Does anyone know how’s the strength of Penn’s bioengineering program for undergraduate? The usnews ranking of its BE program is lower than schools like JHU, Duke, G. Tech, Stanford… Is that ranking accurate?
If I want to choose a professional academic path in the future, should I choose a school that is ranked more highly than Penn in the field of BE?
You should choose the right school for you and not one a magazine chooses.
Plus you have to get in - no easy feat.
A rank is not a reason to like Penn or not like Penn.
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Are you a senior? If not, what year are you in school?
What are you looking for when you ask about strength of a program? Are you looking for what you will be taught? Faculty:student ratio? Availabilty of research opportunities? Job placement?
And what exactly do you mean when you say you want to choose a “professional academic plan” in the future?
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Why do you want to major in bioengineering?
Also, if your screen name is your real name, you might want to consider changing it.
These are all outstanding colleges which are very competitive in terms of admission. At some point it will be more about what you accomplish at college (coursework, research etc.) and less about which college you attend.
I would state this even a little more firmly and say that at nearly every point that is true.
Alumni networks and pet hiring practices will give a little boost, but, luck aside, an outstanding student with an interesting body of work from Podunk U will have more opportunity than an average student with pedestrian accomplishments from the most hallowed halls.
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a professional academic path = a PhD, not a BA/BS, so
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where you go to grad school* will matter much, much more in terms of your ‘professional academic path’, and
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which grad school will be best for a PhD will matter what end of Bioengineering is your focus. For example, the ‘best’ for the imaging areas is not necessarily as the ‘best’ for the cell mechanics, and the orthopods don’t overlap a lot with the molecular engineers.
The difference between one top-10 program and another is frankly not meaningful. Only 20% of USNWR ranking weight is given for “Undergraduate Academic Reputation”, and another 20% for “Faculty Resoucres”. After that it is Six-Year Graduation Rate (17%), Financial resources per student (10%) and everything else. What is going to be more more important are the differences for you as a student - the one you can get into, the one you can afford, the one whose program is most interesting to you. IOW, the one that you think fits you best.
*which will be based on what you have achieved in college, not by the name of your UG uni
If you are interested in academia, I think it is always eye opening to look at the path of others before you. Pick one of your favorite programs and look at the education of faculty. Pay attention to two things. First, the diversity of majors at the undergraduate (and graduate) level. Second, the number of universities represented.
Thanks! Except for PhD, a first degree is also very important for future academic development right? Even though it does not link with academic research
Yes, I’m a senior and will apply college this fall.
I ask the strength of the bioeng program because I’m still concerning which college should I apply. I have to find a balance between the difficulty of applying and the strength of the school’s program.
Again I ask…what do you plan to do with a degree in bioengineering?
Thanks. I know these are very competitive colleges, but I have to find the best one that both suits my application and my future development among these bests.
Apply for a PhD and would probably looking for a bioeng academia career in the future
You are an international student, right? Where do you plan to teach in higher education?
Kinda right- and kinda wrong.
Kinda right: the key things when you apply for your PhD will be your GPA, your research experience, your LoRs and crucially your fit for the particular program. So, yes, the CV you build at your undergraduate college is important.
Kinda wrong (1): your undergraduate degree does link to academic research: if you want to get into a PhD program you will be doing academic research throughout undergrad.
Kinda wrong (2): from your list of possible programs NONE will give you an advantage over the others in getting you into a PhD program. Recent PhD BME students at Duke did their undergraduate degrees at URochester, NC State University, Cornell, and Oregon State university. A random selection of current PhD BME students at Stanford include students whose undergraduate degrees come from U Illinois, Catholic University, City University of NY- Brooklyn, University of Waterloo (Canada), Williams College, and so on. In other words: you can get into the tippy top PhD programs from many, many universities.
To do that you need to refine your decision metrics, so that you can assess what is “best” for you.
First, always: can you afford the school w/o loans? if so, happy days! But if not, keep looking. PhDs are funded, but the stipends don’t leave a lot for repaying loans.
Then: do you have an idea of what area of bioengineering you are particularly interested in? Do any of your possible schools stand out as being particularly strong in that area?
All of the top BME programs are going to be very, very strong- and they are all going to be very, very competitive for admissions, especially for an international student. Unless you are an extraordinary student (and you may be- I am often dazzled by the strength of students who find their way to CC) you will be exceptionally lucky to get into any of them.
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I’m an US permanent resident, so probably in the US for higher education
Then you probably want to change this sentence on your other thread:
“As an international high school senior who likes BME”
You’ve already received this advice, but it bears repeating: Don’t let rankings influence your application decisions. If you’ve done your research and are unable to find anything distinctive about Penn SEAS as compared to other schools on your list, then perhaps Penn shouldn’t be your ED choice. My kid found a lot to love about SEAS and ranks it above Stanford on his personal list.
If you’re determined to apply early, dig deeper. Explore the SEAS website and social media accounts, visit campus if you can and reach out virtually to departments. With a single-digit acceptance rate, winning the Penn lottery is no easy feat. You need to do your due diligence to write a compelling personal statement. Best of luck with your applications.
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