<p>I keep hearing that Penn is a pre-professional gunner's paradise, but what does the school have to offer students who wish to get into other fields? I am talking about jobs in government (fed and state), arts and entertainment, non-profits, NGOs, etc. Basically, if you're not Wharton, is it worth attending the school over a top flagship state school? What is it about Penn that would make it stand out among its peers and other top schools? I know its an Ivy, but it doesn't seem like a HYP. I hope that I am totally wrong on this issue and someone in here will set me straight. Can someone explain to me the perks of non-Wharton Penn? Is the alumni network pretty strong (nationally and internationally)? Is career services more helpful to Wharton grads? </p>
<p>There are also other things I am curious about:</p>
<p>Do well known people come to speak on campus? Are the resources and opportunities just as great to take advantage of as they would be at HYP?</p>
<p>The resources, opportunities, and so on are excellent at Penn (yes, even “non-Wharton Penn” as well). I would not choose any state school over Penn (I live in CA and got into Berkeley, UCLA, etc, and there are millions of reasons to go to Penn over them, except for the tuition haha). Penn may not seem like a “HYP” because it may have less name recognition, but US News does rank it #6 (above all the other ivies outside of HYP). I am not trying to say that US News is the best indicator of a school’s excellence, but it gives you a pretty good idea that Penn is a damn good school!</p>
<p>The career services website (which I have found to be very helpful, but I am only an incoming freshman, so I cannot compare it to the services for Wharton students) may also help you here. The link below shows where recent Penn grads (from the College of Arts and Sciences) have gone regarding grad school, employment, etc. It should show you that College students do extremely well post-Penn.</p>
<p>Look at how well Biochem students do in placing into the best grad programs in the world. Look at how well all the non-Wharton econ majors do in placing into jobs. I could keep going but that would be pointless. Penn is an unbelievably good school…</p>
<p>You’re right. I guess I dont hear of anything going on at Penn because its not as well known as HYP. I always hear that so and so gave a lecture at Harvard and that this X famous person over here is teaching at Yale, but I hardly hear of things going on at Penn even though there are probably a thousand and one things going on at Penn that are just as great as whats going on at the other Ivies. </p>
<p>I mean would you say that the resources at Penn are comparable to HYP or atleast better than say going to Duke, HU, Rice or UVA (other schools I have a shot at)?</p>
<p>There are actually a lot of big shots who come to Penn. We have our share of nobel prize winners, etc. But yes, Harvard and Yale do tend to steal the attention.</p>
<p>I would say that the resources at Penn are absolutely comparable to Harvard, Yale, and Princeton, as are MIT, stanford, columbia, dartmouth, duke… I’m not sure about HU, but Duke, Rice, and UVA are all great schools. If I were to rank which schools had the most resources, however, then Penn and Duke would definitely top that list. If you did get into Penn and the other schools you mentioned, go to Penn or Duke. Personally, I picked Penn over Duke, but they’re both great universities.</p>
<p>Really though, whether you go to Penn, Harvard, or Duke, you’re going to get a top-notch education and will have more resources than you can imagine at all three.</p>
<p>I mean, Kalpen Modi taught two courses a couple years ago, and the governor of Pennsylvania, Ed Rendell, teaches a course every fall. Important officials come to Penn routinely to give lectures and hold seminars, and Penn’s Career Services really does help to find jobs. That said, if you live in a state with a huge state- or state-affiliated school, the networking you find there may make it worth saving the money of Penn. Michigan is a great example of a state school worth attending since it is a VERY good school with a ton of students. Penn State is another example, especially with regard to engineering. When you go to a school with more than two hundred thousand alumni under the age of 50, you will be able to network very well.</p>
<p>That said, Penn is a great school for those looking to work in the public sector. Majoring in a social science sets you up very well for work in the public sector, as most courses, with the exception of philosophy courses and select political theory courses, give adequate attention to real world applications of theory, even if they do focus on theory. The Fox Leadership Program has terrific connections in the public sector, and government agencies actively recruit on Penn’s campus.</p>
<p>There are also courses dedicated to understanding the fundamentals of NGOs and NPOs, and many students do internships at such organizations.</p>
<p>I’m a political science student who is also pursuing a second major in German, and I anticipate working for the U.S. Department of State after graduating.</p>
<p>The resources at Penn are different than those of Duke, HU, Rice and UVA, and different people may find different resources more useful than others, so it depends on what you want to do.</p>
<p>“Do well known people come to speak on campus?”</p>
<p>Definitely. Examples of speakers who gave lectures/conferences that I either went or could’ve gone to without problem: Joseph Stiglitz, Paul Krugman, Steve Ballmer, Rodrigo de Rato, Brian Kernighan, Hilary Clinton’s daughter, Hilary Clinton, Joe Biden (this was a private event), Daniel Dennett. My memory is not that good but believe me, you will not be bored in terms of speakers. You will get politicians, top academics, Nobel prizes, businessmen, writers, artists, journalists… I actually regret not having gone to as many as I would’ve liked.</p>