<p>Just to be fair, I thought I'd create a thread for what people liked about Penn or why they chose Penn over another school.</p>
<p>As for me, I don't really care about food, weather, dorms, or any of that and came here simply because Wharton was my second choice Harvard (waitlisted/rejected). However, I have lots of CAS and SEAS friends who turned down other Ivies/top schools so there are plenty of good things to say about Penn.</p>
<p>Just to get it out of the way, Penn is currently ranked 6th in the nation by U.S News, and as much as we'd like to deny it, everyone on this forum looks at that table from time to time</p>
<p>Tangible school spirit. Probably the one thing that transcended all other factors for me was that I actually felt a “strong sense of community” walking down Locust Walk. All of the view books say that but it’s true.</p>
<p>Diversity… my Asian friend keeps joking that I’ll practically be a minority (I read that '13 is 47% minorities). Also some diversity in the sense that there are total nerds and really preppy/partying people as well. We aren’t MIT but we aren’t say, Vanderbilt. You can’t really apply a high school stereotype to Penn’s student body imo.</p>
<p>Philadelphia, and all of the amazing opportunities that it presents, and the fact that students actually take advantage of said opportunities.</p>
<p>All of its little quirks… the obsession with Benjamin Franklin, the “dueling tampons,” and the plastic button, and basically everything that’s kind of “weird” about the school but that randomly seems to foster school spirit.</p>
<p>The fact that no one will be holding my hand in a little nurturing LAC-type environment. I want more independence… I’m finally going off to college. I also currently live a really sheltered, monitored life with strict parents and a tiny school so this especially appeals to me.</p>
<p>The fact that I can walk to Penn easily from 30th Street Station, and that the walk is just through Drexel (which is ugly, but I feel safe enough).</p>
<p>Last but definitely not least (probably the second biggest draw for me), the “One University” policy and all of the schools on campus of which the policy allows me to take advantage. Also, the pre-professional energy on campus surrounding the fact that not only are three of the four undergraduate schools specialized, but that the graduate schools are open to all students. What excites me most about learning is applying what I’m learning, and you’d be pressed to find any other school that’s better for anyone who is like me in that respect, because you also have Philadelphia in which to volunteer/intern/work in your field of interest.</p>
<p>Huge emphasis on the first and last things. I LOVE PENN.</p>
<ul>
<li>Pre-professional focus. Certainly not for everyone, but this is probably among the most important factors to me. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to go to college to learn something (in my case engineering) that I can truly apply in my career. I don’t want to be a researcher/professor/pure engineer/etc. I’m not criticizing those who do (far from it in fact!), it’s just that those paths are not for me. </li>
</ul>
<p>-Definitely ‘One University’. My major will probably be computer science, but I’ll probably be supplementing it with Wharton courses. It’s an invaluable advantage for engineers who intend to move into the business realm. </p>
<p>-Access to opportunities. Penn offers a broad wealth of opportunities in the form of clubs, research, and summer internships. And thanks to the One University precept, I’ll be qualified to split my attention between researching within the computer science department during the year and working at a finance/consulting firm (hopefully!) during the summer. For someone who intends to apply engineering outside of the field itself, there are few places better than Penn (and still, Penn SEAS manages to get graduates into top engineering firms like Google, Cisco, and Microsoft). </p>
<p>-Environment/Atmosphere/Campus. I personally fell in love with Penn almost at first sight. Up to the time I first visited, I had seen Columbia, Cornell, Princeton, JHU, and Rutgers and none of them had offered the same vibe. I guess what was especially important to me was how eclectic the place seems. From the types of people right down to the architecture, Penn emphasizes diversity. The student body is noticeably different from that of other schools. Whereas Princeton kids seem stuck up/elitist and JHU students seem weathered and stressed, Penn students (and, of course there were outliers) seemed relatively enthusiastic, outgoing, and, at the same time, intelligent.</p>
<p>you guys covered the basics; these are more random</p>
<p>-high rises for upperclassmen; apartment style living on campus</p>
<p>-people giving free food (soda, brownies, cookies, etc) on locust if you pay attention to their advertising</p>
<p>-an excess amount of cute indian boys</p>
<p>-it felt really racially integrated to me from what I’ve seen/heard. This is important to me since I’m Venezuelan and in my high school, I basically have no black/hispanic friends since they barely exist in my school</p>
<p>-fisher and van pelt. If you want to work or if you want to pretend to work, there’s an option for both</p>
<p>-the kids I met at previews are nice</p>
<p>-quad is a dream</p>
<p>-multiple majoring and minoring is really flexible</p>
<p>-real emphasis on research; tons of opportunities for comm service since you are in west phily</p>
<p>-i like furda</p>
<ul>
<li><p>phily >>> nyc. This is coming from a new yorker</p></li>
<li><p>toast, tampons, broken button, masala</p></li>
</ul>
<p>^ and that “Columbia '13” will be removed from hcvops’ location exactly when? :)</p>
<p>As an old, grizzled alum, I’m heartened to see all of the above posts. Looks like Penn is doing a decent job of marketing what makes the school truly unique, and/or is admitting students who really appreciate Penn’s strengths and can articulate those to the rest of the world. </p>
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