High school counselors visit U.

Thirty college counselors from around the country spent the past weekend soaking up the University's atmosphere during the Counselor Visitation Program. The program, run by the Admissions Office, attempted to not only teach these counselors about the admissions process but also about the University, Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson said this week. The counselors represented high schools that have not had much of a relationship with the University in the past, Stetson said. "These are not counselors we work with regularly," Stetson said. "They haven't spent a lot of time working with schools in the Ivy league." Stetson said that by giving the counselors a sense of the University, they will hopefully promote the University to top students in their high schools. By way of campus tours, panel discussions with the schools' deans and students, and various activities, such as attending classes, the Admissions Office gave the counselors a strong feeling for the University, the city and the entire admissions process, Stetson said. "[Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Matthew Santirocco] framed it well when he said that we're not here to say that we are the best, we are here to show you what is unique, what sets us apart from other schools," Stetson said. "The counselors said they were expecting a more aloof, if not arrogant manner and found Penn to be exactly the opposite." According to feedback received this week, Stetson said the weekend was quite successful in promoting the University. "[The college counselors]?said the school was a welcoming environment, more than they have sensed elsewhere," he said. "They said that we were not selling Penn, but presenting it -- it would sell itself." Along with presenting the University to the counselors, the program also attempted to teach the counselors about the admissions process from the inside. The counselors took part in a mock admissions selection committee where they looked at two very different students' transcripts and weighed the positives and negatives of each.

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