<p>I have been accepted to both Penn and JHU. No, I won't be attending Wharton. I am getting a Liberal Arts degree. Given the information, which school would be considered the stronger choice? I know Penn is know for Wharton and JHU is known for medical and foreign affairs. Both schools have made a strong case for their respective Liberal Arts departments to me. I'm from Houston, TX., so I only have a regional perspective on the schools in the Northeast. Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>i dont know about UPenn, but JHU has several very highly rated liberal arts programs...they actually send around a liberal arts brochure...JHU is a great school if you are self-motivated and like the idea of hands-on, research/internship type learning. When I was @ Upenn the professors told me there was less of an opportunity for that type of thing.</p>
<p>I would recommend if possible and if you haven't already that you visit both. You'll get a great sense of both places as soon as you walk on campus. Whatever you decide, you have great choices both school are among the best anywhere.</p>
<p>Look guys, I'm not violating any ED or anything. I am 32 years old. I am not a traditional undergraduate. My parents aren't with me anymore, so i had to go straight to work out of high school. Without getting too personal, I had completed 73 credit hours from my local junior college with a 3.46 GPA, while working a full-time career.
Granted, my grades couldn't even compete with any of your grades or test scores(I wish I had really tried harder in H.S.), but Penn and Hopkins really liked the fact that my grades in college are repspectable and given my age and work experience(I am a real estate agent), I might add a unique perspective to their classrooms. I guess that's what these top schools look for, sometimes, is someone who will bring a different point of view to their community.
Anyway, I still am waiting for admissions decisions from several other good institutions, even though Penn and Hopkins have given me the "thumbs up", but I am really trying to do my research about these schools. I have really gained a lot of knowledge from the community boards. I can't begin to tell you how much this has helped me(although I know it ultimately comes down to my personal decision).</p>
<p>thats cool that education is important to you even now. i think if you really want to get an idea of how the campus teaches liberal arts and how the depts are you may want to visit the schools and sit it on the classes. they allow you to do that. you can see how you like the classroom atmospheres at both places. talk to the professors, and whatever else. i think learning is how you make it, and how the college fits you. choosing from penn or jhu is like choosing from pepsi and coke. everyone has their own preference when in the end they are really the same. both are great universities with a lot of prestige, so a degree from either place will be well respected. it all depends on how the college fits you i suppose. for younger undergrads like us, college life also has a lot to do with a college choice, but it seems for you education is most important. thats my advice</p>
<p>i totally respect you for going back to school. alot of people say they will, and then never act on it. i dont know what to tell you about liberal arts (im an engineering major) but i wish you luck in your decision.</p>
<p>It really depends on where you would feel the most comfortable, so you really need to do "a day in the life of...." visits. Both schools have enough graduate students that you will not be lacking in "older folk" life. I would probably lean towards Penn for location in job possiblilities unless you are seriously considering international relations as a field, simply because Philly is bigger, has more jobs, has NYC within a couple of hours or less by train, whereas Baltimore is more limited. It really does depend on your specific liberal arts major. If you are interested in becoming a theoretical mathematician, Hopkins is better. IF you are looking for more personal attention, smaller clases in the humanities, Hopkins is better. It really depends on the field of study, how you feel about each school and the importance of availability of job opportunities.</p>
<p>Penn may be slightly closer to NYC than Balto (although I used to take the train from JHU to NYC regularly), but Balto is less than an hour from Washington, DC, which is quite a goldmine. As jamimom says, it does depend on the field of study; JHU has some very strong liberal arts departments and a wonderful faculty and campus.</p>
<p>Johns Hopkins is ranked higher in English, History, German, Philosophy and Art History. Both universities are recognized by the French Government as being among the 5 Centers of Excellence in French Education in the US. Though JHU's full time French faculty (in its Romance Languages Dept.) is small, JHU has a constant flow of top visiting professors from Paris and Geneva. Johns Hopkins is nationally ranked as one of the top 2 Us for creative writing (Writing Seminars Dept)- the other being Iowa- but JHU is better for the BA, while Iowa is considered best for the MA. International Studies is interdisciplinary at JHU (combining courses in history, poli sci, econ & language)- and professors from JHU's SAIS teach at the undergrad campus too. JHU is one of the top few Us for Political Theory, the most intellectual branch of Political Science.</p>
<p>Penn has a better Economics Dept and is strong in Psychology, Sociology and British Literature. However JHU is better for American Lit, Comparative Lit and Literary Theory. Overall Hopkins is a better university than Penn in liberal arts- and science and engineering.</p>