Hi all:
I am planning to major for my bachelors in biochemistry as well as business, while for my masters I plan to master in biomedical engineering and get an MBA. Do you have any thoughts on whether Stanford or Penn would be a better fit? I know Penn has Wharton Business School, but Stanford has better STEM facilities!
Thanks
Penn for business. Why biochem instead of engineering for undergrad?
What are your career goals?
@Cheetah71 Because you are interested in both biochem/bioengineering and business, I would say you should choose based on fit. At Penn you could do the M&T program or an uncoordinated dual degree and at Stanford you could double major in bioengineering/biochem and Econ. Also Penn M&T admits often turn down Stanford, Harvard etc for Penn.
Stanford has a greater overall name, overall better engineering programs, Penn is better for undergrad business, both have top bioengineering programs (Stanford slightly better but both are very comparable for all intents and purposes). both have top hospitals and med schools with amazing biomedical research opportunities.
So fit is the main consideration here.
@Cheetah71 I also forgot to mention that Penn and Stanford are very similar in terms of atmosphere, vibe, social life etc.
@nw2this I want to be a biomedical engineer, but more in the biology side, than the engineering side. One day, I want to develop my own biomedical products and create my own company. Also, @Penn95 , which would you say would be the best for me, factoring that I have lived in Maryland for my whole life.
Also, for these bachelors options, which should I take in order to become a biomedical engineer, keeping into consideration that I want to master in biomedical engineering and business:
Biochemistry and Chemical Engineering
Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics
Biomedical Sciences
Current and Projected Classes for High School:
Freshman Year:
Magnet English 9
IB Pre-Calc HL
Magnet Biology
Magnet/AP Government
IB Spanish 4
AP Com Sci
PE
Sophomore Year:
Magnet English 10
AP BC Calc
Magnet Chemistry
Magnet/AP US History
IB Spanish 5/AP Language
Anatomy and Physiology
AP Art History
Junior Year:
IB English 1/AP Lit
AP Stat
IB Biology I
IB History I
IB Spanish 7/AP Spanish Lit and Composition
AP Physics C
TOK
Senior Year:
IB English HL/AP Lan & Lit
IB HL Mathematics
IB Biology II HL/AP Biology
IB Economics/AP Micro & Macroeconomics
AP Psychology
AP Chemistry
AP Environmental Science
17 AP Courses
Is this a good enough transcript for Penn M&T or Stanford?
Does Penn have a masters version of the M&T program? @Penn95
@Cheetah71 It has a masters version of the uncoordinated dual degree option between SEAS and Wharton, meaning that you can do your MBA at Wharton and a Master in engineering from SEAS.
Also this might interest you. As a Penn undergrad you have the chance of applying to be admitted to the Wharton MBA before you finish your undergraduae career.
http://www.thedp.com/article/2017/03/wharton-early-acceptance-program
Does Penn have a dual masters degree MBA and biomedical engineering like Stanford does? @Penn95
@Cheetah71 you are free to pursue a Masters in engineering while doing an MBA so it technically does. There is no program with a name or whatever, but you can do both degrees concurrently.
I don’t know how you define “similar”; Stanford and Penn are pretty different to me:
Stanford - Silicon Valley/tech, Pac-12, excellence in all Olympics sports, gigantic campus in a rich suburb, Californian, sunny bubble/duck syndrome
Penn - Philly, undergrad business, gritty & urban, non-major sports conference, compact campus, high density, 4 seasons, east coast
Hmm… Penn is gritty? You mean Penn’s green, spacious, 300 acre campus that was designated an accredited arboretum? Gritty? Doesn’t look like it…
https://news.upenn.edu/news/university-pennsylvania-campus-accredited-arboretum
http://www.upenn.edu/spotlights/penns-unique-and-diverse-green-canopy
Or maybe you meant philly? https://vimeo.com/72350006 -every city has some grit, but not every city is experiencing a renaissance like Philly’s.
And business? Even though Penn’s humanities and social science departments like English and Economics have been ranked among the top 5 and 10 programs for decades? And even though Penn’s engineering program now supposedly has the lowest admit rate at Penn and the highest starting salaries for their graduating seniors?
The 80s called, they’d like you to return their outdated stereotypes when you get the chance… 
but in all seriousness I do think Penn and Stanford are very different schools - but not for almost any of the reasons you mentioned. Though I do think that their locations (Silicon Valley vs. Acela Corridor and Suburban/Rural (it is a farm, after all ) vs. Urban) create hugely different lived experiences for the students that matriculate at them.
Well, when compared to Stanford, Penn is gritty. It’s all relative.
But, seriously, I just got back from visiting Penn and I wouldn’t define it as gritty at all and Philly itself seems clean and under some significant construction, which will make it even better. However, downtown Philly, on Market St., there are many homeless and folks begging, but that’s going to be the case with any major city. You will occasionally see people begging near the Stanford Mall and University Avenue in Palo Alto.
@IWannaHelp similar in the sense that they both have a very active social life, students are social and outgoing, campus groups/organizations/ECs are a central part of the experience, they combine pre-professionalism and intellectualism, they are both entrepreneurial, they are more practical vs theoretical in their academic approach.
Of course there are also many differences too as you mention.