Top of new class to be invited to BFS

Sometimes it's better to be the math Olympiad winner than to be crowned homecoming queen.

The Benjamin Franklin Scholars program, which offers students access to Benjamin Franklin seminars, undergraduate research opportunities and a four-year advisor, will invite newly admitted high-school students to become scholars this spring, based primarily on students' academic standing.

Approximately 110 students from all four schools, or the top 5 percent of Penn applicants, are invited to the program, explained Linda Wiedmann, associate director of BFS.

Although methods for choosing the top 5 percent of the incoming class are not clearly defined, Wiedmann explained that students' academic information, such as class ranking, test scores, grades and recommendations, is considered carefully.

Unlike the regular admissions process, which looks additionally at extracurricular activities, the program is focused almost primarily on academics, explained Paul Heiney, faculty director of BFS.

"We look at the grades and academic parts, not whether you were on the cheerleading squad," Heiney said.

Regional admissions directors will select the top academic students in their regions and share the list of potential scholars with Wiedmann.

Because high-school students do not directly apply to the program, the invitation often comes as a surprise.

"Prior to this [invitation] I'd never even heard of the program," College freshman and BFS scholar Sarah Arkebauer said. "I don't know what sort of criteria they used in choosing me."

Arkebauer, however, accepted the invitation after the program sent more information and flyers.

Meanwhile, students who were not invited to the program can still apply from the second semester of freshman year to the end of sophomore year.

Wiedmann attributed the interest in the program to the students' desire to take Ben Franklin seminars. Though the classes are open to all students, typically around two-thirds of its positions are reserved for BFS scholars.

College junior and BFS scholar Annie Lee decided to apply to the program last year because she was attracted to the smaller class sizes.

"Unless you take initiative, you won't know your professors [in a lecture], but the Ben Franklin courses are seminars, so you see them for extended time," Lee said.

College junior and BFS scholar Alex Ullman also applied on campus after learning of the opportunities to become more involved with research.

"It's structured toward mature students, so it's fun opportunity to have a seminar situation," said College freshman and BFS scholar Katie Wallace.

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