Intellectualism at Penn...please someone help me with this

<p>Hey everybody,</p>

<p>For the last two years, all I’ve ever wanted to do is get into politics…It’s been my dream. Being a Palestinian with a Western education, I believe there is so much that I can do to change the way things are right now in the Middle East…I don’t care if im rich or famous, I just want to be in politics. Thankfully, I’ve been accepted into some amazing schools, and I’ve narrowed down my choices to Penn and Wesleyan (two very different schools). I got accepted into the College at Penn (I wanna major in Political Science)…but I’ve been reading on this board, and it seems that people out there say that the students at the College will not have much in terms of being able to expand intellectually because Penn is such a career-oriented school; basically, the College students are just kind of cast out in the whole scheme of things. When I heard that, I was kind of shocked and hurt because I thought Penn is such an amazing school, especially for ppl who are passionate about liberal arts and the humanities. Is this true? Because if it is, I’d rather go to a LAC like Wesleyan (which I think is amazing too) where the intellectual boundaries are diverse and practically infinite…Someone please give me some feedback on this</p>

<p>People in college are the kind that get completely wasted just about every night. I recommend applying for either Wharton or Engineering and getting a double major.</p>

<p>Penn is too big of a school to stereotype. Some kids party too much; some study all the time. It's just too diverse to make generalizations. However, there are things you could do at Penn to up the intellectualism. For example, choose a house that is quieter and do an academic residential program in that house. Also, there are some awesome political/international clubs at Penn, such as College Model UN, which several of my friends love. Finally, you will have a lot of control over the classes you take, and if you choose to truly challenge yourself, you'll get into high level classes as an upperclassman, and you'll have a more intellectual body of classmates.</p>

<p>Penn is not known for intellectualism, according to almost every college guide. Practical education is the focus. Even the admission officers during presentations say that Ben Franklin wanted to establish a school for practical education.</p>

<p>just about everyone i talked to (although most were huntsmanites) seemed capable of having a very intellectual/philosophical conversation...i think the classes start out rooted in theory and end up in applicable knowledge....for ME, this is the way it should be...THAT is what ben franklin wanted....if you want to have an intellectual discussion with a student on campus, you wont have a problem finding one, i promise you that</p>

<p>edbtz: I have been having the same fear myself. I will be heading to Penn this year, and lately I've noticed a trend on college discussion boards and guides that there is a lack of intellectualism, and even an atmosphere of anti-intellectualism. First of all, intellectualism is a vague term--what does being intellectual really mean in the first place? Still, I've always imagined intellectualism to have something to do with my romanticized ideas of university life. I ended up taking solace in the fact that many of the comments concerning intellectualism were complaints on the lack of it. Who other than intellectuals would feel that void? It might just be a matter of bringing it yourself and seeking it out.</p>

<p>Thanks for the feedback guys--but I still feel very unsure about what Penn is all about it when it comes to liberal arts and the humanities. Most of my application essays centered on my passion and love for the humanities and liberal arts...how an intellectual college experience is the key to growing in life. </p>

<p>This being said, is that intellectual experience (class discussions, forums, speakers) emphasized in The College? I do wanna get into politics, but I don't wanna take Political Science at Penn and feel like I'm not growing intellectually...I know many other liberal arts people, like Jorian (who made a very good point), are in the same situation, and they are probably looking for answers too. So, if anyone out there--maybe even a College student--can help us in trying to understand liberal arts and intellectualism at Penn, we would be greatly in debt.</p>

<p>Intellectualism is there if you want it. It really is that simple. I have had great professors and simply wonderful seminars where the intellectual level of discussion has been extremely high.</p>

<p>As with all large universities of this type, you will not get anything served on a platter. If you are just one of the people in the Econ 001 lecture and head out as soon as clas sis done, you won't get that much intellectualism. But if you engage your professor in a discussion, by e-mail or verbal, or maybe even go out for lunch with them (Econ 001 professor Rebecca Stein takes her students out for lunch just to prove that there is such a thing - a "free lunch") you will be sure to find ample opportuinities for intellectualism.</p>

<p>I think the misconception of anti-intellectualism is a product of the fame of Wharton. Just because Wharton is on the same campus people assume that there is less intellectualism at Penn as a whole. But as I said previously, the same is probably true for all ivies; you have to actively find what you want yourself. Want to party for for years? Go ahead, find the parties. Want to be engaged in intellectual discourse with world-famous professors? Go ahead, make contact with them.</p>

<p>I'd rather have the choice of having intellectualism instead of being forced to have it every day. Who wants to talk about nothing but Plato in the grocery store 24/7? Sometimes practical can be better.</p>

<p>The emphasis on practicality is an excellent and vital counterweight to overly intellectual theoretical stuff that just becomes overly detached from the material. I don't want to sit there and babble on about post-structuralism or whatever the latest academic buzzword is. I want to learn about the situation on the ground, and learn how I can make a difference (I also intend on going into world politics).</p>

<p>The opportunity for both intellectualism and practical education is there. You just have to seize it.</p>

<p>There are TONS of intellectual speakers who come by campus (Penn's location on the Northeast Corridor between NYC and DC really makes it easy to get people to swing by. I've learned amazing things inside the class and out.</p>

<p>Guys...that's good to hear. Thanks for the feedback. Hope other College kids out there see this post too.</p>

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<p>This student wants to change the world and you want him to go into business or engineering?!</p>

<p>I'm sure edbtz will find the intellectual atmosphere stimulating at either school. Wesleyan is known for being more activist, but there are plenty of political rabble rousers at Penn also.</p>

<p>Haha...thanks for that remark audophile...there is no way I would pass politics up for something like business or engineering...I'm too passionate about it. </p>

<p>That being said, how good is a political science education at Penn? I would like to hear from as many people as I can hear from...</p>

<p>Just wanted to thank slipanlol, legend of max, johnnyk for your input. I once again regain confidence in my choice to become a Quaker. Thanks.</p>

<p>w00t, see you in the fall</p>

<p>(wait never mind, I'll be studying abroad in Beijing...see you in the spring!)</p>

<p>That's awesome. What are you going to be doing? What year are you?</p>

<p>Studying abroad, learning Chinese (it's hard). I'm a sophomore, but I suppose I'll be a junior when I'm in Beijing..</p>

<p>wow just wanted to let you know i am in the exact same situation, choosing between penn and wesleyan. and im also really concerned about this lack of intellectualism which is why i was leaning more towards wesleyan. good luck with your decision, its definitely really tough</p>

<p>you guys sound like fruits, go to wesleyan</p>

<p>Well that's a stupid thing to say.</p>