Just trying to find the right fit...

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

<p>I have some questions about life at UPenn:)</p>

<p>What can you do on campus? Are there things like art studios, gyms, museums? And are they free for full time students? Are there free concerts or other events (maybe like ones hosted my clubs?</p>

<p>What is there to do off campus? Resturants, shopping, sight seeing, parks, zoo? Are they expensive?</p>

<p>How big is your work load? Can you party every weekend? Are parties (frat) open to everyone? Do you have time to play soprts (intramural), be active in a few clubs, party, and maintain your grades?</p>

<p>Do teachers have office hours, and are they easy to talk to?</p>

<p>Do you need a car to get around?</p>

<p>Are people generally nice, and willing to help you? Is it super competitive academically?</p>

<p>Is there free printing? And are these places open 24 hours?</p>

<p>Are there any places on campus (libraries, gyms, food) that are open 24 hours?</p>

<p>How are the dorms? Do most students live on campus all four years? Are the dorms nice? Do they have anything special about them (lounges, libraries, dining halls)?</p>

<p>And most importantly, do you like it at Upenn? What is your favorite thing about it?</p>

<p>THANK YOU!!!</p>

2

<p>You don't need a car to get around; you probably aren't going to go anywhere far from campus anyways. There is public transit that will get you pretty much everywhere that you need to go. Bring a car incurs a bunch of related expenses like insurance (2000-3000 a year), and a Penn parking permit (space is also extremely limited).</p>

<p>There are some places that offer free printing. I know that SEAS students have free printing in the computer labs, but I don't know about others.</p>

<p>I wonder if you got the Practical Penn book that was sent out a while ago. It has a comprehensive list of student activites, shops, restaurants, and the like. You should check it out; it provides a lot of useful information.</p>

<p>I'm a first year student too, so I don't know that much about the culture yet. Maybe the members can answer your other questions about student life.</p>

3

<ol>
<li><p>There is a ton to do around campus. There are restaurants, there is a gym paid for by your tuition, bars, Penn's ancient history museum, and tons of other stuff.</p></li>
<li><p>Off campus there is a zoo near by, SEPTA stations and cabs all around campus so you can go downtown for all the stuff in center city and old city. Some stuff is expensive, but if you can find stuff to do in most every price range.</p></li>
<li><p>Work load depends on what classes you take. If you are in M+Tor Vag it will be a lot of work. If you are in SAS as a humanities major taking 4 c.u.'s, it won't be that bad. As a premed my first year I was able to have enough time to work along with partying on weekends, playing intramural sports, and do some community service. Frat parties are open more first semester than second semester, but there is a lot more to do than to go to frats.</p></li>
<li><p>All professors have office hours. Many will also be willing to meet with you at other times if you have classes during their office hours. Some of my profs had like 10 office hours during the week and then extra hours before midterms. Some are easier to approach than others (as is with any person). Most are willing to help you if you go and ask for it. Some of my friends and I found that our TAs were easier to approach and could explain the information better.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>I can't imagine needing a car to get anywhere. If you really find the need to have one Philly Car Share can hook you up.</p>

<p>I found that Penn is rigerous, but not super competitive. The work is hard, but most people are willing to work with eachother and help eachother. </p>

<p>There is free printing at some places, but they are not open 24 hours. You can pay less than a dime per page at your dorm or the library.</p>

<p>Houstin might be open 24 hours. The basement to the library is open 24 hours. Most importantly, Wawa is open 24 hours.</p>

<p>Dorms are meh. Hill and KC have dining halls. All have study lounges and common rooms. I think 60% of students live on campus and nearly half of all upperclassmen live off campus. Most people living off campus live several blocks away in the surrounding area so it's not a commuter school or anything like that.</p>

<p>I really liked my first year at Penn. There were ups and downs, but overall I would have made the same decision to attend if I were given that option again.</p>

4

<p>Some of this is probably repeating previous responders, but whatever...</p>

<p>There is a lot to do on campus. Pottruck, the gym, is open really late and pretty much everything you could want in a gym. The is the Archaeology/Anthropology museum and the Institute of Contemporary Art (also both free). The Annenberg Center has events ranging from student productions to world-renowned performers. And there is always an acapella or dance group performing.</p>

<p>Off-campus...it's a major city. There is everything, it just depends on how far you're willing to go. There are pretty good restaurants around campus and there's a little shopping. There's a nice park a few blocks west of campus. You can walk downtown, although during the colder months I wouldn't recommend it. Philadelphia is an amazing city for restaurants and the shopping is very good as well. There is a really big park called Fairmont Park and it has a zoo. There is all the typical touristy historical stuff and museums downtown.</p>

<p>The work load can be tough, but manageable. It depends on your classes and how well you expect to do in them. You could party every night if you don't mind a 2.0 GPA. Realistically, it's possible to go out at least one or two nights every week unless you have a big exam or something. Most frat parties are open to everyone-if they're at all advertised they will be. Almost everyone is involved in a few extracurricular activities, so it's definitely manageable.</p>

<p>All professors have office hours and most are willing to meet with you one-on-one at other times if you just ask. So far all of mine have been very helpful, but I'm sure there are exceptions.</p>

<p>Don't bring a car, especially as a freshman. Parking is difficult and cabs are easy.</p>

<p>I think the people pretty here are pretty friendly. People are competitive, but it's more like they just want themselves to succeed, not that they want others to fail. The curved classes are usually big enough that sabotaging people wouldn't be an option.</p>

<p>I don't know anything about printing. You can print in dorms and the library but it's not free. I would recommend just getting a printer.</p>

<p>As venkat as, the library and Wawa are both open 24 hours. That's all you'll ever need. Some other food places and the gym are open til 1 or 2 am.</p>

<p>The dorms are manageable, but you won't fall in love with them. They're clean. The quad is beautiful. They're not usually big, but not as small as some schools. They all have lounges. There are kitchens and workout rooms and libraries and little snack shops scattered throughout them. It's pretty popular to live off-campus after freshman or sophomore year because it's about the same price.</p>

<p>I love Penn. Like any school, it has it's weaknesses, but I think there are few. I would definitely choose to come here again. Most people I know are very happy with it as well.</p>