<p>Fact of the matter is, there's quite a bit of wealth in the student body. I always find this when friends blow hundreds of dollars shopping or traveling constantly and things of that nature (even people who don't put a lot of money into their clothes, etc). There's absolutely no pressure in terms of dressing a certain way, but there is pressure socially if you're short on cash.</p>
<p>Crime isn't too big of a worry because, as mattwonder said, acting with some common sense will usually be more than sufficient. As long as you keep things locked and you travel with someone else late at night, you'll be okay. </p>
<p>The only thing I've come to dislike is dealing with rude homeless people. It's especially bad at food carts, because when you receive change after buying your food, they KNOW you've got some money on you. I had a homeless guy hound me aggressively for nearly two blocks after I got Chinese food with a friend near Huntsman. Another time, I gave my muffin from Au Bon Pain (which was NOT cheap) to a homeless man who was hungry, and he promptly threw it into oncoming traffic when he didn't like the taste. Honestly, *** man. Also, recently my friends and I were going to a Phillycarshare dropoff point and this crazy woman with a plank of wood was calling us all sorts of disgusting sexually-derogatory names... jeez. It's gotten to the point where I have to go into ignore-mode. Coming from the west coast, I'm not used to doing that, but I've found that the only truly safe thing to do is carry on with whatever you were doing and not interact, even if it's to decline a request for money.</p>
<p>I come from a poor background but I didn't find it that hard to stay dressy on Penn's campus. Between thrift stores and sales I'm pretty well-dressed. Though it's easier because I'm a guy, and there are still a lot of guys who roll out of bed to go to class.</p>
<p>My wardrobe now is in stark contrast to the people at home though - where even adults wear sweatpants or jeans and a sweatshirt all the time. </p>
<p>One thing at Penn I found was tough was dating. People either are very casual about it (you know what I mean) or super-serious (college marriage). But it seems to be like that everywhere - people are too busy.</p>
<p>EDIT: Job placement requires you to be really industrious. I have several senior friends who have no idea what they're doing, and who have no decent job experience because they didn't think of it until senior year (all people in CAS, btw). On the other hand I have others who have ridiculous resumes and are getting several offers. I know people who are going from very liberal artsy majors into the buisness world because they did the right things like show leadership early. </p>
<p>What I've learned is to not be a resume-whore but always try to get good work experience, and look for what's out there by going to career fairs, talking to people at career services, making older friends, etc</p>
<p>You shouldn't really be worried about the wealth at Penn. Of course most people here are well-off- but not ostentatiously so. I'd say there is a very very slim majority- maybe 5%- who really care about what brands others wear. Other than that, people combine Marc Jacobs with Old Nacy, etc. Penn is a stylish campus and people do care about how you look, but less-so about where the clothes are from. As other people have mentioned, the most pressure comes in social situations. Not in a rude way at all- few people would criticize you for not being able to afford something. But people with similar habits stick together. I'm not saying you have to be a big spender, it just makes things easier here if can you, for example, cover a round of drinks rather than having to divide it. The only instances I've heard of where you would be FORCED to spend money are some frats that make their pledges buy a bunch of **** to show they can afford it. All of this said, you should also remember though that almost half the people at Penn are on financial aid- it's not at all like everyone here is wealthy.</p>
<p>I second what someone else said about rude homeless guys. I had a guy follow me for a block once, outside the Inn at Penn, because I didn't answer him when he begged me for money and he was like "***** YOU GO TO THIS SCHOOL I KNOW YOU GOT MONEY" This is a pretty common occurrence, but it usually happens during the day so it's more annoying than scary.</p>
<p>Speaking of scary...I'm rarely scared for my safety on campus. At night there are Penn security people/Penn Police everyyyywhere. Like literally every block, even fairly far from campus. Unless you get into an area where there are no other people from the school, you have little to worry about. The dorms and academic buildings have very good safety too. It would be pretty impossible for someone to break into a dorm and many of the academic buildings have security guards as well.</p>
<p>Agreed on the rude homeless folks. They're drawn like a magnet to the campus because of all the wealthy students, and the prevalent compassionate liberal attitude. They're also incredibly rude, and aggressive. While it may seem coldhearted to ignore them, every time you give them money, you encourage that behavior.</p>
<p>I don't come from a wealthy family by any means (tons of fin aid) and i havent found the wealth of students to bother me or make me feel inferior. Sure, there are times when i wish i could blow a couple hundred bucks on something but thats life.</p>
<p>as economics proffessor gwen eudalicious said, we as credit constrained young people should borrow from banks to spend the loads of money we will earn one day (and deliver our national fiscal responsibility to hell in a coach handbag)</p>
<p>i didn't read the question, but im the attitude that if you spend some money (not alot, but not that little either) for your wardrobe, it can really help you fit in to social circumstances, ceteris paribus ofcourse</p>
<p>p.s. a homosexual friend of mine told me that shoes are an extremely important of the wardrobe. i think he's onto something</p>
<p>And if you are, I want to know how necessary laptops are to bring to class. ...not just for playing games and checking Facebook (though I hope this is possible in Huntsman Hall and all other buildings) I mean, I do still need school supplies, right?</p>
<p>Oh, speaking of internet- how wireless is Penn?</p>
<p>Whether or not you want to bring a lap top to class depends on what type of class it is (programming vs other) and how you like to take notes (by hand vs in word). I never brought my laptop to class except for in class essays in my writing seminar first semester, but then again, I like to take notes by hand.</p>
<p>It is very easy to be social if you do not drink. Are you willing to be the only person not drinking in the room? If so, then no one is going to force you to drink. I've had many occasions where I was not in the mood to drink and still went out to parties or hung out in a dorm room where everyone was drinking. If you don't want to be near drunk people, don't live in the quad during fling. There are people in frats that do not drink. I can't speak for all frats, but after talking to some friends about pledge, it seemed like many of them did not have to drink if they did not want to. There are some (St. A's?) where I hear they will force you to drink, but I don't <em>think</em> that the majority will.</p>
<p>You will rarely have to bring a laptop to class, but it's always an option (except maybe for math). I found it much easier to take notes on a laptop because I'm a faster typer than writer (and they're easier to organize) but you'll see about 50/50. Penn is very wireless, and they upgraded it this summer. </p>
<p>I agree with venkat, you don't have to drink, especially if you're not into the Greek scene. If you are...it will be more of a struggle. There are definitely some of the...nerdier ones that won't make you. Any more social/more elite frat will strongly encourage it, if you know what I mean, but there are always exceptions. St A's had a pledge last year that didn't drink for religious reasons.</p>
<p>Is it hard to make friends that aren't two-faced or judgemental? Really, where I live I'm not friends with most of the people here (the people down here just suck...), so I'm afraid I won't make lots of friends and end up an introvert. Also, this is heightened since I'm not wealthy at all, and I don't wanna be looked down as a poor loser kid by others.</p>
<p>How is the Theatre department at Penn, the website is under construction for the summer. What options are available to participate in plays etc at Penn?</p>
<p>Anyone doing a minor or double major in Theatre?</p>
<p>Has anyone ever missed Advance Registration? I did, and I want to get started but I don't know where to go from here [I think I lost the mailed letter.]</p>
<p>"One thing at Penn I found was tough was dating. People either are very casual about it (you know what I mean) or super-serious (college marriage). But it seems to be like that everywhere - people are too busy." This is actually something I'm really afraid of in any college...</p>
<p>One of my friends missed advanced registration last year. He just tried to get into open classes after advanced registration is over. You still need to contact your advisor and get off hold. The only advantage of advanced registration is getting a better time for a recitation, a good writing seminar, or a better time for a language class. If you're willing to take a writing seminar next semester, you should still get into every class you want to.</p>
<p>I would say the majority of SAS students change their majors and a fair number of SEAS students change their majors (not counting ones who drop engineering all together). I'm not too sure about Wharton, though I would guess a bunch add on a concentration or minor that they weren't planning on when they first set foot on campus.</p>
<p>Most people here are very nice while a few are two-faced/judgmental...just like you'll find anywhere. Not being wealthy shouldn't be an issue- about half the people here are on financial aid. There is a liiittle social division based on class, but I think it's because of similarity of habits- not actual discrimination.</p>
<p>Don't worry about missing advance registration. Have you talked to your adviser yet? You need to do that to be taken off hold. Then go to PennPortal and sign up for classes. The selection won't be as great, but you'll still be able to work out a schedule.</p>
<p>Dating at Penn is pretty rough. That's realistic. I do think this is really common at top schools because people are just much more concerned about their future careers than marriage.</p>
<p>So many people change majors. Probably even like 75% of people change majors in SAS. It's common in engineering too. Many Wharton people don't know what they want to concentrate in at first, so there's a lot of change there too. You have at least a year until you need to make any real decisions.</p>
<p>Are there a lot of people who aren't independent thinkers, as much so as your high school classes? For instance, when there's a discussion going on, how many students chime in to say something inane like "I agree" and then sit back.</p>
<p>And what's the grade grubbing like? There's not a spectacular number of ass-kissers I hope.</p>
<p>If class participation is necessary for a grade, then people will have to say something of value or they'll do poorly. I've only had two discussion based classes, but can say that most people who bothered to speak in class tended to have opinions and said more than "I agree." Some people here are really opinionated.</p>
<p>Grade grubbing is what it is. There are lots of premeds and prelaws here who need high GPAs. You can't really grade grub in a class like bio 101, math 104, or another math/science/engineering class. In a humanities class, you probably could convince a professor or TA to give you a higher grade on a subjective essay, though I think some professors would rather fail an incredibly annoying grade grubber than give him an extra point for no reason.</p>
<p>FWIW, my music professor offered us an added 1% to our final grade if we attended a talk on African tribal music. There were two of them, so one could raise his grade 2% which can be the difference between a B+ and A-. Not that many people went to the talks (maybe 5 in a class of 30) which would lead me to believe that grade grubbing isn't that big of a deal at Penn if students aren't willing to zone out for half an hour if it means a higher grade.</p>