Streamers
Professor
Posts: 8220
Loc: NW Philadelphia
Reg: 11-21-04
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09-06-17 06:39 PM - Post#232683
In response to Penn90
I too have a daughter who is beginning the college selection process as a HS junior. She also attends a private (Friends) school here in Philly that made substantial changes to its schedule, in part, with the goal of giving the kids a bit more flexibility and reducing stress. Of course, since it is a big change, it is having the opposite effect for time being.
We have begun to tour a variety of colleges and universities and there is no doubt the 'happy bubble' liberal arts colleges, including the highly selective ones, seem quite a bit less intense than Ivies and similar research universities. Swarthmore, for example, has an all pass-fail policy for freshmen.
We have a fair bit of experience with Penn admissions. My older girl went through the process (although she ended up choosing Duke over Penn, in part because she felt it was a better atmosphere) and I was involved with interviewing candidates at one time. I consistently found Penn admissions to be mechanical and impersonal, even for legacies. The reality is that Penn has managed to market and position itself so effectively that it can act this way and still get high yields and low acceptance rates. I agree the common app. has something to do with this, along with the revised financial aid policies.
I think, as a result. Penn is more likely to admit the kind of hyper-competitive high-intensity kid who may not be a great fit and flame out academically and socially - and foster deep depression as a result.
As a parent of a child who stands a good chance of admission should she apply, I will be very wary of considering Penn for her unless If I have any doubt she can take what the place dishes out these days.
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