Hi everyone,
I’m planning on majoring in economics, and after that I want to specialize in finance and global management (but not necessarily during my undergrad education). So I got into both of my top-choices instead of one like I planned, and I have no idea how to choose. I’d like to hear what everyone thinks, especially because I’m not able to visit the campuses. How do Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania and University of Chicago compare in terms of:
- Academics, I’m looking for a more practical approach instead of a theoretical one
- Liberal arts curriculum as I’d like to explore during my time as an undergraduate
3)LGBTQ+ groups in campus and generally gay life in the area
4)Closeness to the city and students engaging with city life, in terms of internships, volunteering etc. and also night life, restaurants and generally places to go
5)Campus life (campus spirit, houses, sports culture, activities and clubs etc.)
6)Diversity of the student body, in terms of both socioeconomic status and race, nationality, gender identity etc.
7)Focus on undergraduate education and research
8)Recognition or general comments about the overall atmosphere?
Thanks a lot 
Penn is more practical and focused on providing the best possible preparation for immediate employment. Chicago is primarily focused on providing the best possible preparation for graduate school. If you want to
At Penn, you would probably select a Finance concentration and could consider a second concentration in Management or Global Analysis in Wharton. If you want to major in Econ, you would have to transfer to Arts and Sciences. It is not difficult to do.
Both have strong liberal arts, and Penn encourages students to take courses in all schools.
Both schools are LGBTQ friendly, but Penn has a reputation for being exceptional at this.
Both are in a large city.
Both have extensive campus life. Penn has DI sports though and went to the NCAA basketball tournament this year.
Both have very diverse student bodies.
Both have extensive research opportunities.
Penn has a more a reputation for attracting very bright, hands-on students who like to do things and also tend to be sociable. Penn’s importance on balancing academics with hands-on experience was established by Ben Franklin. He valued reading highly, but also who observed that students who attended Harvard read a lot of books, but didn’t actually know how to do anything when they returned. Franklin understood that is the two together that make a great education.
Chicago has a reputation for very academically talented and focused students. More of a reputation for being more likely to become specialists in something specific and a few will win a Nobel prize.
I should add that while these are the school’s reputations, there is significant overlap. You will be able to find many Chicago-like students at Penn, and many Penn-like students at Chicago. They both have very excellent students. You will get an amazing education at either school. It is too bad you can’t visit them in-person and get a feel for which one makes you feel more at home.
Thank you! This has been very helpful, I also decided that Wharton would be better for me after some consideration. I wish I could visit the schools though - it’d help so much with my decision! Now there’s one tiny problem, I also got my acceptance letter from Berkeley-Haas for the Global Management Program, which is a very selective undergraduate program in business management. Do you know anything about this program, or about how Wharton and UC Berkeley stand against each other as undergraduate business schools?
Thank you very much!!