<p>are there any differences between Harrison and Harnwell?</p>
<p>Yes.</p>
<p>You can’t get into Harrison without applying for the residential program “Freshman Experience.” With Harnwell, you can try to get in by applying for a residential program, or you can try your luck applying in the lottery system.</p>
<p>Only Harrison provides an experience that is catered solely towards Freshman. I’m in Harrison now (as a freshman) and absolutely love it (and highly recommend it).</p>
<p>I asked this in another section but haven’t gotten very many responses…</p>
<p>1) Even though UPenn is a big school, do you still feel like professors are engaging and actually care about students? Or do many professors act like they are there only because they have to be? Are many classes taught by TAs? If so, how are the TAs as teachers? Someone told me of a friend who never got taught by the professor in freshmen math or something like that – does that sound like a rare case or the norm?
2) Competition: I’ve heard two different sides of this. Some say students are just really competitive with themselves because they want to push themselves so they just seem intense. Others say that students are really competitive because the classes are curved a lot so people try to do better than others - they are focusing on their career (grades I guess?) more than “intellectual exploration.” I’m looking for an environment where I can work hard and study by myself but still be able to collaborate and work/study with others (as I’ve done in high school).
3) Are people cliquey? I’ve heard this is true especially with different ethnic groups but I’m wondering in general if people are eager to meet new people throughout all 4 years or if people just stick with their same groups of friends? I also heard that how much money you have somewhat dictates who you become friends with. Would you agree?
4) Drinking/Partying. This is kinda making me uneasy. I’ve read that UPenn is one of the more drinking/partying oriented Ivy schools. While obviously drinking goes on at every college, does it dominate most people’s social lives at UPenn? It would be nice if a guy responded since a girl there told me she goes out like twice a month and then just hangs out with her friends, watching TV or doing other stuff, but I don’t know if it would be the same for guys (to just watch movies or play a game one night etc)… It’s not that I don’t want to party/drink, I just don’t want to feel like that’s the only way I can have fun in college. And I know UPenn has a lot of events going on like plays and stuff but do many students (whether big partiers or not) actually attend? Or are they there just for the “losers” who don’t want to party? I don’t know if I’m reading too much into this aspect of UPenn, it’s just that all the college review books and people I’ve talked to have mentioned how prevalent drinking is, and I’m afraid of only meeting people who went to UPenn because they were looking for this exact social scene.</p>
<p>Thanks for taking the time to honestly answer these questions. I really appreciate it!</p>
<p>1) <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pennsylvania/904132-quality-professors-lectures-class-sizes.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pennsylvania/904132-quality-professors-lectures-class-sizes.html</a></p>
<p>2) What school are you attending? I have never felt, in any of my CAS classes, that a competitive edge reigns over the class. I have had great experiences working/studying in groups whenever I wanted to. </p>
<p>3) Like most things, it exists, but isn’t dominate, and you are very likely to find what you want. Yes people want to meet other people. For example: Be my friend?</p>
<p>4) There’s tons of ways to have fun at Penn, and you can find whatever “fun” means to you here. If that means getting completely wasted every weekend, it won’t be too hard. If that means not going to parties at all, you won’t be alone. I’m not a partier/drinker, and I’m not anti-social, nor do I feel like a loser. More importantly, I have fun with my friends, many of which DO drink and go out almost every weekend. It doesn’t have to be two separate worlds/groups.</p>
<p>1) It depends on the class. Introductory classes are a crap shoot… some are taught by very engaging professors who love what they do; others (PSCI110, for example) are classes nobody wants to teach, so when a prof gets stuck, he often finds it difficult to do a good job. Math classes are notorious for having professors who just want to teach upper level courses or do research, but that said, even in classes with professors without much interest, the class itself as well as the lectures can be very captivating. TAs teach recitations, which are seminars associated with lectures that allow students to ask questions to clarify concepts; they also give students a chance to have discussion that they can’t have with a large group (recitations = 15-25 students, lectures = 80-350 students). Some requirement courses are taught by lecturers, not professors, but they are also usually very good.
2) It’s slightly more difficult to do that in Wharton, but it’s more than possible. In the College that isn’t a problem. Mostly students are competitive much more with themselves than with anybody else. You’ll also find that many students are so smart that comparing yourself to them will lead to frustration, even if you are just as smart, simply because most high schools don’t have as many unbelievably intelligent kids.
3) The freshman class usually has around 2,400 students. There is no way you will be able to enjoy yourself without joining groups and clubs, and you will likely make your friends there. Cliquey? I mean I guess you could call it that, but it’s impossible to get to know 2400 people in 4 years. As far as money-cliquiness goes, I’m sure that exists, but in three years I haven’t seen it. I’ve only heard about it, and the people I gravitate toward (there are about 300 or 400 people I consider acquaintances and another 30 or 40 I consider friends, maybe 10 of whom I consider close friends) never exude that kind of arrogance.
4) Many people who come to Penn don’t drink. You will have no problem finding friends who don’t drink and even less of one finding friends who don’t get hamma-drunk consistently. I would estimate that the average Penn student goes on a little drinking binge two or three days a month, some more and others less. I tend to imbibe about five times a month or so (this month is both Spring Fling and Hey Day so it’s been a bit more than that for me!), but I rarely go to raucous frat parties. It’s usually just hanging out, playing cards with my friends, etc.</p>
<p>so - do you have any recommendations for getting into Harrison?</p>
<p>Write a quality essay (does not need to be perfect or anything) about why you are interested in Harrison and the program. If you visited, talk about that experience. If you weren’t able to, talk about how excited you are to participate in FreshEx events (Carnival, Assassins, Picnics downtown, IKEA trip, Costume shopping trip before Halloween, Philly Scavenger Hunt, Pumpkin Carving, all the free food, and so much more).</p>
<p>My daughter has been admitted to both Tufts and Penn. She is interested in studying molecular biology (at least that’s what she thinks), wants to be able to do research with a prof, sing a capella, do some ceramics, tutor or other community service and go abroad junior year.
She really liked her visit to Tufts and felt the kids were really happy there, quirky and more expressive than the Penn students she saw on the Penn preview day. She is vegetarian and doesn’t drink or use any substances and doesn’t want to be surrounded by kids that do. She wants a rigorous Biology program but doesn’t want to be overwhelmed with pre-med pressure either. What do you think?</p>
<p>1) Research is easy at Penn, and she can start her first year here. Penn has a specific center to help connect undergraduates with research opportunities (CURF - Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships). Included in CURF is a database of professors looking for research assistants. I myself am doing an independent research project this summer. I was recruited by one of my professors, and will be sponsored by his program. </p>
<p>2) There are too many a capella groups here to count! If she can sing, she’ll have a multitude of options. </p>
<p>3) One of my favorite parts about Penn is the opportunity to get involved with community service. There are countless ways to help the surrounding area. I help teach Saturday School at a local middle school, mentor a 1st grader from a near-by school, tutor SAT strategies once a week at a public high school, visit homeless shelters, etc. Penn has a huge volunteerism vibe to take advantage of.</p>
<p>4) Penn was recently voted in the top 10 Most Vegetarian-Friendly Universities in the Country ([10</a> Most Vegetarian-Friendly Universities | Online Universities](<a href=“http://www.onlineuniversities.com/rankings/10-most-vegetarian-friendly-universities/]10”>http://www.onlineuniversities.com/rankings/10-most-vegetarian-friendly-universities/)) ([Most</a> Vegetarian-Friendly Colleges in the U.S. | InsideCollege.com](<a href=“The Best College Rankings and Lists | Inside College | CollegeXpress”>The Best College Rankings and Lists | Inside College | CollegeXpress)). </p>
<p>5) Plenty of people (hi there) don’t drink or use substances. She’ll easily find people like her. </p>
<p>Can’t say anything about the other questions.</p>
<p>Thanks chrisw and FightingQuaker (and yes I’ll be your friend! haha). Your answers helped me.</p>
<p>I was accepted into CAS but might take a few Wharton classes. I guess the competition isn’t as bad as I thought (for CAS). But would students let others copy their notes if they had to be absent or something?</p>
<p>I guess what I’m also kinda worried about is how at a lot of schools you hear that every student loves the school, but at UPenn it seems that it’s 50/50 - or maybe 70/30 idk- (from what I’ve heard/read). The princeton review quality of life rating used to be 75 in 2008 but its up to an 89 now. Other Ivy schools have a QOL rating in the upper 90s. I’m wondering if it’s the dorms and food that brought the scores down? What else would people not like? </p>
<p>About the dorms, the other schools that I applied to had a residential college system and the school selects which college house you go to (either randomly or trying to make a microcosm of the university). I’m afraid that since the people in the dorms aren’t random, you may end up with similar people or something… Also, are only some dorms social? Do people hang out in the halls only at Hill because there is no air conditioning and the rooms are small, or do people hang out of their rooms in all dorms? OK I know these worries are stupid but I just don’t know why I feel “afraid” of UPenn or whatever.</p>
<p>Hi, this is my first post. Hope it works.</p>
<p>First, thanks so much for this tread, its really great.</p>
<p>So I was accepted to Penn Engineering. I am planning to major in Bioengineering and take the premed courses. Now I am not sure what to do about AP Credits. I already looked at Penn’s page on receiving credit and here is the problem.</p>
<p>First, there are a lot of warnings about using AP credits if you are premed. Also, I took AP Chemistry (got a 5) in tenth grade, so don’t really remember it, and I don’t think I could pass a placement exam. </p>
<p>So I guess my question is would it be a bad idea to not take (or try to take) the credit for these classes (Chem, Bio, Physics)? Would it look bad for med school or would I be behind in college?</p>
<p>I think I will find this all out in the summer, but with AP test coming up, the answer might influence my stress levels :D</p>
<p>Thanks for your advice.</p>
<p>shirts,</p>
<p>1) Yeah, they probably would, especially if you have friends in that class. My good friend and I lecture each other for the classes that we accidentally missed because we slept through our alarms. In my ConLaw class, somebody had their notes stolen (not by another student in the class, but someone stole his backpack) and the professor emailed the entire class asking people to help him out, so it’s really not a problem.</p>
<p>2) There are a lot of happy people at Penn. Maybe I just happen to surround myself with people who love it here, I don’t know. My friends like to complain a lot about things, but overall they wouldn’t go anywhere else. </p>
<p>3) Some dorms are more “social” with a greater sense of community than others. Hill is one of those, and yes, it is mostly because people are forced out of their teeny-tiny rooms. But every dorm has some sort of socialization. In Harrison a lot of the socializing goes on in our rooms because we have so much space, but the lounges in every floor are also helpful.</p>
<p>ZigZor,</p>
<p>I got accepted into CAS and, while I am not majoring in art, I have done ceramics all through high school and really want to continue into college. I was really excited to see that Penn has a pottery studio inside Hill college house! This is what Hill’s website has to say </p>
<p>Pottery Room
The pottery room is in the Underground recreation area and is home to pottery and ceramics classes throughout the year. Watch Top of the Hill for announcements of class schedules. There is a small charge for Hill students which covers instruction and materials. Due to space constraints, only students enrolled in pottery room classes can use the facility.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I have been unable to find out more ex) costs, quality of the facilities, size of classes, level of classes (I’m pretty advanced and am looking for a program that gives me access to clay, wheels, tools, glaze, and kilns but pretty much lets me do what I want), etc., but I’m definitely going to keep looking into it.</p>
<p>^ you could possibly work out something with the fine arts department, which is only one long block from hill</p>
<p>Hello everyone… fyi, I’m in wharton(don’t know if this might affect anything)
I have random questions
- Do you have to pay for copies and printing.?
- Are there hot chocolate machines in dining halls?
- How hard is it to maintain higher than a 3.7 in wharton while working and being involved?
- Is it reccomended to hunt down a roomate?</p>
<ol>
<li>Do you have to pay for copies and printing.?</li>
<li>Are there hot chocolate machines in dining halls?</li>
<li>How hard is it to maintain higher than a 3.7 in wharton while working and being involved?</li>
<li><p>Is it reccomended to hunt down a roomate? </p></li>
<li><p>Yes but the school gives you money towards that. Don’t remember how much per semester but I got a lot to spare so it’s enough</p></li>
<li><p>You can get hot cocoa</p></li>
<li><p>not hard</p></li>
<li><p>only if you have a hunting license</p></li>
</ol>
<p>FYI: Wharton students get $20 worth of printing per semester (more than enough), Engineers apparently get free printing at one of their buildings. Everyone gets free printing at the Weiss Tech House (or so my friend says). College kids don’t get subsidized printing, though anyone can find it if they look around enough. </p>
<p>The roommate-matches made through the internet that I’ve seen have generally not turned out well.</p>
<p>Think there’s free printing in the LGBT Center (or there was last year) </p>
<p>Internet-matched roommates can go either way (same with randomly assigned ones, although I guess with random ones there’s less expectation going into the rooming situation) One of my good friends here and current roommate was someone I met through Facebook, and we’re living together next year too, so it’s worked out for us.</p>
<p>So it sounds like everyone has already made all their decision to attend UPenn!!<br>
I however have not made that jump and am still bouncing between Emory University and UPenn…although UPenn is holding the lead most of the time. Since the decision is like…today, I was wondering if you guys could soothe some of my worries.
I’m coming from a relatively small city (about 88,000) and am a little worried about the noise level and busy body mentality. Any current students that shared this situation and found it okay?<br>
I’m also coming from New Mexico where summers frequently top 100. I know weather isn’t something that should decide but in comparing it to Atlanta…yeah. For those who love to spend lots of time outside and catch a glimpse of the sun every now and then, is Philly a bad choice?
I’ve compared academics and made visits to each school but I still don’t have a solid choice! any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks</p>
<p>It was 88 and gorgeous today. Also, yes there are parts of campus that are noisy (Hill College House is in the flight pattern for the helicopters going to HUP), but most areas of campus are quite quiet except for the rowdiness of students.</p>