According to a report from the University’s Office of Admissions, Penn admitted a mere 53% of its 2022 class from the regions of Northern New Jersey, Southeast Pennsylvania, and “just outside New York.” This figure represents a drastic drop from previous years; as recent as 2012, the percentage rarely fell below 70% of the undergraduate population.

Many students welcome the change as evidence of Penn’s commitment to increasing geographic diversity in its student population. “It’s great how the kids in my classes are from all over,” explained Monica Dearing of Plano, TX. “And my roommate is from Montana! I just never thought I’d get a chance to sit in classes where almost half of the kids are from outside the upper-mid-Atlantic United States.”

Freshman Thomas Yamada, who hails from Haverford, PA, notes that while the fraction remains at over half, he can’t relate to as many students as he had hoped for. “I honestly thought I’d recognize half of the kids from my high school’s region. But there’s only one kid in my hall from Malvern, which is like barely even on the Main Line… It’s fine, I guess.”

In related news, a record-high 33% of Penn’s incoming class is comprised of students from three distinct counties in Southern California.