<p>I’m Indian and still call it Bombay. Bangalore changed its name too and I dont know anyone who says Bengaluru.</p>
<p>I am also Indian and still call it Bombay. And I call the other cities by their old names as Banglore, Calcutta, Madras e.t.c lol</p>
<p>i don’t know, most people on this site will mostly by nature sort of give you a strong endorsement of penn. i’m not saying they don’t genuinely like it, but they paint a very rosy picture that isn’t entirely accurate. </p>
<p>i don’t know how it compares to other schools as it is the only university i have gone to, but i wasn’t prepared for the number of ******bags i encountered. i came from a poorer background and the fashions and the trends and the attitudes that some of the people had was sort of a big slap in the face when i got there. also i wasn’t pleased with the girls there i guess. mostly focused on their careers and stuff. somewhat shallow. into partying and drinking and hookups but not much else. anyone good is taken after freshman year </p>
<p>another thing i guess is that i am chinese but i’m NOT into thing like CSA or asian students association or whatever. and i feel like international kids, asians, indians, blacks, jewish, etc MOSTLY join groups that let them stay friends within their own races and ethnicities. i’m not really into that and i guess i disliked seeing it</p>
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The only ones that say Bengaluru are the ones that are forced to by the state (“Bengaluru International Airport” comes to mind) and the companies connected to it (ie when you go to Jet Airways or Kingfisher Airlines sites). It’s always confusing when you click the drop-down menu of cities and skim for “B-A-N” and don’t see your city…</p>
<p>I shifted to Bombay for a new position within one of the Group’s more interesting subsidiaries…Much sexiness ensued. On a side note I went to a swanky Wharton alumni champagne tasting event last night and indulged (quite liberally) in the available drinks (the Penn/Wharton network seems stronger here…and it’s definitely stronger than most other Ivies’ from what I can tell).</p>
<p>As for freetense, well I don’t know what to make of that. Bad luck I suppose, or just an inability to find the non-d-bag/ethnocentric crowds.</p>
<p>LMAO, yeah it’s just bad luck. I didn’t say i didn’t find non dbag/ethnocentric people. I just said it was much harder than expected. Others have written as much before, try not to write it off. don’t worry it won’t take away from your experience</p>
<p>You would find rich people, career-oriented women, drinking, hookups, and ethnocentric associations in every elite university. I do think that there’s somewhat more flaunting of wealth at Penn than at some of its peers – or less of a taboo against flaunting wealth. Walking around Penn, I am always struck by how well- and expensively-dressed a lot of the women are – much more so than at Harvard, Yale, Brown.</p>
<p>This thread is surprisingly remarkable…</p>
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<li><p>I would like to take a moment and point out that the word “ethnocentric” has been applied incorrectly, or else there is a disturbing misunderstanding of what groups like CSA, ASU, and APSC are all about and I would be glad to clarify if necessary.</p></li>
<li><p>Also a huge LOL @ being frustrated by ambitious women. Perhaps Penn should begin admitting more women who aspire to be dependent trophy wives.</p></li>
<li><p>I like the (true) assumption that we all understand the “etc” in “international kids, asians, indians, blacks, jewish, etc” to essentially refer to Latinos, LGBT individuals, Muslims, and other historically oppressed populations. By the way, obvious centripetal forces that come to mind include taking the same classes, eating the same food, using the same resource centers on campus, praying in the same place, being romantically or sexually interested in the same demographic, attending the same events, speaking the same language… plus of course avoiding traces (some more significant than others) of discrimination, insensitivity, and ignorance.</p></li>
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<p>give me a break theoneo</p>
<p>I am merely pointing out that I see people in groups like that and they basically lock themselves into hanging out with the same ethnicity/race as they are. I’m sure the groups aren’t intended to do that, i know they serve a decent purpose, but I see it alot. I’m not frustrated by ambitious women, in fact that’s what i want, but I am frustrated by female robots. </p>
<p>and to 3. i’m not sure what your point was. I’m not oblivious to the fact that there are reasons people of the same races/ethnicities tend to hang out with each other. I’m just saying we shouldn’t be actively looking to do that sort of thing.</p>
<p>^The associations’ missions are great. However, the people who are attracted to them and who are really active in them tend to create huge communities that selfsegregate. It’s a huge turn off to join some of these groups if you’re not super into Asian/Chinese/Indian/etc. stuff and just want to be more casual to meet new people. </p>
<p>freetense, just ignore kids from the north east and LA. I know that knocks out like 2/3 of the school, but I’ve made a bunch of pretty good friends from the South, Midwest, and Southwest. It might be a little too late for you though.</p>
<p>Penn’s great, but Bagles probably had an experience at the 99th percentile.</p>
<p>freetense- My kid’s observations are the same as yours. He’s a rising senior. He agrees about the girls, and it isn’t a matter of them being ambitious. His crowd of friends has so much wealth that he describes his own upbringing as “modest”. This infuriates his older sister, who actually appreciates how privileged she and her brother are. She thinks we should dump him in Africa somewhere.<br>
Venkat- the problem is that the kids from the southwest, like mine, can turn into entitled spoiled brats by osmosis!</p>
<p>One of the preppiest guys I know is from Arkansas, so I dont disagree with you MOWC. However, on average people from the southwest are better than those from Long Island.</p>
<p>^^ Absolutely.</p>
<p>thanks for agreeing with me MomofWildChild and Venkat. something I have found is that there are people who genuinely love Penn and talk about it as if it has no flaws. Especially on these forums sometimes, people seem to feel like, if they were to shine light on a few of the negatives at Penn, it somehow detracts from their own experience. All said and done, I liked Penn, but there are pros and cons to consider like what i talked about. I do wish I had gone to a place with more approachable women. I am from the Southwest too, go figure.</p>
<p>Half of the posters on here that talk about how great Penn is are prefrosh who are trying to overjustify their college choice to fend off fears of making the wrong decision (at least I did this as a prefrosh). I don’t think any current/former students aside from bagles really paints Penn as a perfect place. Then again, bagles may have had the perfect college experience at Penn so he should portray Penn the way he experienced it.</p>
<p>I think it is better to understand the negatives as well as the positives of any school. Nothing is perfect. My son did not like Penn freshman year, as many will recall. It wasn’t a matter of being away from home- he had been at boarding school and lived on his own a couple of summers. It was the adjustment to Penn and Philadelphia. There is a gritty vibe to Philadelphia that may require some adjustment. The dorms at Penn are not particularly nice and much of the off-campus housing is disgusting. Those are some negatives. Another thing many incoming students do not realize is just how big the Greek scene is. Numbers do not reflect the reality.<br>
My son appreciates the contacts he has made at Penn, has liked a number (not all) of his classes and has a few favorite professors. He has worked in center city and gained a respect for the business community. He likes the upscale clubs (I do not) and has a way too active social life- much of which does NOT occur on campus. Service people on campus are surly and rude, as they are in Philadelphia in general. This can be a shock for a southerner who is used to being called “honey” while being served his or her lunch.<br>
I know others disagree, but I see The Radian as a huge plus. It’s expensive, but not that expensive compared to the dumps for which you pay not that much less. It really improved things for my kid to move in there. It’s worked well.<br>
These are just my observations with respect to my own kid, my experience with Penn and growing up in the Philadelphia area and my frequent travels to the area. Others have a totally different viewpoint.</p>
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<p>Indeed I did, and so I will. God, I rule. :)</p>
<p>I would note that I would not have been nearly as satisfied with my time at Penn if I didn’t take the initiative to GO OUT and DO THINGS instead of sitting around complaining about it. Intro classes are big? Take the time to meet with your professor. Off-campus housing is dirty? Clean it, and get your housemates to do the same (come on, self-proclaimed “future leaders of America,” you can do it). Finding 2000 people to be jerks? You’ve got 8000 left to befriend.</p>
<p>You really need to be someone who can take initiative to thrive at Penn (not to mention at life in general). When you put the effort in, there is no limit to how high you can soar. If you go to Penn expecting it to be like Princeton where everything is handed to you while you are fanned by servants giant leaves, you will find yourself at a crowded, dirty, chaotic, fractious and impersonal sprawling mess of a university that gets confused for a state school, and you will not like it, let alone love it. Penn is not Princeton (and I would not love it if it were). Penn is Penn, and there is no place quite like it, if you can rise to its challenges and opportunities of place, people, professors, and more.</p>
<p>Case-in-point: Yours truly (again, I rule).
Case-in-point #2: MomOfWildChild’s…umm… wild child. He had a lackluster experience and moved to fix it and is now having a much better time.</p>
<p>Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to hop into my DeLorean and go back to historically oppressing people some more.</p>
<p>Ilovebagels: you are soooo loved</p>
<p>All I can say is that money greases the wheels, here. Been short on cash can really cramp things.</p>
<p>http://**************.com/university-of-pennsylvania/</p>
<p>^^people seem to like Penn. Most students comment about their schools and say too demanding or not for everyone, but not Penn kids.</p>
<p>link: http://**************.com/university-of-pennsylvania/</p>