I never thought I would be in this situation, but here I am.
Up until Ivy day I thought I was going to Wellesley. I didn’t think I had a big shot at any of the Ivies I applied to, but I ended up getting into both UPenn and Brown.
I plan on visiting all three again (Wellesley COC, Brown ADOCH), but I was wondering what others think about this situation. How different would my experience be at Brown or Penn vs. a small top LAC like Wellesley?
Career wise, how would any/all of these schools help to propel me forward?
I am interested in Middle Eastern Studies, Arabic, IR etc. I am also very interested in Politics. My prospective majors at the three colleges are as follows:
UPenn: Modern Middle Eastern Studies or PPE (Politics Philosophy and Economics)
Wellesley: IR w/ Poly Sci or Econ (possibly might try my hand at Comp Sci as well)
Brown: IR (fantastic program with focus on Security & Society or Political Economy & Society), Development Studies
Just because Penn and Brown are ivies does not mean that they are similar. In fact they are quite different in terms of academic and social culture and you will get vastly different overall experiences in one vs the other. I suggest researching the two schools very well to determine which suits you best. Brown is prob closer to the Lac experience than Penn but Penn has many unique offerings that LACs or Beown can’t provide.
First of all, CONGRATS!! What a wonderful position to be in – choosing between two ivies and one of the seven sisters! That’s truly outstanding.
As has been stated, your experience at the three schools would probably be incredibly different though I’m sure that the quality of the education you receive will be pretty similar.
Wellesley is obviously open only to Women so that will probably dramatically shift your experience quite a bit. Brown and Penn will be more similar to one another since they’re both co-ed ivies with the resources of a top notch research university supporting the undergraduate experience. At Penn you’ll be in a quintessential liberal arts college at the heart of one of the most outstanding research universities in the world. Thanks to the One University Policy you will also be able to take some Comp Sci classes at Penn even if you aren’t in the engineering school. Alternatively, you can also do a double major between The College and Engineering without actually having to be enrolled in both schools so your interest in comp sci does not have to take a back seat to your passion for the liberal arts. PPE is an incredible major that can provide you with a very different academic experience depending on how you choose to pursue the major. Some students decide on a very general exploration of the three subjects without diving too deeply into any particular one; Others choose to focus very heavily on either Politics, Philosophy, or Econ while using the breadth of courses available to inform their academic experience in the one subject. In general, it’s an outstanding opportunity to take advantage of the interdisciplinary nature of a Penn education. It is also a major that will allow you to cross traditional school boundaries as well. Thanks again to the One University Policy, you can add classes from the Law School, the graduate school, the Business & Public Policy department in Wharton, or any of the other wonderful departments across Penn’s other undergraduate, graduate and professional schools to your academic exploration. There are so many different ways to approach a Penn education and the entire university is really very accessible. Much more research is done at Penn than at either Brown or Wellesley so if you are considering becoming involved in undergraduate research, I highly recommend you look into the opportunities available at each school. At Penn, finding a professor doing research with similar interests at the forefront of your field will be easy. There are resources like the Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships available to students who want a formalized way of finding a mentor or pre-existing project, while others choose to just ask professors with whom they’re comfortable if the professor needs help with what they’re working on. I know much less about Modern Middle Eastern Studies but I’m sure it’s also a really outstanding department. By nature, that major will also be highly interdisciplinary and many of the same opportunities I’ve already discussed would benefit you there as well. Penn’s flexible curriculum will serve you well as you are encouraged to step outside of your comfort zone but never so restricted that you wouldn’t be able to fit in an extra minor or the electives you really want to take but that don’t necessarily fit into your major requirements/general education requirements. It is a very well calibrated system for students who are curious and open minded yet who like to be pushed academically.
Beyond the academic opportunities, Penn’s larger size and reputation as the “Social Ivy” definitely infuses a certain energy into campus life. People take their academics very seriously but they also take socializing very seriously as well. And being in America’s fifth largest city will transform your experience too. You will be a few minutes away from some of the most amazing art collections in the world, some of the best restaurants, and some of the most historic sites in America. Penn has a beautiful, compact, yet spacious 300 acre campus in the heart of Philadelphia. It has enough exciting campus life and enough space to keep students interested in hanging around on weekends and nights but it is close enough to all that Philly has to offer to make it easy to run into center city for a day in Rittenhouse Square or a stroll along the river. Students take full advantage of the shopping, culture, and more throughout the year and yet Philly’s manageable size ensures that its presence never detracts from campus life. It is truly, I think, the ideal balance between city and campus.
Congrats again! You have three wonderful options. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask- i’m happy to answer them! I hope you choose Penn
