<p>There is a mixed opinion out there regarding Penn - some that </p>
<p>Penn = Wharton and nothing more worthwhile; & others that swear that Penn is way more than Wharton and has great opportunities in many fields. </p>
<p>Other than BBB and PPE; are there any other reputable majors at CAS? Also hear that the career services is almost dedicated to Whartonites, leaving the CAS students to do pretty much do a lot more ground work on their own, is this true? Will this be the case even for assisting with internships?</p>
<p>I hear political science at Penn is fantastic and I think the economics department and international relations are really good too. Health and societies is also another Penn-unique major, like BBB and PPE.</p>
<p>CAS is just as great as Wharton, but it's all about what YOU do and what YOU want to get out of the educational experience. Penn is not JUST about Wharton (even though Wharton has its own chocolate...haha). It's about all four of the undergrad colleges plus its amazing grad/med/law schools. </p>
<p>Wharton, engineering and nursing all have very specific curricula. That means that when you see one of those degrees, you almost know which specific classes the person took.</p>
<p>CAS has some great departments, but the nature of an arts&sciences major is more broad, with room for electives. (Penn has some very strong SAS grad programs, but an undergrad major in one of those fields isn't the same simply because a CAS degree isn't concentrated so much in the major). (Don't get me wrong - the other schools' students also have flexibility and electives, but it's not as open). A CAS degree isn't so much a reflection of the department as it is the Penn liberal arts experience, and you're valued not for your BBB or PPE major but your major AND your rounded electives. As such, it's harder to pin down a "strong" major. IR, PPE, BBB, Econ, Poli sci, and comm are all popular, reflecting the fact that many students feel these to be good majors.</p>
<p>Career services isn't dedicated to Whartonites - it's that employers tend to want Whartonites because the employers tend to be financial firms that want pre-trained people. People have this preconceived notion that there are jobs out there for all majors, but the honest truth is that it's much easier to get a job with a business background (or be a CAS major who's willing to learn business skills) because that's where the economy is headed. Nurses don't have trouble finding jobs, and engineers often head either into their discipline or financial services, since they're desired there also. </p>
<p>If you want an internship in something that isn't financial services, consulting, or academic research, you're largely on your own, but that's because those companies/institutions don't have to recruit, they can let people look for them. (These also tend to be the places that don't pay). If a CAS student however is looking for a job in consulting or financial services, they've basically got the same access to resources a Wharton student does.</p>
<p>is there a link to all the interdisciplinary majors offered at Penn? I googled it a few times but can't seem to find a single listing. Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>If you're interested in science and hard working, the Vagelos program in biochemistry is really good. I've also heard that the math major is a good stepping stone as a really strong major and it also allows one to explore other quantitative fields like econ, physics, statistics, computational biology, etc. </p>
<p>The thing that makes SAS different from other arts and sciences schools in the country is its emphasis on interdisciplinary studies. With popular majors like IR, PPE, and BBB, along with cognitive science, HSoc, computational biology, and the university minors, there is a strong push to get students to look at multiple fields at the same time. I have friends who have taken law school classes, sat in on med school classes, pursued research in multiple areas, and done many other things to have a strong balanced education.</p>
<p>is this the complete list of all majors and interdisciplinary majors? Seems small, but I see all the interdiscp. majors I have heard about. Is this also comprehensive for minors offered?</p>
<p>Venkat89: thank for the info. It seems very obvious that the interdiscp. approach is one of Penn's strengths that the other ivies can't match in the number of offerings.</p>
<p>Although for IR, I think Georgetown is still # 1 like Wharton is for Business right?</p>
<p>Georgetown is #1 for IR and Tufts is also considered a top IR school. However, that doesn't mean that Penn's IR program isn't very strong nor does it mean that Penn's IR program doesn't have great placement into the work force.</p>
<p>Penn does not have strong Political Science or IR majors. IR is not even its own department- it's just an interdepartment major with courses in History, Political Science, Asian or African Studies, etc. PoliSci was ranked #22 in the Gourman undergrad report.</p>
<p>Penn Psychology is one of the best in the country. #3 in Gourman rankings behind Stanford & Yale. Tons of professors like Seligman who have written well-known books teach undergraduate courses.</p>
<p>I agree that BBB and PPE are also good programs with good reviews from those who majored in them.</p>
<p>^IR isn't it's own department, but those who major in it do very well for themselves. I'd say it attracts students with very similar goals as those who major in PPE, just ones with different academic interests.</p>
<p>I think Penn's Economics department (College) is fairly average. It's ranked top 10 in the Gourman Report but I was surprised to see that. It's obviously overshadowed by Wharton. I assume you are asking about the Arts & Sciences Economics instead of Wharton</p>
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<p>IR isn't it's own department, but those who major in it do very well for themselves. I'd say it attracts students with very similar goals as those who major in PPE, just ones with different academic interests.</p>
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<p>Yeah, that's great- you ought to be in marketing.</p>
<p>Its actually a pretty good departmente (econ). Wharton might overshadow it in terms of recruiting (which is still debatable, because college students have access to the same resources), but it delves into completely different research areas.</p>
<p>hey crescent22, to check out how IR majors place into law schools, banking, consulting, and a host of other international fields. As an actual Penn IR major I can say that my closest friends in IR are now in Fulbright, consulting, Harvard law, various foreign ministries, intelligence departments, and other international businesses.</p>
<p>I think that at a top 5 school like Penn, students from all majors will be in accomplished positions post-graduation. The question was how good the department is, not how well the students do.</p>