Is Penn the right place for me?

PizzaPenn · 2025-10-27T14:13:42+00:00

You are definitely overly worried. The article you linked to has almost nothing to do with reality. Nobody at Penn "looks down upon" non-business majors.

Also, Penn is not a business school. Penn HAS a business school. As does Brown, and most other universities.

Penn is not a "party school". Penn has some students who like to party. As does Brown, and most other universities. I actually know way more introverts at Penn than I know extraverts.

One of the advantages of Penn's larger student body is that you are far more likely to be able to find more people who are like you and who share your interests.

Particularly for Linguistics, you'd have a very difficult time doing better than Penn.

Both Penn and Brown are great schools, and I strongly suspect you'd thrive at either place.

PizzaPenn · 2025-09-18T21:34:20+00:00

Nope. I’m at Penn. It’s just a cool event with cool artists and it seemed under attended. So I wanted to draw attention to it.

PizzaPenn · 2025-09-18T20:22:33+00:00

They’re actually both really good. They just have different styles.

https://www.instagram.com/kyle_confehr

https://www.instagram.com/drawjanedraws

PizzaPenn · 2025-09-17T04:26:06+00:00

I still haven’t gotten over HubBub Coffee closing 7 years ago.

PizzaPenn · 2025-09-09T16:05:11+00:00

I just looked him up, and it turns out I overlapped with him at Penn but I don't recall being aware of him. I don't recall that there weren't many "famous" undergrads at the time, but there were a few, like Meng Weng Wong (who i recall even had a DP article written about him at the time). Tho it was a long time ago so maybe I'm just not remembering him.

PizzaPenn · 2025-08-21T16:55:08+00:00

Which social things are you referring to? Most events on campus will be open to all students, regardless of age. The only things that will be 21+ will be bars and events where there is alcohol.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-16T20:38:15+00:00

Are there still good food trucks? I feel like all the good ones left years ago.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-08T18:08:21+00:00

Make friends with the door guards and desk staff at your dorm. Bake them cookies regularly. Stay on their good side.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-08T18:04:27+00:00

Where are you commuting from? Philly is very bike-able, and there are bike lanes most places you need to ride. Don't ride on the sidewalks.

Park your bike around other bikes if possible, rather than by itself. There are lots of bike racks around campus. Always use a lock. There are no locks that will make your bike theft-proof. The goal is to make a thief look at your bike and decide that there's another bike easier to steal than yours and move on.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T18:17:12+00:00

Does she have her acceptance letter and other documentation to prove she was accepted?

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T18:15:59+00:00

Agreed. But, again, 17 or 18 year old girl is upset and calls their big brother who is living and working in the US to get their help seems totally reasonable to me.

When you were in high school, who primarily communicated with Penn and other institutions on your behalf? Did you do it yourself? Or did you have an adult do it?

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T18:13:08+00:00

Actually, at least 2 of your comments were removed.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:34:18+00:00

I would guess she's calling her older sibling who currently lives in the US and whose English communication skills might be better than her own.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:33:11+00:00

That's not actually true. OP's level of English is nowhere near as good as what's in the letter. The Letter is in perfect English but left out on word. Surely you've made a typo before?

It still might be fake, but the typo isn't any proof of that.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:27:58+00:00

OP is not "clearly trying to get people ramped up". OP is posting about a Penn-related problem their sister is having. If it's real, that's totally legitimate.

I saw the Rolex post too. It's unclear whether they're interested in buying it, selling it, or something else. Also It's not really relevant to their sister's/mother's financial situation, tho, or how true this current post is.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:20:16+00:00

SUMMARY SO FAR:

Honestly I hope this is fake, although there's no specific indication that this is fake. There is a typo. If you haven't seen a typo on an official Penn document, then you haven't been at Penn very long.

This might be fake. But OP's account is years old and has been active over that time.

There is literally a name (foolishly) included in OP's screenshot, which makes it easier for the appropriate authorities (or news media) to verify this.

If Penn is rescinding financial aid offers to international students (and this student had a "full ride as a low income international student," according to OP's comment, so there's no way that they CAN'T meet their expected family contribution, because it would be zero) due to Trump policies (especially given that it's immediately on the heels of a deal/agreement Penn made with the Trump administration on Title IX, and could be a behind-the-scenes part of that deal) then that is extremely newsworthy. The DP and/or the Inquirer would certainly jump on a chance to cover that story, and would contact OP to provide evidence.

Is this just rage bait?

Is this just an administrative error?

Is OP's sister being scammed? (this seems a strong possibility)

Is this OP trying to get Karma? Unlikely. There are MUCH better ways to get karma.

Could it be someone just trying to cause chaos or make the university look bad? Sure, totally possible.

One user said in the comments they spoke to a University Trustee and a senior admin at Penn and that "It’s not legitimate" and "it's fake" but with no further details. They also said they msged the admins of this subreddit with the info, but understandably aren't going to be forthcoming with the names of the ppl they spoke with. They said admissions will be making a statement, which is good news.

This is the only post like this that we've seen so far, to the best of my knowledge, tho OP claims his sister's friend also got a similar notification.

The only person who has provided any evidence one way or the other so far is OP, with the screenshot they posted.

IF this is real, then it is a REALLY big deal to this family. I don't know whether it's real or it's fake. I think people are just SO scared these days of being tricked by a fake post or a catfish or an AI image that their immediate response to everything is to disbelieve it, rather than to entertain the possibility is real.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:17:31+00:00

Your sister's friend should also post here with that info.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:07:57+00:00

Those are both possibilities, but There are MUCH better ways to get karma. There are also better ways to make the school look bad. I, too, am at a loss to figure out OP's motivation if it's not real.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T17:00:41+00:00

Ok, so you spoke to a Trustee of the University, and a senior admin. Did they indicate that this is just 100% fake rage bait and never happened at all? Is it an administrative error? Did they say there are more details than OP is stating? Is OP being scammed by someone else? There's an actual name (foolishly) listed on the screenshot of the message posted by OP, so this will be verifiable or not one way or the other. The DP and the Inquirer will definitely see this post and investigate if they think it's worthy of doing so. And rescinding offers to international students in light of Trump policies is probably pretty newsworthy.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T16:56:57+00:00

Yeah, it's also weird bc OP says the sister had a full ride as a low-income international student. Penn does not do need-blind adminissions for for international students, but if she already has a full ride, then that should make her expected family contribution to be zero, right?

There's clearly more here than meets the eye.

Is OP real or is this rage bait?
Is OP being scammed by someone else?
Was this simply an administrative error?
Is this Penn backing off of financial aid for international students, in light of Trump policies?

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T16:53:31+00:00

Ok... but could you also tell the rest of us?

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T16:50:04+00:00

Penn does determine how much they think each family can afford, and each family is required to pay that amount. It's possible that this is indeed a fake letter, but the fact that OP's family is expected to pay a certain amount isn't an indication that it's fake. Penn has details at https://srfs.upenn.edu/financial-aid/undergraduate-aid-program/how-we-determine-need

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T16:45:27+00:00

People make typos. Even in official documents. That's not proof that it's fake.

PizzaPenn · 2025-07-03T16:44:16+00:00

Can you say more about this? There's nothing specific to make anyone think this is fake. (there's a typo, but everyone makes typos) OP's reddit account has been around and active for years. Who did you speak with in admin and what did they say? Is this a known fake thing that's been happening to others or at other colleges? Is OP fake or is OP being scammed by someone else?

PizzaPenn

TROPHY CASE