<p>Any thoughts on Penn CAS v. U of Chicago? Two good schools, but Penn seems more pre-professional and Chicago more intellectual.</p>
<p>Thoughts?</p>
<p>Yep, they do. But, you will find plenty of both at each school.</p>
<p>The fact that roughly 40% of Penn’s undergraduates are enrolled in a business school, an engineering school, or a nursing school pretty much assures that the student body at Penn will be more oriented towards practicality and careerism than the student body at Chicago. Also, there is a huge difference between Penn’s general education requirements and Chicago’s Core, so that will affect the kinds of students who choose each school, too. Penn does have plenty of semi-nerdy, intellectual kids, but I think they often feel like they are part of a subculture there, while the equivalent kids at Chicago think the university exists only for them.</p>
<p>Other differences: Penn is very social, with strong fraternities and sororities. Chicago not so much. Penn is very oriented towards the Boston-Washington corridor, and especially the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. Chicago has plenty of those kids, too, but it is much more midwestern in feel. Perhaps as a consequence of the foregoing, Penn students, especially women, seem to dress up much more than Chicago students. Chicago is a more vibrant (and more expensive) city than Philadelphia, but the area around Penn is much more happening than Hyde Park, and Philadelphia is somewhat more college-student friendly than Chicago.</p>
<p>Personally, I find the schools really different in educational philosophies. I really can’t see someone applying to both for the same reason. I applied to Chicago, knowing I would be unhappy at Penn. Penn was the first Ivy League I crossed off my list. And I am a VERY social person. I enjoy partying, frats, art, fashion, etc. But I am very intellectually driven. I am not looking for a career education, but rather Chicago’s “Life of the Mind” education. That’s what attracted me most to the school anyway. And Chicago, the city, itself of course. </p>
<p>Figure out what style of learning you want? Personally, I find Chicago’s approach more fulfilling in the long run. Since you’re interested in CAS, are you looking at a liberal arts education? If you are, there is almost no BETTER option in pure liberal arts than Chicago’s core. It is one of the best, if not the best in the country. Comparable with HYP. </p>
<p>But be prepared, the kids work HARD.</p>
<p>Thanx for all the feedback. Sounds like Chicago is better suited to me. Columbia struck me as comparable to Chicago – but with less of a campus-focused social life.</p>