Pre-frosh flock to Preview Weeks

Program givesProgram givesstudents, parents aProgram givesstudents, parents ataste of Penn life Every April, they come to campus in droves -- pre-freshmen, that is. During Penn Preview Weeks, newly admitted high school seniors and other prospective students get a chance to see what the University offers through a special program sponsored by the Admissions Office. "This is just our way of showcasing Penn," Admissions Office assistant Walter Benjamin said. Throughout each day of the preview weeks program, administrators and professors give presentations advising pre-freshmen about the research and counseling opportunities available at the University. Benjamin said the most common questions asked by prospective students are "Can you go over the residential options with me?" and "Can [I] transfer into Wharton?" Various performing arts groups provide the high school students with a glimpse of the different activities on campus. Pre-freshmen also sit down with current students in an open question-and-answer session during the afternoon. Numerous tours are also available -- not only of the campus as a whole, but also of the University's individual schools, the first-year residence halls and the athletic facilities. Choosing between Cornell University and Penn, prospective freshman David Dorfman said he liked Penn's campus and thought it was well-organized. "Before I visited campus, I was concerned about the green space available for students to run on," Dorfman said. But Dorfman said he was pleased that areas such as Hill Field are open to students who are not varsity athletes. According to Benjamin, more than 2,000 people attend Penn Preview Weeks, 900 of whom are prospective students. Sarah Hawthorne, from Minneapolis, Minn., decided to visit campus to see if she wanted to attend an Ivy League school. "It was my reach and I never thought I'd get in, so now I'm here to see if I like it," Hawthorne said. Penn Preview Weeks also allows parents to form opinions about the school their son or daughter may soon be attending. "A lot of people from the Midwest and California are concerned about smoking [habits of students]," Benjamin said. Benjamin explained that many parents worry that their son or daughter will have a roommate who smokes -- and that he or she will not be able to get out of the situation. Although safety is thought to be the main issue for most parents, Dorfman's mother seemed less worried. "I'm not concerned that Penn is more unsafe than any other campus," Lynne Dorfman said. Some pre-freshmen are visiting campus -- even though Penn was not their first choice. Todd Nitschelm, for example, has decided to attend Penn after being rejected by his first choice, Dartmouth College. "I like the proximity to the city," Nitschelm said. But he said he was disappointed that the dorm rooms at Penn seem very small. He noted, though, that he had only seen rooms in Hill College House. Peter Martelli, from Purchase, N.Y., decided to attend Penn after getting rejected through early action from Princeton University. "Even though they have the 'P,' I'm coming to this one -- not that one," Martelli said.