I’m a rising senior who has recently completed the college road trip experience, and would appreciate the insight of some Whartonites out there roaming the message boards.
I loved Penn when I visited, and will definitely be applying in the fall to Wharton. I’m now trying to make the tough decision of ED or RD, and would really appreciate some feedback on the Wharton experience. I do well in high school, have scores on par with Penn’s marks, and have solid extracurriculars relating to business, volunteering, and leadership. I realize that Wharton is the most academically grueling undergrad business experience, but I would want to be involved in the social scene outside the classroom as well. I am definitely interested in joining the Greek life community on campus, and don’t want to miss out on the quintessential college social experience that so many of my friends are experiencing at their respective universities.
Do the academics of Wharton prohibit such goals outside of the classroom to be achieved?
In addition, although I have done well in high school, I worry that the academics of Wharton could be intimidating if I am accepted. How has your academic experience been? Can such a balance between a social and academic lifestyle be occur at Wharton?
Any wisdom whatsoever that you can offer on academics, extracurriculars, and the social scene would be greatly appreciated!
Please share this post with any Whartonite that you believe could provide some feedback on their experiences.
Of course you will have time for Greek life and other extracurriculars activities and social life in general as a Wharton student. Wharton is hard because of the intense competition and the curve, but the material is not conceptually very hard, it is business not rocket science after all. You have to just learn to manage your time reasonably well, be organized and don’t crumble under pressure. But that it true for any elite school not just Penn. Also as a Wharton student it is up to you how broad or narrow you make your academic experience. You have the chance to take a big percentage of your courses outside Wharton in the college and CAS and these this one of the great advantages of Penn being very strong in many other disciplines on top of having the bat ugrad business school in the world.
@Penn95 thanks for the response! It cleared up some worries that I had, and I’m looking forward to applying in the fall.
Did you find the academic environment to be especially cutthroat in Wharton? I am a competitive person and a hard worker, but you hear a lot about a lack of collaboration among students at many of the country’s top business schools.
@highschooldude17 “Did you find the academic environment to be especially cutthroat in Wharton?”
Student tend to be competitive, but also cooperative. The strong social connections that students tend to have at Penn mean that cutthroat behavior is not well tolerated.