<p>it's all in the title :)</p>
<p>Your question should be penn vs. YU, because Brandeis and Penn are both secular universities with phenomenally large orthodox Jewish populations. I would point you towards Penn.</p>
<p>i know but there are def differences. for instance, brandeis gives students vacation on jewish holidays whereas penn doesnt. also, im lookig for opinions based on the fact that im an orthodox jew but also just penn vs brandeis without the jewish factor. thx to all who respond!</p>
<p>my cousin is going to penn, and he is modern orthodox, obviously quite observant...one reason he chose penn ed was because of the vibrant jewish life on campus</p>
<p>Penn has a very large Jewish student community. In fact, it has the highest percentage of Jewish students of any Ivy League school. It also has a large and active Orthodox community. You should check out the Penn Hillel web site (be sure to look at "Kosher Dining" and "Tour of Steinhardt Hall" under "About Us" in the upper left--Penn's Steinhardt Hall is one of the largest--if not THE largest--Hillel buildings in the country):</p>
<p>Welcome</a> to the Jewish Community at Penn</p>
<p>Also, here's a separate web site for the Orthodox Community at Penn:</p>
<p>Orthodox</a> Community at Penn</p>
<p>Needless to say, an Orthodox student should feel very comfortable and welcome at Penn.</p>
<p>In terms of Penn vs. Brandeis in general, Penn offers a much greater diversity, breadth, and depth of academic and extracurricular offerings than Brandeis. Penn's "One University" policy fosters interdisciplinary study, and encourages undergrads to take courses in more than one undergrad school (the College of Arts and Sciences, Wharton School, School of Engineering and Applied Science, and Nursing School), and in 8 of Penn's grad and professional schools (including the Law School, Annenberg School for Communication, School of Design, School of Social Policy and Practice, Graduate School of Education, etc.). As a result, Penn undergrads have a unique opportunity to explore far beyond the traditional liberal arts curriculum in a wide variety of departments and schools--including liberal arts, business, etc.--that are ranked among the best in the country. It's an undergraduate program that's really unparalleled.</p>
<p>the orthodox jewish group and the penn arab society often clash on the streets of penn. it's quite violent.</p>
<p>jk, there's quite a large population here and often times the professors are jewish so they will not have class on certain jewish holidays, from my experience.</p>
<p>I just read somewhere that Brandeis is 62% Jewish, and Penn is 31%. Regardless, I don't think the point of going to college is to find other people who think and act in a way similar to the way you think and act. But that's just my opinion. Also, I know it's not necessarily true that all Jewish people think or act the same way (btw I'm Jewish). I just think in college I'll want to seek out people who are different from me, not the same. But if you're worried about there not being any Jewish people at Penn or at Brandeis, you really are not going to have a problem.</p>
<p>I believe that the Jewish percentage at Brandeis is about 52%. This is from the panel for parents on admitted students day</p>
<p>DagnyT, very religious Jews don't go to college to extend their horizons culturally - by the way, my brother is extremely religious, so I know what I'm talking about. I am in tune with that world.</p>
<p>Also, the Brandeis survey only includes those who answer the survey, which is not required. The number for Jews are at least 60%.</p>
<p>What, did they mail the survey on a saturday?</p>
<p>Anyway Penn is a great place for Jews--it has historically been very welcoming to them, even in the days when Harvard, Yale and Princeton declared there was a "Jewish problem."</p>
<p>As for days off, most faculty are very aware of the Jewish holidays and will usually accommodate them, even if the University officially doesn't.</p>
<p>Also, what's a Lubavich house? I live right next to it and I've always been kind of curious.</p>
<p>lubavich?</p>
<p>i thought it was luvabich</p>
<p>I remember teachers scheduling make up recitations and quizzes to accommodate for Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah last fall. I also think that Friday classes might be more relaxed this week with Passover coming up.</p>
<p>I'm a little surprised that Penn is not closed for Yom Kippur. Tulane is, and evidently a host of other schools (search on Google?). As a Penn alumna, with a daughter about to attend Brandeis, I have been lurking here....</p>
<p>Penn doesn't close for Good Friday either. Guess it is ecumenical in its choice to stay open......</p>
<p>I'm an orthodox Jew, and I gto in early this year to Penn...I don't know much about the community at Brandeis, but Penn's is phenomenal...200+ orthodox Jews, lots of activities/learning...Amazing Kosher food....what more could you want?</p>
<p>^ Is it only 200+? With over 3,000 Penn undergrads self-identifying as Jewish, plus who-knows-how-many of the thousands of grad and professional students, it seems there'd be more than 200+ Orthodox.</p>
<p>I said + because it depends how you define orthodox...there are a LOT of them, probably closer to 250...</p>
<p>45 Percenter, don't be surprised. Cornell has over 3,000 Jewish undergrads, and only about 30 Orthodox Jews by the most liberal standards.</p>