U-Penn Medical Students_HELP!!

[Inspector Gadget]

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I am presently waitlisted at U-Penn. It is my first choice and I really want to go there. I have already written a letter of continued interest to Gaye Sheffler and sent an update with my most recent grades and honors. Is there anything else that any of you did or think I should do to increase my chances? Is it ok to call and ask to speak to her? If so what should I say?
Thank you very much for all of your help.

 

[doof]

where are you on the waitlist? if you're in the first tier, you're in good shape. you mentioned in your post that penn's your first choice - the key now is to let them know explicitly that if they accept you, you'll come. write a letter of intent, and i think it would be fine to call and speak with gaye. if you get good vibes from her, let her know that you'd be happy for the opportunity to come back to take another look around.

congrats on getting this far - it's a long, crazy process, i remember. penn is a GREAT place - i absolutely love it here!

 

[Inspector Gadget]

Dear Doof,
Thanks for the words of encourgement. I really loved it at Penn too. I am in the first teir (thank God). I wanted to come back and take another look too, I have family in Philly which is one of the things that makes Penn so great aside from its reputation, facilities, and easy going students. I was wondering how many of your classmates came off the waitlist?
Thanks again!

 

[doof]

hey IG:
i got in off the waitlist, and i believe a significant proportion, if not the majority, of my good friends here were also accepted from the waitlist. it seems to me that if you're in the first tier, and you're committed to penn as your first choice, your chances of acceptance are very, very good. 🙂

an aside: you mentioned a lot of penn's strengths, but one of the things that made this school stand out to me was the almost unbelievable support the students receive from the administration. ex: dr. harvey rubin, our dean for students, met with all the different student groups to get feedback and suggestions. one of the things suggested was support from the school for cultural/social activities (like some of the nyc schools). almost immediately, we started getting FREE tickets to concerts at the brand new kimmel center for the performing arts. the faculty and administration truly care about the students, and it makes for a very nurturing environment.

i could go on and on, but i'll spare you. let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[chouette]

d-
how does one exactly get to speak to gaye? (i'm also on penn's tier 1 & more than ready to let them know they're my #1 choice.) should i ask the secretary to make a phone appt with her? it seems that that it would be rather hard to get her on the phone if if i haven't spoken with her already. what do you think is best?

 

[doof]

chouette - nah, it shouldn't be too hard to get a hold of gaye. just call and ask to speak with her. what may happen is that you'll be told that she'll call you back - this gives her a chance to pull your file and refresh her memory as to who you are.

good luck! don't be nervous - gaye is wonderful, and she'll be up-front with you.

 

[chouette]

d-
thanks for the help! i feel much better about all of this now... perhaps i have a better chance of getting in than i originally thought (it was rather unnerving to see on penn's faq page that there are initially ~400 (!!!!) waitlisted). when do you think is the most likely time for people to be taken from the list - may? june?

 

[Inspector Gadget]

Dear Doof,
You are awesome. Thanks for the additional information. It is good to hear that there are a number of people in the class from the waitlist. It is great that the faculty and administration are so supportive. It must make a challenging period in one's life much more rewarding and enjoyable. I feel good knowing that Gaye is so approachable. I am going to call.
Thank you.

 

[Esco]

Hey, have any of you been able to get in contact with Gaye...I heard she was on vacation this week?

 

[TommyGunn04]

Yeah, when I met up with her at Penn Preview to discuss my financial aid package she told me that she was going to be away until sometime next week.

 

[nap]

If one were to call Gaye, what exactly should one say? Im not really sure how to make it valid that I expect her to waste her time talking to me.

Any thoughts, greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[doof]

c - i'm sure the waitlist will start to move soon after the may 15 (?) deadline for those at the 'top of the first tier' (did they do that this year?) - ie those that were invited to penn preview, etc. i'm trying to remember...i think i got in sometime near the beginning of june.

good luck to all of you on the waitlist - look forward to seeing you this fall. though i guess i'll have no idea who you are when you come.

 

[doof]

ps: all the 'cool' people at penn got in off the waitlist. 🙂 <-- i hope this doesn't turn into a yellow happy face.

 

[chouette]

d-
were there many people who got in w/out a 'top of the waitlist' letter? any idea how many people were sent those letters/# of waitlisted people who were invited to preview weekend?

 

[cm7b5]

Does anyone here know of someone getting off the 2nd tier waitlist?? Is it possible??

 

[oneironaut]

bump. just want to keep this up. I heard that 8 ppl from the waitlist went to the revisit weekend. That came from someone here on SDN.

Uff, I want to go to Penn !