. Um, I graduated in 2023 and, um, yeah, I’m just a specialty advisor for pre medical students here at CollegeAdvisor.

Anesha: Awesome. Thanks. We’re looking forward to hearing from y’all.

But before we get started, we’re going to do a quick Poll so for those out there, just let us know what grade level you’re in. If you’re a parent or a teacher, we welcome you. You don’t have to select a grade. Just go ahead and select other as we let the poll run. I normally ask a lot about food because food is very important to me when I think about college.

So, I’m wondering if either of you, as we’re waiting for a response to come in, could share a favorite place on campus or favorite restaurant near around.

Chelsea: I’m actually from Philadelphia, so I have a lot of opinions on that. But I think, uh, Penn, um, I really enjoyed a lot of places that are no longer, which is so sad. Um, rest in peace to hubbub coffee. That was great place, but I also really just liked going to, um, the cafes inside campus buildings. I, used to get sushi and, um, other snacks.

Anesha: Andrew, any thoughts?

Andrew: Um, for me, I was a big food truck kind of guy. So there were a lot of food trucks. Um, the halal food trucks were always really good, but, um, there was a lot of different food trucks and, you know, they were all in different locations throughout the campus. So at the end of Locust Walk, there was like one halal food truck.

There was one at the other end of the campus as well, but that was more, you know, like, um, teriyaki and stuff like that. So I really was a big food truck.

Anesha: Oh, I think Andrew froze, but I think he’s saying he’s a big food truck guy. And, um, and it seems like there are a lot of food truck options at Penn or in the area. All right. Hopefully Andrew will get him back. We’ll go ahead and close our poll. And just as an FYI, the majority of folks joining us today are in the 11th grade.

Um, so that’s kind of the primary kind of audience for our conversation today. I’ll stop talking and hand it over to you, Chelsea. Hopefully Andrew would join us back a little bit later, but you can go ahead and take it away.

Chelsea: Okay, great. So, um, says what was your college application process like? Well, I did it a long time ago, so it’s very different than it is today.

Um, but when I did the college application process, I didn’t know a lot about my choices. There wasn’t as much on the Internet as there is today. And, um, I came from a family that Not a lot of people really attended a college maybe some night classes or community college So I didn’t have a lot of exposure at home though.

Everyone at my high school would go to college I hadn’t heard of most of the schools that I heard the older kids go to like Franklin and Marshall So many students from the older year went there and I was like, What’s that? Um, so I wasn’t totally aware of what was out there. Um, maybe I would have done something different if I had known back then.

Uh, and I didn’t have a ton of help. Um, hopefully if you’re on the call today, then you’re gonna get some help from CollegeAdvisor and you might get help at school or at home. Um, so I did a lot of it on my own. know the best way to do things and it definitely would have made things easier. When I did it, there were some parts that even required mail.

They don’t really do that on nowadays. So it’s totally different now, much more streamlined. College, uh, It is mostly done through common app, which is great. Um, and it’s much more streamlined and there’s so much information out there. Um, but when I applied, I went to a small school that didn’t have GPA rankings and my college counselor had actually retired in the middle of my process.

So, uh, I had a little bit of a complicated process and I didn’t really know what my chances were going into applying to college because. You know, I didn’t have a lot of data or guidance to help me figure that out. Um, I did really enjoy writing, especially creative writing. So I was excited about the Common App essay.

Um, and I had originally wrote this essay that I was super excited about, but I showed it to other people. And they gave me Um, I showed it to a number of different people and they all had different feedback and then it no longer sounded like me and I didn’t like it anymore. So I completely abandoned it and rewrote my essay on a napkin on a plane.

And, um, I really enjoyed like reclaiming my voice in the Common App essay process. Um, I ultimately applied. Early decision to Penn. And that’s good that I got in because I was not prepared at all for the regular decision round if I didn’t. So I’d only had like part of my applications really ready. Uh, so why did I choose Penn?

I actually originally wasn’t looking at Penn. I went to apply to Columbia early decision cause I did a summer program there and I really enjoyed my time at the summer program, but, uh, Columbia had a. Um, and I wasn’t super excited about the idea of a core curriculum. I wanted something a little bit more flexible so I could explore a bunch of different interests but not be forced to take one specific class.

Um, so I wasn’t really in love with that and I didn’t want to commit to early decision. So I had visited a bunch of schools over the summer and this is pretty much the list that I visited with the exception of. Chicago and Tulane. I didn’t visit those. But, um, I visited the schools and I was excited about them and I was trying to find out where I should apply early decision.

Um, Penn wasn’t super on my radar. I had to spend a lot of time there because I’m from Philadelphia, but I, um, I didn’t want to go that close to home, but ultimately I decided that that’s not a good enough reason to not go to the school that I was really excited about. So I, um, decided to apply early decision anyway because I still was very excited about the school.

Um, I was looking for schools that were on the east coast. My family really wanted me to stay in the eastern time zone. Um, I grew up in the city and I really wanted to stay in a city. I was looking for students that were Curious and compassionate, you know, not just in the books or, you know, can talk to people or whatever it may be.

I wanted people that were different from me that I thought I could, you know, learn and grow from. And I wanted to explore a bunch of different things. So I was interested in cognitive science, which is like a major that’s sort of a combination of different fields. And I really liked that idea of, Combining a lot of different interests, because in high school I had a lot of different interests.

And, yeah, I ultimately applied early decision. Um, my best friend also applied early decision in the same round, so I’m sure that influenced me, uh, looking back on it. So, uh, yeah. I, I don’t know that Penn, like, was all success. There were definitely some things that, um, might have been better at other schools or, you know, didn’t seem great at the time, but I grew from that.

So I think what Penn really helped me with was mindset. Um, Penn actually has a lot of like positive psychologists. And, um, I think it’s just an attitude of the students and people on campus, very much a growth mindset kind of place. Um, but I also learned to pivot. I had started in cognitive science, I was pre med, and I started taking those classes and I wasn’t enjoying them because there were 300, 350 people in them, and I had come from a really small school where that was pretty much the size of the school from kindergarten to 12th grade, so that was a huge adjustment for me, and The grades were basically a midterm and a final, and I never did my best on test.

I, um, really did better on papers, projects, presentations, things like that. So, um, being in classes that were just us wasn’t a good fit for me either. And I needed to step back and think, What do I actually want to get from here? What are my strengths? What are my weaknesses? How can I make this experience better?

And so by re evaluating, I decided to switch into international relations because the classes were much smaller. Um, I still had that interdisciplinary aspect that I liked, and there were much more papers, projects, presentations. It was less lecture, more Conversation based classes. Um, and I just did much better with that.

So pivoting was critical for my time at Penn, but it’s also something that is helpful in life. Um, and I learned that lesson early and I think it’s really important to self advocate, you know, learning what do I need and how can I ask for that? Um, especially when I did my thesis later on, um, I needed to be able to ask the kinds of questions of how to write it and how to research.

And, uh, I needed to talk about, you know, What I was struggling with. So those are skills that I really learned at Penn. Um, I really appreciated having a thesis. Um, my major had that as a requirement and I wrote about the emerging Chinese middle class buying into the European luxury goods sector, which is so random, but, um, I really liked being able to do research and writing and having something that was Specifically my own.

I had my name attached to it and I could show people like I have these skills. So that built my confidence and I think it’s important to think about what do you want from a college besides just a degree. Any of these schools are going to provide you a degree. What else do you want? Do you want an experience studying abroad or do you want to co op or whatever it may be?

For me, I like the thesis. I also appreciate that Penn had a strong internship culture. I don’t know if it’s still true, but at the time it had. The most students who interned and while I was there, I interned at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, at the World Affairs Council, and, you know, a bunch of different internships and I thought that was fun and a good way to apply my skills.

I also appreciated it was a global network. I was in the international program. It’s like a residential program. And different clubs that were all very global. I made a lot of friends across the globe and that helped me for later on when I got a job in Singapore. So I think those are the things that I appreciate the most for my time at Penn.

Anesha: Awesome. Thank you so much, Chelsea, for sharing. We’re going to do another quick poll before we let Andrew share about his experience. So let us know where you are in the application process. I know a lot of folks are juniors out there. So if you’re working on your essays or researching schools, hopefully you’re researching from schools, uh, we can give you some context.

But as we’re waiting for poll responses to come in, I usually want to ask another question. You actually took my question, Chelsea, that I was thinking about. I’m like, what was one thing? Um, but I guess I’ll ask the question I normally ask at the end, which is, was there anything that your school, that Penn was missing, that you wish it had?

Maybe it has had since you left. Yeah,

Chelsea: well, I think at the time I felt like it was lacking mental health resources. A lot of students were feeling the pressure because pen is what they called a work hard, play hard school or, you know, whatever you want to call. But a lot of students were starting their nonprofits or businesses and also taking five classes and doing an internship.

And they were just doing so, so much. And I think a lot of students felt overwhelmed and the Counseling and psychological services and other kinds of support systems were just not that strong at the time. But this is something that they’ve worked on a lot in recent years. I don’t know that it’s perfect, but it’s definitely better than when I went there.

Anesha: That’s good. That’s a great, that’s a great response. How about you, Andrew?

Andrew: Um, something that I think that I wish like Penn is still lacking, and to be honest, I don’t think they’ll ever fix, but is that they don’t have like a sports culture. So if you’re looking to, you know, wake up in the morning to prepare for like the University of Michigan football game or something like that, you’re not going to find that here at Penn.

Um, but you know, that’s like a priority that other people might have, or like something that people do look forward to. So I think that, you know, that’s not something that happens, you know, At Penn, like we obviously have sports. We’re an Ivy League school, so we do have Division I sports and um, people do care.

Like, I don’t know if you saw, but we beat Villanova this year. So people did storm the field, but I think that um, if you envision like a huge football culture here, like that’s not something that exists. Um, and that’s for better or for worse. It’s, uh, mostly up to your opinion. But for me, I do sometimes wish that, you know, there are these like cool events, such as, you know, uh, in my four years there, we never made a March Madness tournament.

Um, I did always wish that we would, but we never did. So there are some things like that, that you probably might miss out on if you come to Penn.

Anesha: I like that answer. My aunt went to Penn and she said she would try to go to Temple sometimes to get some of that, uh, big schools for its energy. But yeah, that’s a good, I think, note to leave the students with.

All right. I’ll go ahead and close our poll and then let Andrew get an opportunity to speak. Just so you know, the majority of folks are in the process of researching schools. And so obviously that helps, um, support why they’re here. Congrats to the folks who are putting the application materials together and no worries to the folks who haven’t started.

Um, totally fine. You’re still in a good enough, uh, space. All right. Well, hand it over to you, Andrew. I’ll be back a little bit later for the Q and a.

Andrew: All right. Thank you. So yeah, a little bit about me. So once again, I graduated last year, so I applied during the 2019 cycle. Um, and so a bit about my college process. I think the first thing that I really want to say is that it’s stressful. I’m not going to try and sugarcoat it. It’s an incredibly stressful time in your life, but I like to think that I’m like an example of someone who Went through it.

So it’s like it’s possible to go through it. And before you know it, like you guys will be through it. Um, I know it seems impossible right now, but it’s something that you guys will get through eventually. Um, so my spring of junior year, I think, I think best for me is about a timeline. So my spring of junior year was when I was basically confirming and asking for a letter of recommendations.

So right around now, um, if you’re a junior is about the time that I think, you know, you want to reach out to your, um, potential recommenders, um, just to let them know, um, I went to a really big high school. where some teachers had like 20 30 people that they had to write letter of recs to, so then they started saying no to some people.

So if there’s a professor or like a teacher that you really enjoy having class with, I would recommend getting out to them. Um, I don’t think you should be like, oh, like, you know, can I have it due in like two days? But I think just giving them that warning, letting them know that, you know, you want a letter of recommendation is something that I think is best.

Um, and then I think the summer of senior year, obviously, this is like the time where you have to, you know, write your application essays. Um, and I think that, you know, something that, uh, I think is pretty important is that, um, you’re gonna have to write a lot of them. You know, there’s going to be a lot of like redrafts, kind of like how Chelsea said, like, she wrote two common apps.

I basically wrote two common apps as well. Um, so for me to like, I think letting the ideas come to me. Um, so I wrote my first common app. I thought it was fine. I genuinely. think that it was like a pretty good comment app, but I don’t know. I just like didn’t like it that much. Um, so I, but the thing is, I like had no idea what else to write.

So I was like, okay, I’ll stick through it for now. But then one day I like genuinely had a dream about this, like other idea that I had. And so I was like, okay, I really like this idea instead. Um, so I talked about that one instead. So I think that, you know, let these ideas come to you, you know, don’t force them out.

Um, I think like the ones that come to you naturally are the ones that you’ll write best on and the ones that you’ll have the most passion on. So I don’t think you should worry too much about that. Um, I really do think that, you know, the ideas will come to you. Don’t be afraid to write several essays.

Don’t be afraid to ask several people. I asked, you know, my brother, my mom, my dad, I asked so many people for help. I’m going to kind of look it over, but obviously maintain that your voice is still there. Um, and I actually took, uh, I signed up for a college writing summer school class. So I think this is just like a self reflection moment for everyone here.

Um, it’s just, just know yourself. Like I know I’m the senior year me. Like that guy was not doing his work if he had to. Um, so. I, you know, I signed up for this class because what you do in this class is you just sit there and you just have to write. Like you can either sit there and do nothing or you sit there and write.

So, uh, I knew that like that is something that would really benefit me, um, especially because I was surrounded by an entire class of other, you know, upcoming seniors who are also applying. So it’s, everyone’s in there just writing away, typing away. Um, and you know, that is like a scenario in which an environment that I usually thrive on and like that gets me to, um, kind of, you know, work.

Um, so. If that’s like an option that you have, um, and you are also someone like me who, you know, maybe, um, would not get to work unless you are in an environment like that, you know, just keep in mind, like, I think just ignore yourself. If you’re someone that, you know, works best alone, then don’t sign up for these classes.

Um, I think just reflecting upon who you are, what works best for you is the best idea. And lastly, I enjoyed summer. So I played basketball like every single day. I hung out with my friends, you know, like three times a week. Um, I think that your life shouldn’t stop because you’re writing these essays. I think that you can do both.

Um, and I still am a big believer in that. So, um, you know, like after the summer school class, like my friends and I, we went and played basketball. Like you can do so much stuff. I think enjoying the summer is like a really important part. Um, especially because, you know, your summers are limited now. If you don’t go into like academia or like, you know, a post grad.

You only got like five more. So, you know, keep them, enjoy them, you know, cherish them. Um, yeah. So, and then finally for the fall of my senior year, I finished up my essays. Um, you know, I said, I said, like, I kept on redrafting them, but at the end of it, I kind of knew that it was about ready. Um, and I submitted my applications a week before the due date.

So, um, I don’t know if you guys have heard, but those horror stories of people who wait to the last minute to submit, and then the, you know, the common app doesn’t work. Um, I submitted mine a week before. I think that if you want to do a day before, that’s also fine. But I think for me to, like, I know when I over edit something and I was like, all right, I just need to send it.

I need to forget about it. So that’s what I did. I submitted mine a week before. I think that’s best to just, you know, make the actual due date for you guys like a week early so that you’re definitely ready by the time the actual due date comes by. Um, so what made me decide, uh, schools and what made me decide on Penn?

So I actually ended up early decisioning to Penn. Um, but. I had a lot of debate between whether I should early decision or REA, which is restricted early action or early action. But I think, um, I knew that I wanted to go to Penn, like that was my number one school and it wasn’t my number one school by a long shot, which is why I decided to go early decision.

I think if you are someone that you know, has that thing, you should early decision. But if you’re not so sure, you know, then just be, just be okay with, or, you know, ING or ing. So that’s an opinion I have. Um. So another thing is, um, I was honestly debating between Columbia and Northwestern for my other two schools, um, that were like my main three that I was thinking about.

Um, and basically what I did was I took tours. I went to all those schools, um, and I, you know, got a vibe of the school. So some of the things that I really focused on was location. Um, so obviously Penn and Columbia are on the East coast, but Northwestern is in the Midwest. Um, they’re all in cities. I really wanted a school that was in the city.

So that’s why these three were my top choices. Um, and then academic focus was also really important. So when I went to Penn, I really, when I visited Penn, I really thought that they had like a very good pre professional, like STEM focused. Um, when I went to Columbia, I got more of a fine arts focus and I’m someone that’s very STEM oriented.

So I was like, okay, that’s not the right school for me. I want some school that’s very STEM oriented. Not saying that Cormier doesn’t have STEM, but for me, that was the vibe I got from my tours. And that was what that meets Penn as well. And finally, the culture of the school. So, you know, like Chelsea said, Penn’s known as like the work hard, play hard, social Ivy.

Uh, I think that, you know, that really embodies who I am. I’m not someone who, you know, can sit in the library for hours on a day, but I’m also someone who values like putting in work. And I know that. You know, studying and like working hard will pay off. Um, and it’s like very important for me. So that’s kind of like the culture that I really got from Penn that I really enjoyed.

Um, so yeah, I think it was a combination of these things that really led me to be like, okay, I think Penn is like what I really want to apply into. I mean, that’s why I decided to early decision. I also honestly considered regular decision, uh, BS and D programs. So I think that I knew from like a lot, very lucky.

I was pretty lucky to know that I wanted to do medical school, um, very early on. But I think once again, this is just like a know yourself question. Like for me, like I realized that I know that I am someone who, if I got a guaranteed admissions program, you know, those next four years of the bachelor program, I don’t think I’d do that much.

Um, and I know that that’s not something that I want to do. I want to be someone who, um, you know, uh, continues to work hard and kind of values, like the education I’m getting. So I thought that, okay, maybe this pen, uh, maybe this college to the medical school route is a little bit better for me personally than someone who maybe is like tends to be over anxious or like too worrisome about potentially not getting into medical school programs and likes the guarantee of one.

If you’re someone that likes to do that, then obviously BSMD is the way to go. But that’s a whole different discussion. I think it’s just once again, just like a know yourself question. I think, you know, don’t overthink it. You know what you want the most and you should go with that. Um, and then how did Penn set me up for success?

So I was actually a part of the program here called the Bachelor’s Molecular Life Science Program. Um, the link is up there if you guys want to look it up, but basically it’s like a very big program for STEM focused people. Um, you basically get a $10,000 stipend every summer to do research and I was someone who wanted to do research because I wanted to go to medical school.

So it kind of worked out pretty well for me. So, um, I signed up with that program. Um, and I think that that program was like a really good program for me. Um, it really pushed me to, you know, focus on STEM and, um, you know, uh, just like do all the pre med classes and remain on track and everything like that.

Um, I think another thing is that the, there’s a hospital system that is gigantic at Penn. Um, CHOP, which is the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and HUP, which is the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. are across the street from Penn. So, um, I know that other schools might not have this, uh, for example, like the medical school I go to, their undergraduate campus is, um, not next to the medical school campus.

Um, but, you know, regardless, uh, being right next to it, it allowed me to volunteer and, you know, do things. do research at these, at these huge institutions that are just across the street. And I feel like that was like an invaluable moment for me to get this experience early on. Um, I also really like the interdisciplinary approach that Penn has.

So I minored in healthcare management with the Wharton school while I was attending Penn. Um, just because I thought it was really interesting, um, as a future, you know, physician, I wanted to be able to know the other side, you know, the payer side, the patient side. So I thought that this would be like a great opportunity for me.

Um, and it was actually a very huge talking point in my medical school interview.

Anesha: Oh no. Okay. We may be lost. We lost Andrew again. Uh, alright. Well, we’ll let him come back, um, in a few minutes, but we’ll go ahead and move forward with our Q& A and hopefully Andrew can wrap up his talk. Thought when he is able to join us again. So we’ll say that that is the end of the presentation portion of tonight’s session.

We are going to jump into our Q and a, just a reminder how Q and a works. You can go ahead and submit your questions under the Q and a tab in the chat section and I will. Read them aloud, give Chelsea an opportunity to answer Andrew when he gets back. Um, and then, um, yeah, but just as a reminder, um, we cannot give you a personalized admissions assessment.

So please do not share your profile in the questions. We cannot summarize your chances of getting in. And if you’re having any issues with submitting questions through the Q and A, just know that you might have to log out and log back in. Make sure you’re logged in through the email you received and not from our webinar landing page.

All right. Um, okay. All right. So my first question for you. for you, Chelsea, um, is around the essay. Um, so you talked a lot about kind of brainstorming and going through this process and getting feedback. Can you tell us a little bit more about the topic you chose and why that, why you felt like that was the most effective way to convey yourself to the admissions office?

Chelsea: So I, I had a really broad topic, which I wouldn’t advise my students to do. I think it’s much harder to do it that way. Um, but I talked about how a lot of things basically changed in my life, but there were certain things that were familiar and the same, and I was appreciating those things. things. Um, how even though I might have changed or my circumstances might have changed, I dealt with it well.

And, um, I appreciated the things that were still familiar. So I think this showed some personal growth and that’s an important part of the Common App essay. I do think I was a little melodramatic looking back on it, though.

Anesha: Oh, I feel like, um, I aligned with what you were sharing as far as just, like, how you talked about yourself and the growth that you talked about, um, experiencing and being somewhat melodramatic in my, in my essay as well, so, uh, no worries.

I think, I think it just comes with the territory of being a creator. Um, sorry, Andrew, we lost you. I wanted to make sure you were able to finish up your last thought on your previous slide. Um, so I’ll go back there and hand it back over to you to just wrap up, uh, your final thoughts there. Yeah,

Andrew: sorry guys. So, I don’t know where I cut out, um.

Chelsea: So, I think you were talking a little bit about the, you did healthcare management, you like the interdisciplinary aspect of that. That’s the last thing I remember.

Andrew: Yeah. So basically, um, I thought that was a really great part of it. And then finally, I think as a first generation, um, medical student, um, I thought that the pre med office was incredible here at Penn.

They knew what they were doing. Um, I think the stats don’t lie. Um, the average medical school acceptance rate. So people who apply to medical school, um, the average in the nation is 40%. Penn’s is 80%. So I think that they do a great job. They really helped me. So yeah. And then finally, you know, lifelong connections.

Um, I met my best friends at Penn. I met so many great people at Penn. Um, and I think that like, you know, there are people that are going to be my friends for the rest of my life. So I think that that was another great thing that didn’t set me up for maybe professional success, but it set me up for, you know, life success.

Anesha: Yeah.

Andrew: Just to really quickly wrap that up.

Anesha: Thank you so much, Andrew. Um, and I’ll actually give you the next question, um, because it actually relates to that. So a student asks, what are your opinions about the community at Penn events, cultural representation clubs, and the friendships you made along the way?

On the way. Transcript

Andrew: Yeah, I guess I can go into further detail. Um, so the community at Penn, I think is very strong. Um, I know I said that, like, you know, there’s no like sports culture, for example, and there isn’t, but there’s still a really strong Penn culture, like people are, you know, very happy to, you know, be a Penn student, you know, they’re very proud of being a Penn student.

Um, and I think that with that, um, everyone also knows kind of how hard everyone worked to get to this point. So people are, you know, relatively like understanding of, you know, okay, you know, like, you got to sit down and do work right now, or, you know, that’s time, it’s time to have some fun. Um, I think another thing is, I think the community aspect, there’s so many student organizations that are part of it.

There are new ones, you Made every single, every single year. Um, and I think that there are just so many opportunities. There are so many clubs, there’s so many opportunities. Um, and for you, like there, you can, you know, join like a dance group, you can join an intramural team, you can join a sports, a club team, you know, there’s so many options.

Um, and I think another nice thing about Penn is, um, you know, you. It’s big enough of a school where you can find people that are very similar to you. And with that, you can get people that are very, you know, that you get along with very well. I don’t think it’s, uh, you’re very much having a lot of trouble finding, like, your group of friends and having a great time.

Anesha: Thanks, Andrew. Chelsea, any other thoughts about Penn’s community?

Chelsea: Yeah, I really liked a residential program. I didn’t do on my freshman year, but I had friends that were in residential programs and I was kind of jealous how they had that built in friend group that they were, you know, lived right next to.

So it was really easy to foster connection, not just at events, but all the time. And so I applied for one my next year. So I ended up living in a residential program, my sophomore, junior and senior years, the international program. And I think that was, the key to my social life. I, and I’m saying that as someone who did other clubs and was in a sorority and everything, I really think the residential program was the best part of the community for me.

Um, so if that’s something that interests you, I recommend looking into a residential program.

Anesha: Thanks, y’all. Um, okay. My next question for you both. And I guess Chelsea, you can start. What extracurriculars did you do in high school that you think prepared you for your applications and for college, ultimately?

Chelsea: So, I did a lot of really random things in high school. Um, in school, I did some sports. I Was on the cross country and crew, uh, teams, uh, crew was definitely a huge time commitment. Um, I was both a coxswain and a rower and, um, I was in a medical awareness club, which really was just like watching medical TV shows.

It was nothing serious. Um, I was involved in some other small, uh, school clubs that I didn’t have a ton of involvement in, but I was. Um, but you know, operations, mile, things like that. But outside of school, I did some internships and summer programs. So I worked on an art gallery. I did a medical summer program.

I did the Columbia pre college summer program. I went to, uh, Sleep away camp and I had some jobs and roles there. Um, I did an internship at a school for children with autism and other support needs. I, um, I did research and shadowing with a friend’s mom, uh, uh, chop. Um, so I was very involved in school and outside of school.

Um, I didn’t let You know, this goal define me or limit me. And I had a lot of interests, so I explored a lot of interests. Yeah,

Andrew: I think I was pretty similar to Chelsea. I did a decent amount of things outside of school as well as in school. Um, I think the thing for me though was that everything I did, um, I kind of wanted to do. So I was like, even though they theoretically wouldn’t make any sense when it came to like an application, I think.

So for example, I, I’m a, I really like history. So history fair was something that I really like to do. So I did history fair with a couple of my friends. Um, but you know, I’m in medical school now, so there’s really no point in doing it outside of just like doing it with my friends to just do something.

Um, so history fair was something that I did. Um, I really do enjoy also like teaching. So I was part of like peer tutors. So I just tutored other. Classmates and I was part of this program called the Freshman Mentor Program where as a junior or a senior you kind of just help a class of freshmen kind of adjust into high school.

So those were a couple of the things that I did. Oh yeah, I also did fencing. So I was a fencer back in high school and then a couple of things I did outside of school. Um, I worked, so I worked at McDonald’s for two years, um, so I did that. Um, I was also part of a political advocacy group, so I’m Korean, so I wanted to kind of raise kind of the voices of Korean Americans, so I was part of a Korean advocacy group where we kind of just helped, uh, You know, Korean Americans vote for the first time.

Um, and then I was also, I did some research with, um, some universities locally too, as well, kind of similar to Chelsea.

Anesha: Okay. No, we’re busy. Um, all right. Uh, this question is specifically for you, Andrew. How did you manage the stress that comes with being a STEM major?

Andrew: Um, I. I don’t know what, like, stress specific you meant, but I think that the stress comes from just, you know, being a student who wants to achieve a lot, right? Whether you’re a STEM major or, you know, in the Wharton School, I think everyone wants to get good grades. Um, so that was, I think, a lot where the stress came from, I think, for me, but when it comes to, like, applying to medical school, I had a lot of stress because I was so nervous that maybe I won’t get in, um, you saw the numbers, 40 percent of kids are the only 40 percent get in, so that was something that really stressed me out, but I’m also a numbers guy a little bit.

So I saw that, yeah, 40 percent of kids only get in, but 80 percent of Penn gets in. And then when you look at the 80%, like if you looked at, you know, my stats, my grades and stuff like that, I was above the average of like what a Penn student who usually applied would. So I was like, okay, well then obviously then, you know, I’m above that 80 percent Um, and then I like kind of looked at.

Some data, um, so you can see like stats and this is what kind of what I did also in undergrad, like, I mean, starting in high school, I was like, okay, like, um, my GPA is like, you know, um, like kind of on par with these schools, like that really helps me believe in myself. So I think I was a really big stat guy in kind of that sense.

So I was like, okay. Where I line up, people have had success with and so that kind of helped me a lot.

Anesha: Thank you. Uh, I guess I have a more application or like preparation type question for you that I’ll throw to Chelsea. Um, are AP or IB courses preferred? And. Does dual enrollment appeal to universities?

So what about the competitiveness of the classes that folks are taking are relevant to admissions at Penn?

Chelsea: So you’re evaluated in the context of your school. So if you go to a school that has 20 APs, they would expect you to take a few of them in comparison to a student who goes to a school that has no APs.

They absolutely can’t. You know, imagine them, make them up. So, um, you definitely need to take rigorous classes, uh, to show that you can handle the coursework in college. Um, but you don’t have to take every single class. I would focus on the ones that are, um, particularly relevant to your interests or the major that you’re applying for.

Um, don’t feel like you have to go crazy for. These different rigorous classes and I would challenge yourself a little bit more each year, right? So if you start out with one or two APs in your freshman year, maybe the next year you do three or four Um, if you’re doing well, you know, just bring it up a notch each time but APs, IBs, dual enrollment They’re all good all considered rigorous and they’re all, um, good ideas to pursue, but do what makes sense for you and what you think you can actually do well.

If you take this challenge and you don’t do great in them, then you’re not really showing the school that you’re able to handle the rigorous coursework. So pick a challenge that you think that you can prepare for.

Anesha: That’s great. That’s a great response. That was a great response. Um, I was going to ask, uh, related to the question previously about extracurriculars, were there any classes that you took, um, that you felt specifically prepared you for the type of coursework or the level of rigor that you faced at Penn?

Chelsea: So like classes you took in high school to prepare? Yeah, sorry, classes

Anesha: you took in high school that you feel prepared you for the rigor of, of what you faced at Penn?

Chelsea: Uh, I, I went to a really good school. I have to say they did a great job of preparing us in general. Um, I, I think that, The critical thinking was the biggest thing, um, that helped me and I, I felt like I had really engaging conversations and critical thinking, um, happened in a contemporary world issues is what it was called.

This class was called, uh, Crazy people got in these insane debates talking about like, um, was like ethical debates. Like was it okay for someone to torture this person if it was like a, you know, a national security thing or like, what is it? I don’t know all these crazy world issues. We were debating them as if we were a part of the UN and I love that class.

And we actually had someone visit from Like Villanova or something like some local school. They came in and they were watching our class that day and they were shocked by these high schoolers that were just losing their minds debating. So I felt like classes like that that really force you to have an opinion and back it up.

Um, help me with the thinking that I need it for college.

Anesha: Any thoughts Andrew?

Andrew: Um, yeah, I think. AP courses, when they say that they’re college work like they are. So, um, I think that like a lot of the content that was, you know, like went over in AP courses, they are actually kind of went upon again, a bit faster in college.

Um, for example, I took AP chemistry my senior year, um, and then freshman year of college, I took general chemistry and, um, you know, the first half of the semester was basically stuff that we had already gone over. So I think that they do a great job. And like, when they say AP is in the college courses, they are stuff that, you know, you will learn in college.

So I think that’s something that’s pretty good. Um, another thing is. I think my school did an interesting job and we have like finals and everything. Um, and I think that that was something that kind of helped me because when you go to college, A lot of your grade, especially if you come, if you go to these STEM courses, maybe less, so for a little bit of these seminars, but the big, big, like.

300 person, not that there are actually any, I don’t think there are any 300 person classes in Penn, maybe like the 100 person class in Penn. I

Chelsea: was definitely in 300 person classes, but maybe they changed that. The

Andrew: biggest one I could think about was maybe 150. Um, I could also be wrong. Maybe I’m just really bad with like, numbers in that sense, I’m guessing.

But, um, you know, like for those, you know, a lot of your grade comes from exams. So my school kind of was similar in that sense, right? Like our final exam was worth for 25 percent of our grades. So I kind of felt that pressure to study ahead, to, you know, review this stuff occasionally so that I maintain this, you know, knowledge of it so that during the final, I knew it.

And it’s kind of similar at Penn, you know, um, uh, Um, some of these final exams are worth maybe 25 percent of your grade and then, um, you know, they go over the entire year. So I think that kind of helped me prepare. I think my school kind of was like trying to replicate, uh, what like a college course can occasionally look like, especially with these AP courses.

So I think that they did a great job with that.

Anesha: I’m going to come back with a question about rigor at Penn, but before I do that, I’m going to do a quick PSA. So CollegeAdvisors team of over 300 for admissions officers and admissions experts are ready to help you and your family navigate the college admissions process in 1 on 1 advising sessions.

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More. All right, gonna leave the QR code up on the screen and get back to the questions. And so my question is similar a little bit to the question we posed to Andrew, but I think more generally about workload at Penn. So how did you navigate the academic rigor and workload there? And what advice would you give to high school students who are thinking about going into any competitive environment?

Um, or highly competitive University of how they maybe need to be prepared to embrace the workload. Whoever wants to start with that one. Yeah,

Chelsea: I can answer. So I would say go to office hours. You don’t have to be, you know, doing poorly in the class to go to office hours, go to office hours. It’s a really good way to actually meet your.

Professor or TA, whoever is running it, and um, maybe get more insight on how to study or what’s most important. Give them a face so they think of you for opportunities or whatever. Um, I didn’t know that right away. And also there’s study skills centers and workshops. There’s the writing center. You don’t have to be a bad writer to go to the writing center.

It’s always great to have someone look over your writing. Um, that’s not a bot Or like spellcheck or whatever, you know an actual human being that’s good at writing um, so take advantage of the many many support services that are out there and Do not study alone. I think of college as a team sport. You know, you might be the captain of your team.

You’re the one who has to lead the way and decide how things will go. Um, but it’s really important to recruit people to be on your team so that you can have people that help you with studying or with preparing for an interview or, um, You know, just taking those opportunities hyping you up and you might have been able to do those kinds of things in high school on your own.

Um, a lot of the people who go to Penn are the kinds of people who study super hard and did it all on their own and they succeeded at that. But once you get to college, you really need to learn to bring people in.

Anesha: I can, I can go next. Go for it, Andrew. Yeah. Okay, sorry.

Andrew: That’s okay. Um. Very similar to what Chelsea says, use the resources available. I use that. I’m not the best writer. I know I’m not the best writer. So I use the writing center like a preposterous amount. Um, one of the courses that you have to take as a student is, um, writing, writing seminar.

So that’s basically a course where you, you, you write. Um, so I went to every single assignment. I went at least once. Um, and I do think that like that they genuinely helped their other Thank you. A lot of the tutors there are other older students who did really good in the class. So, you know, they know how to write they know what works.

So, so I think that that’s a great thing to do. Um, I think another thing is outside of using your resources is like, you know, I think if you can just Manage your time. Well, um, college is supposed to, you know, be a really fun time in your life, right? So, you know, you shouldn’t find yourself in the library Monday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. like that’s not sustainable. That’s not expected of you No one does that. So I think you know just I think focusing on like having a balance really helps You know, there’s a lot of studies that show that like Exercising actually helps you retain stuff better. You know, hanging out with friends makes you appreciate, you know, um, retaining stuff better and stuff like that.

So I think, you know, there are a lot of things that you can do outside of just like staying in the library, working with friends, um, and stuff like that as well. Um, just, I think the best way to prepare yourself with this, um, and like, it’s not, you don’t have to do this, I think, but I didn’t do this, but. Um, I think had I known like how I learned best, that might be like the best thing that you could ever do.

Um, because some people are independent studiators, while some people love to talk through things with friends. Um, if you know which one you are, then like I think that is like one of the best ways to prepare yourself for, you know, Um, but no pressure. If you’re not, you know, I found out what I liked when I was in college.

Um, and you definitely don’t have to know that as well. And it can change as well. So, but I think that that is like my number one advice. If you want it to be like a prepared for college.

Anesha: I love that of knowing how you study. That’s definitely I think study skills is a thing that. gets gleaned over in high school and just sort of like read these chapters and come back and you really need them, uh, for college in ways that you, you don’t think about.

So I love that of, of understanding how you learn best is really, really good advice. Okay. Um, the next question I’ll ask for you both is what passions did you mention in your application? How did you demonstrate your drive? Chelsea, we’ll start with you and then Andrew, you can jump in whenever you get ready.

Chelsea: Okay. Uh, I don’t know that I showed a specific passion. I didn’t have a clear theme. This is because I didn’t have someone helping me with my application. If you looked at my application, you’d probably think, wow, this girl is all over the place. Um, so I think that it’s helpful to. Think about your personal brand.

And I wish I did that back then, but I was interested in helping people. That was definitely clear, um, from my activities and how I described my relationships in my, um, common app essay. I don’t know what my letters of recommendation say, but I imagine they were probably about my connections to other people more than anything else.

And so I think that’s something that I. knew about myself, that I was someone who, um, you know, really enjoyed helping other people and tried to let others know in my college process.

Andrew: Yeah, I think the best way to show your drive outside of talking about it in your essays is having your extracurriculars show that drive. So for me, um, I remember talking about like how I really wanted to do, you know, medicine and I wanted to, you know, really. work on like helping people out. Um, so then the thing is like, I can say that, but if you’re none of your extracurriculars show that, right, then it’s just like, okay, like you say that, but you’re not doing anything for it.

So I think making sure, I mean, ideally, you know, what you do and what you want to do, like coalesce and like, they make sense together. But if they don’t, you know, make sure that if you have like this really big passion of yours, you You know, do the activities that kind of show it. So for me, you know, research is pretty big for me and I did research throughout my summer.

So I think that that was like a great way for me to show that, Hey, like research is something that I really enjoy to do. And I want to continue doing that. I think, yeah, me doing that in my high school years showed it a lot more than me just saying, Hey, I think research is cool. Right. Um, so I think if you’re evidence, if you have like, a point and then you have the evidence within your extracurriculars or your letters of rec or something like that.

I think that is like the best way to show what you’re passionate about and what your drive is and your essays and your application.

Anesha: I was going to ask a question about passion projects but it seems like neither of you did did passion projects when you were in high school. And I guess I’ll take that as a sign that you don’t need to, you don’t have to do a fashion project.

Chelsea: Um, We were required to do something at the end of senior year. It would be like an externship mixed with a presentation. So I did the thing with my like art gallery role. And so I present on that. I don’t really remember what so much I did. with that, but I do remember working at the art gallery every day during the end of my senior year and it got really boring, but I learned a lot about how to fill my time and how to, you know, talk to the people that would come into the gallery and sound maybe more knowledgeable than I really was.

Anesha: Um, I had a question, I guess, about the Interview process, because I feel like at least amongst the ideas and my knowledge within admissions pen seems to have a pretty intense interview, um, or just the most structured that I’ve been able to find. But I wonder if you all interviewed in the admissions process and what were your thoughts on on the pen interview?

If it stood out in your mind, if you remember it, so.

Chelsea: I think I did do an interview, but I don’t remember it. I remember I did one for Georgetown and that was first. So that’s probably why I remembered it. It’s because I was really nervous for that one. Um, but I’ve actually interviewed students for the pen one.

Um, since then, as an alum, they have, uh, Option to interview students, and I’ve interviewed a number of students along the way. I don’t think any of them have gone in. Unfortunately, um, just the nature of the kind of programs that they were applying for and their profiles. But it was really fun to talk to them.

I would say a key takeaway that I learned from doing the interview being on the other side is they care a lot about, um, Like, what would you contribute on campus? Like, what are you adding to the student body? And I think that you should know that going into an interview. Any

Andrew: thoughts? So that was the only interview that I did. So I happen to luckily remember it pretty well. Um, I think the great, like the thing about the interview is that you’re now meeting an official alum. So you can hear all about a school, but you won’t know what the school is like until you meet people.

Right. And so what I heard about Penn was like, it’s like the work hard, play hard. Like you can definitely have a lot of fun at this school. And I remember that so well because my alum went, because we were supposed to meet at a Starbucks, but he went to the wrong Starbucks. So he like sent me a message like, oh my bad.

Like I went to the wrong Starbucks. Like I’ll come on my way to this. Right. Starbucks, you know? And that I think was like. Something that is like something that I will 100 percent do. I totally see myself doing the same exact thing. And I was like, okay, like that is someone that is like me, but maybe, you know, went to school 20 years ago, kind of like me.

And I think that we actually had a really great conversation. Um, you know, he walked and he goes like, sorry, like, and I was like, Oh, don’t worry about it. You know, we had a good laugh about it. Um, so I think he did a great job and kind of, Letting loose and not making the interview too intense. Um, obviously, you know, that’s just one interview experience.

Maybe other people are a bit more intense. But I think it’s, the interview is like a great way to meet someone who went to that school and who embodies the school, right? So if you You know, like ideally, but you know, once again it’s a big school. So, but ideally like they will, you know, kind of show like what the majority of the people there are like.

And I thought that that was like a really funny way for me to kind of, you know, really know that like, yeah Penn is like a great fit for me. It’s because like there are kids or adults or alums that are, you know, That, you know, are just as disorganized and it’s just as, Oh shoot, messed up kind of people.

Like, so that was really nice. Um, so yeah.

Anesha: But yeah, I feel like that, that puts the interview in your court. Like when he shows up late at the rock star at the rock Starbucks, you’re like, okay, I have nothing more to be nervous about. I at least showed up. on time to the right location. So, um, I love that story.

That’s a great one. Thanks for sharing. Um, and you actually connected to another question I was going to ask, which was, um, how is it helpful to connect with alums? So I don’t know, Chelsea, if you had any thoughts of, of your experience sharing as an alum or your experience connecting with alums during, uh, your time at Penn.

Chelsea: Hmm. Um, Well, I think the people are really friendly. Like if you’ve reached out on LinkedIn or, you know, I think it’s a good idea if you have a future goal to find alum, um, alumni that have pursued that path and, um, maybe have an informational interview, learn a little bit more about their trajectory because they might’ve had a similar, start as you since they started at Penn and they might know what things to do at Penn or after Penn that you can take advantage of.

So I think that’s really helpful. But I think that, um, I’ve really enjoyed every time I’ve met other alumni after Penn. I think that there’s such a clear, um, connection, a clear, like, type of person that goes to Penn and it kind of, um, you know, filters out people I know it’s. They’re going to be someone that I will enjoy interacting with because of that.

Um, not necessarily because they’d be best friends, but there’s someone who I think is ambitious and curious and, um, usually is a little, um, more social than some other places. And, um, I think they’re worldly and, um, you know, interesting people to talk to. So I’ve enjoyed when I’ve met. Pen alumni that I didn’t know while I was on campus.

Um, now as an adult,

Anesha: thanks. Thanks for for adding to that Chelsea. I appreciate it. Um, okay, the, I think what will be the last question, depending on how, how long you both take to answer, but I think it comes from the spirit of. You know, what does it mean to have an Ivy League education? Um, and what is the value add of the Ivy League, I guess, level or prestige of a, of a school?

So it’s coming from that spirit of like, you know, what is the, what’s the emphasis? So it’s, do you think that you would be where you are today if you went to a community college or a non Ivy League

Chelsea: college? I think I would be still somewhere good, right? Like, I still think I’d be successful. I just think that the specific path wouldn’t be the same.

Um, I, When I, um, after I graduated, I went to Singapore and, um, I got a visa and a job that very much did depend on like where I went to school. So I think that that wouldn’t have been the case if I went to just anywhere. So I will say that there’s definitely certain opportunities that were presented to me because of that.

But I will say that, uh, Um, there are many times that I wish I was a big fish in a smaller pond or, you know, somewhere else, because I think I might’ve stayed in my major if I had gone to a different school where it was set up differently, the major that I was originally in, because I just didn’t feel like the, the class set up and the culture surrounding that major was for me personally, but I was really interested in the topics.

It just wasn’t the way I, you know, Learn, right? So I think I probably would have stuck with my original major if I went to a different school. So I think about that sometimes. Um, but I also think that Penn is taking students that would be successful anywhere and then just putting them together. And, um, there are many schools that can take students that maybe are, um, still figuring them out.

Their things out and they do really well at those schools. Those schools are really good at nurturing them and helping them find, um, what they need and connecting them resources. And those are amazing schools, right? You don’t have to go to a school where everyone is already vetted to be on the path to success.

There’s some schools that can nurture, um, a little bit of a late bloomer. And so I think that’s important to see that you don’t have to go to a school that’s like. This is my identity that I’m going to this school. You can be successful at other places. It’s what you do when you get there that’s going to be way more important.

Malcolm Gladwell has a really, um, good thing on this in David and Goliath. I recommend reading that book if you’re interested in learning more about like how you fit in, um, to a big or small pond.

Andrew: Andrew, take it from there. Yeah, and I’ll go really, really quickly because we’re, I know we’re almost out of time.

Um, but once again, I’m a pretty big like fact stack kind of guy. So, um, I will say that I, so I go to medical school right now. Um, and I will say that at my medical school, um, a decent amount of people that are attending my medical school with me are from top schools. So at the Ivy, Stanford, um, MIT, like a lot of us.

Came from like that similar to you’re not saying all of us. Um, you know, one of my, like a lot of my closest friends also went to public schools, but, or like, you know, schools that are private, but not, I really like a level in terms of tier. So I will say that that is the case, but it’s also a question of, you know, kind of what Chelsea said, you know, you tend to put people who are more, maybe like.

prepared and more focused on success at these higher tier schools. Um, and so it’s like, is it because I went to Penn that helped me get into this school? Or is it, you know, that was, I was gonna go there regardless of which school I went to, because like, that’s just the type of person who I am, right? Um, and it kind of, you know, goes along with like the whole thing as a whole, right?

So yeah, like a lot of the kids who are at my class are Ivy League students, but You know, that if they went to maybe a community college, that doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t have had the drive, right? Maybe, um, so it’s one of those big debates. I do think that, like, if you wanted to look straight number wise, like, I think it does help.

Um, I don’t think it’s like the worst kept secret in medical school admissions that where you come from matters a little bit. Um, once again, like if you have a person with the same exact application, one comes from, you know, um, a no name school and one comes from Harvard, like they’re going to prefer the one that’s from Harvard.

Um, but, you know, that’s not the make or break. Um, and like I said, like 20 percent of people who applied from Penn don’t get anywhere. Right. So. You know, it’s not the only thing that factors it, but if you wanted to get into the nitty and gritty, I think it helps maybe like this much especially when it comes to medical school applications.

Anesha: So yeah, I was gonna say I think I think it really is connected to the long term trajectory of what what might set you up Um, but I appreciate you both Uh, thanks everyone for joining us. Thank you, Andrew and Chelsea for sharing your expert, your perspectives with us. Uh, also we hope that you will join us for our other webinars later this month.

So, um, next week, May 20th, we have a session on application deadlines. So Chelsea and Andrew both talked about REA, ED, all of those things. If you have questions about that, join us on May 20th. On May 21st, we’ll be deep diving into engineering as a college major. So for folks who are wondering about the stress.

Of being a stem major join us on the 21st and then we’ll have a app a session on The 22nd on organizing your college application. So managing the stress and getting ahead of things Uh join us on the 22nd. We hope to see you soon But until then take care and have a great evening everybody.

Chelsea: Bye