Penn ED CAS or SEAS?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Pennsylvania
1

I’m curious which schools in Penn are harder to get into ED. Obviously Wharton is the hardest. I’m interested in the biology or English major in CAS (pre-med) or the Biomedical Science major in SEAS. It would not be a major factor in my decision of what school to apply to, but I’m curious which school would be less competitive to get into.

I’m only adding this info because it seems to affect how others respond:

  • Black female (HS junior)
  • 33 ACT
  • 1410 SAT (710W+CR, 700M
  • 3.8 UW / 4.2 W from nationally ranked public charter school in Kentucky
  • will have taken 9 AP tests by the time I apply next year. So far: 5 in AP Lang, 4 in APUSH, 4 in AP world history
2

Pump

3

SEAS is more harder.

4

CAS is definitely easier than SEAS. Based on the info that you’ve provided, you seem to be competitive for both of these schools.

5

I would recommend applying to CAS since it’s easier admission and probably has the better majors for pre-med.

6

There is not a definitive answer to this. A kid with a non-quantitative background accepted to Wharton would probably have been rejected from SEAS due to concerns of being able to cope with the SEAS rigor. Also a super quantitative, nerdy person with little leadership experience, ECs could be accepted to SEAS but rejected from Wharton. It depends a lot on your profile and how it matches the school.

All in all, wharton and seas are first in terms of selectivity and then CAS. Nursing is very self-selected which results in a high acceptance rate but nursing students are just as competitive. In general students across all four schools are on average equally competitive. The difference in selectivity between SEAS and CAS is not substantial so it is not worth choosing where to apply to based on that. Choose the school that most closely fits your academic interests and background.

7

In general, CAS is easier. However, I suspect that there are fewer black applicants, and female applicants, as a percentage of the total, applying to SEAS.

You should apply to the school that will be best for you, but I suspect in this case, your chances are better in SEAS. jmho

Remember you will also need subject tests.

8

@ZBlue17 :

Here are some stats about the number of entering freshman in last year’s class for each of the four schools at Penn.

CAS: 1442
SEAS: 341
Nursing: 83
Wharton: 395

SEAS and Wharton accept a very similar number of applicants. I wouldn’t say that one is more selective than the other. It depends on your profile. For example. if you’ve taken lots of math and physics classes, and your ECs are technological or science related, SEAS would perhaps be the best choice for you.

9

Thanks for the input? Anyone else want to add more?