University of Pennsylvania Requirements for Admission

What are University of Pennsylvania's admission requirements? While there are a lot of pieces that go into a college application, you should focus on only a few critical things:

  • GPA requirements
  • Testing requirements, including SAT and ACT requirements
  • Application requirements

In this guide we'll cover what you need to get into University of Pennsylvania and build a strong application.

School location: Philadelphia, PA

This school is also known as: Penn


Admissions Rate: 5.9%

If you want to get in, the first thing to look at is the acceptance rate. This tells you how competitive the school is and how serious their requirements are.

The acceptance rate at University of Pennsylvania is 5.9%. For every 100 applicants, only 6 are admitted.

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This means the school is extremely selective. Meeting their GPA requirements and SAT/ACT requirements is very important to getting past their first round of filters and proving your academic preparation. If you don't meet their expectations, your chance of getting in is nearly zero.

After crossing this hurdle, you'll need to impress University of Pennsylvania application readers through their other application requirements, including extracurriculars, essays, and letters of recommendation. We'll cover more below.


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University of Pennsylvania GPA Requirements

Many schools specify a minimum GPA requirement, but this is often just the bare minimum to submit an application without immediately getting rejected.

The GPA requirement that really matters is the GPA you need for a real chance of getting in. For this, we look at the school's average GPA for its current students.

Average GPA: 3.9

The average GPA at University of Pennsylvania is 3.9.

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(Most schools use a weighted GPA out of 4.0, though some report an unweighted GPA.

With a GPA of 3.9, University of Pennsylvania requires you to be at the top of your class. You'll need nearly straight A's in all your classes to compete with other applicants. Furthermore, you should be taking hard classes - AP or IB courses - to show that college-level academics is a breeze.

If you're currently a junior or senior, your GPA is hard to change in time for college applications. If your GPA is at or below the school average of 3.9, you'll need a higher SAT or ACT score to compensate. This will help you compete effectively against other applicants who have higher GPAs than you.


SAT and ACT Requirements

Each school has different requirements for standardized testing. Only a few schools require the SAT or ACT, but many consider your scores if you choose to submit them.

University of Pennsylvania hasn't explicitly named a policy on SAT/ACT requirements, but because it's published average SAT or ACT scores (we'll cover this next), it's likely test flexible. Typically, these schools say, "if you feel your SAT or ACT score represents you well as a student, submit them. Otherwise, don't."

Despite this policy, the truth is that most students still take the SAT or ACT, and most applicants to University of Pennsylvania will submit their scores. If you don't submit scores, you'll have one fewer dimension to show that you're worthy of being admitted, compared to other students. We therefore recommend that you consider taking the SAT or ACT, and doing well.

University of Pennsylvania SAT Requirements

Many schools say they have no SAT score cutoff, but the truth is that there is a hidden SAT requirement. This is based on the school's average score.

Average SAT: 1540

The average SAT score composite at University of Pennsylvania is a 1540 on the 1600 SAT scale.

This score makes University of Pennsylvania Extremely Competitive for SAT test scores.

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University of Pennsylvania SAT Score Analysis (New 1600 SAT)

The 25th percentile SAT score is 1500, and the 75th percentile SAT score is 1570. In other words, a 1500 on the SAT places you below average, while a 1570 will move you up to above average.

Here's the breakdown of SAT scores by section:

SectionAverage25th Percentile75th Percentile
Math790770800
Reading + Writing750730770
Composite154015001570

SAT Score Choice Policy

The Score Choice policy at your school is an important part of your testing strategy.

University of Pennsylvania has the Score Choice policy of "All Scores."

This means that University of Pennsylvania requires you to send all SAT scores you've ever taken to their office.

This sounds daunting, but most schools don't actually consider all your scores equally. For example, if you scored an 1300 on one test and a 1500 on another, they won't actually average the two tests.

More commonly, the school will take your highest score on a single test date. Even better, some schools form a Superscore - that is, they take your highest section score across all your test dates and combine them.

Some students are still worried about submitting too many test scores. They're afraid that University of Pennsylvania will look down on too many attempts to raise your score. But how many is too many?

From our research and talking to admissions officers, we've learned that 4-6 tests is a safe number to submit. The college understands that you want to have the best chance of admission, and retaking the test is a good way to do this. Within a reasonable number of tests, they honestly don't care how many times you've taken it. They'll just focus on your score.

If you take it more than 6 times, colleges start wondering why you're not improving with each test. They'll question your study skills and ability to improve.

But below 6 tests, we strongly encourage retaking the test to maximize your chances. If your SAT score is currently below a 1570, we strongly recommend that you consider prepping for the SAT and retaking it. You don't have much to lose, and you can potentially raise your score and significantly boost your chances of getting in.


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University of Pennsylvania ACT Requirements

Just like for the SAT, University of Pennsylvania likely doesn't have a hard ACT cutoff, but if you score too low, your application will get tossed in the trash.

Average ACT: 35

The average ACT score at University of Pennsylvania is 35. This score makes University of Pennsylvania Extremely Competitive for ACT scores.

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The 25th percentile ACT score is 34, and the 75th percentile ACT score is 35.

Even though University of Pennsylvania likely says they have no minimum ACT requirement, if you apply with a 34 or below, you'll have a very hard time getting in, unless you have something else very impressive in your application. There are so many applicants scoring 35 and above that a 34 will look academically weak.

ACT Score Sending Policy

If you're taking the ACT as opposed to the SAT, you have a huge advantage in how you send scores, and this dramatically affects your testing strategy.

Here it is: when you send ACT scores to colleges, you have absolute control over which tests you send. You could take 10 tests, and only send your highest one. This is unlike the SAT, where many schools require you to send all your tests ever taken.

This means that you have more chances than you think to improve your ACT score. To try to aim for the school's ACT requirement of 35 and above, you should try to take the ACT as many times as you can. When you have the final score that you're happy with, you can then send only that score to all your schools.

ACT Superscore Policy

By and large, most colleges do not superscore the ACT. (Superscore means that the school takes your best section scores from all the test dates you submit, and then combines them into the best possible composite score). Thus, most schools will just take your highest ACT score from a single sitting.

We weren't able to find the school's exact ACT policy, which most likely means that it does not Superscore. Regardless, you can choose your single best ACT score to send in to University of Pennsylvania, so you should prep until you reach our recommended target ACT score of 35.


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SAT/ACT Writing Section Requirements

Currently, only the ACT has an optional essay section that all students can take. The SAT used to also have an optional Essay section, but since June 2021, this has been discontinued unless you are taking the test as part of school-day testing in a few states. Because of this, no school requires the SAT Essay or ACT Writing section, but some schools do recommend certain students submit their results if they have them.

University of Pennsylvania considers the SAT Essay/ACT Writing section optional and may not include it as part of their admissions consideration. You don't need to worry too much about Writing for this school, but other schools you're applying to may require or recommend it.



Final Admissions Verdict

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Because this school is extremely selective, getting a high SAT/ACT score and GPA is vital to having a chance at getting in. If you don't pass their SAT/ACT and GPA requirements, they'll likely reject you without much consideration.

To have the best shot of getting in, you should aim for the 75th percentile, with a 1570 SAT or a 35 ACT. You should also have a 3.9 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score.

For a school as selective as University of Pennsylvania, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application. We'll cover those details next.

But if you apply with a score below a 1570 SAT or a 35 ACT, you unfortunately start out with the odds against you and have a tiny chance of getting in. There are just too many students with high SAT/ACT scores and strong applications, and you need to compete against them.


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Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.


Admissions Calculator

What are your chances of admission at University of Pennsylvania?
Chances of admission with these scores:

Here's our custom admissions calculator. Plug in your numbers to see what your chances of getting in are.

Pick your test: SAT ACT

ACT Score
Your GPA

Note: Your admission decision relies not only on your GPA and SAT/ACT scores, but also on your coursework difficulty, extracurriculars, letters of recommendation, and personal statements. This tool provides only a simplistic estimate of your chances of admission. Instead of treating this tool as a crystal ball, we recommend you consider the big picture of what your chance means:
  • 80-100%: Safety school: Strong chance of getting in
  • 50-80%: More likely than not getting in
  • 20-50%: Lower but still good chance of getting in
  • 5-20%: Reach school: Unlikely to get in, but still have a shot
  • 0-5%: Hard reach school: Very difficult to get in
We recommend you apply to schools across a range of chances. Applying to some safety schools will guarantee you have a college to go to, while applying to some reach schools will give you a shot at getting into the school at the top of your range.

How would your chances improve with a better score?

Take your current SAT score and add 160 points (or take your ACT score and add 4 points) to the calculator above. See how much your chances improve?

At PrepScholar, we've created the leading online SAT/ACT prep program. We guarantee an improvement of 160 SAT points or 4 ACT points on your score, or your money back.

Here's a summary of why we're so much more effective than other prep programs:

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Application Requirements

Every school requires an application with the bare essentials - high school transcript and GPA, application form, and other core information. Many schools, as explained above, also require SAT and ACT scores, as well as letters of recommendation, application essays, and interviews. We'll cover the exact requirements of University of Pennsylvania here.

Application Requirements Overview

  • Common Application Accepted, supplemental forms required
  • Electronic Application None
  • Essay or Personal Statement Required for all freshmen
  • Letters of Recommendation 2
  • Interview Not required
  • Application Fee $75
  • Fee Waiver Available? Available
  • Other Notes

Testing Requirements

  • SAT or ACT Considered if submitted
  • Scores Due in Office February 1

Coursework Requirements

  • Subject Required Years
  • English
  • Math
  • Science
  • Foreign Language
  • Social Studies
  • History
  • Electives

Deadlines and Early Admissions

  •  
    • Offered? Deadline Notification
  • Regular Admission
    • Yes January 5 April 1
  • Early Action
    • No
  • Early Decision
    • Yes November 1 December 15

Admissions Office Information

Our Expert's Notes

We did more detailed research into this school's admissions process and found the following information:

Penn's admission website offers extensive information and tips for the optional Alumni interview, which is worth reading if Penn is one of your top choices, or if you're applying to other similar schools that also interview. Read more about interviews here.

Source


Other Schools For You

If you're interested in University of Pennsylvania, you'll probably be interested in these schools as well. We've divided them into 3 categories depending on how hard they are to get into, relative to University of Pennsylvania.


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Reach Schools: Harder to Get Into

These schools are have higher average ACT scores than University of Pennsylvania. If you improve your ACT score, you'll be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Brown University Providence, RI 1540 35
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA 1543 35
Yale University New Haven, CT 1540 34

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Same Level: Equally Hard to Get Into

If you're competitive for University of Pennsylvania, these schools will offer you a similar chance of admission.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Princeton University Princeton, NJ 1518 34
Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA 1485 34
Tufts University Medford, MA 1500 34
Villanova University Villanova, PA 1440 33
University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI 1470 33
Emory University Atlanta, GA 1484 33
University of Washington Seattle, WA 1410 32

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Safety Schools: Easier to Get Into

If you're currently competitive for University of Pennsylvania, you should have no problem getting into these schools. If University of Pennsylvania is currently out of your reach, you might already be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY 1428 32
Boston University Boston, MA 1418 32
Binghamton University Binghamton, NY 1430 31

Data on this page is sourced from Peterson's Databases © 2024 (Peterson's LLC. All rights reserved.) as well as additional publicly available sources.


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Want to build the best possible college application?

We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League.

We know what kinds of students colleges want to admit. We want to get you admitted to your dream schools.

Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in.


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