PHILADELPHIA For applicants to the University of Pennsylvania Class of 2006, how quickly they learn about acceptance is dependent not on "snail mail" but on the speed of their Internet connections.

While thousands of college applicants around the country anxiously check their mailboxes, looking for fat envelopes that tell them theye been accepted to the colleges of their dreams, applicants to Penn can simply log on to the University admissions Web site.

Students are still mailed confirmation from Penn admissions and financial-aid offices as a back-up, but the events of Sept. 11 made it clear it was important to find alternatives to providing admissions decisions in a timely fashion.

"The system is a leap forward in communication with our applicants," said Lee Stetson, Penn dean of admissions. "We tried to maintain the personal approach with our Web design and also by linking our applicants to information about their decision, not just giving them their decision."

In early January, Penn officials decided to move to a Web-based system, and it went "live" April 3. More than 11,000 students logged on to see who were among the 16 percent of applicants who made it into Penn this month.

From the admissions Web site, there is a link to Penn Plan online, a site that allows a student to see the financial-aid award, if there is one, and to assess personal means to meet the cost of attendance. There are also direct links to information on financing options.

"This is a major step forward for us and for the industry," said Frank Claus, Penn associate vice president for finance.