<p>Is UPenn’s College of General Studies any different from the “regular” school at Penn? Can anybody elaborate on the CGS program? Is the degree from CGS any less prestigious? Would the CGS degree provide ample grad/law school opportunities after graduation, or is it seen as a “lower” degree than everyone else’s?</p>
<p>I am really quite clueless about this program, so any help would be most appreciated. Thank you so much!</p>
<p>The short version is:</p>
<p>CGS is a fully integrated division of the College. You must fulfill all the same requirements as regular CAS students. CGS students take day classes (required in most majors) and days students take CGS evening classes. Unlike some other Ivy "extension schools" the CGS degree is exactly the same as the "regular" degree. </p>
<p>In actual practice, most CGS students take only their distribution requirements and a few electives in CGS sections. Upper level major classes are almost always taken in "day" sections since CGS "evening" sessions simply don't exist in many cases. </p>
<p>You will occasionally see comments on CC to the effect that CGS classes are somehow different than the equivalent day classes, usually in the form "my roomate knows a guy who says he took XYZ and it was full of retards who all got A's". The fact that CGS sections fulfill all the same requirements as their daytime equivalents should be enough to discredit that sort of statement. </p>
<p>As far as grad school goes, undergrad "prestige" is pretty much irrelevant. Your research, LORs and personal statement will be the most important (assuming your GPA is reasonable). Law school is essentially a numbers game, playing various combinations of GPA & LSAT score to meet any given school's requirements. Again, your personal statement will be a tiebreaker. </p>
<p>There is some evidence that the Ivies do favor their own in Law and B-school admissions so Penn may give you a small edge there.</p>
<p>Now, go read the website. It has everything you need to know. If you have more questions, just give them a call - everyone there is very friendly and helpful.</p>
<p>Thank you William! My main concern was that I would (if I got in and did well) get a degree that says University of Pennsylvania-College of General Studies; and while perhaps the "average" employer or law school may not have a clue that it is a non-traditional program, the law schools I want to apply to may think of it as "beneath them." I am really happy to hear it is essentially the same degree, with the same caliber of education being received.</p>
<p>Thanks again, I will go check out some more of their resources now. :)</p>