<p>Once you expand your definition to include pre-med, pre-law, and pre-business - heck anyone who's got their 5-year plan laid out - it can definitely seem like a tough place. Everyone's on their way to something bigger and better, and its a rare chance to talk with a peer about a subject that hasn't already been decided. I wouldn't say penn is too "corporate" but I would say that most of the student body has plans for post-graduation and god help you if you get in their way.</p>
<p>It's hard to say why the culture is like this - why a fried of mine asked me, on the first day of classes freshman year, where I planned to go for grad school. Maybe it's the 200k+ expense, or maybe it's the high expectations of parents that drives us to live according to a plan like that.</p>