I would like to enquire if admission to UPenn means an admission to a specific school. Do I apply to UPenn or do I apply to The Wharton School if I’m interested in a business major? If yes, then is the admission process followed by The Wharton School different from the other schools within UPenn?
You specify on your application that you are applying to Wharton. Here’s some things they look for: http://undergrad.wharton.upenn.edu/insider-tips/
You apply directly to Wharton. Admission to Wharton is typically more competitive than other undergraduate schools at Penn. However, it is incredibly difficult to do an internal transfer so if you want to attend Wharton, I suggest you apply to Wharton and take your chances.
Yes you will apply to Wharton ( u ll see on the common app u ll be prompted to pick a school). The admissions process is not that different between CAS, SEAS, Wharton in terms of the procedural things you need to do, except for the fact that SEAS wants science/math subject tests and Wharton wants Math2 subject test and for Wharton and seas you need to write why you are interested in business/engineering . As to which is harder to get in, nowadays the difference is pretty small. In fact earlier this year the former dean of SEAS declared that SEAS had become the most selective undergraduate school ( he didn’t specify the metrics he based his claim on tho, so we should take this with a grain of salt)
What is def true however is that it is harder to internally ( once u get into Penn) transfer into Wharton than it is to transfer from Wharton to SEAS or CAS. So if u are interested in business you should apply to Wharton from the beginning.
In other words, it is not a sound strategy in my opinion to apply to CAS or SEAS first and then try to transfer internally into Wharton, if business is what u absolutely want, because a) admission to SEAS/CAS nowadays is not really easier in any meaningful degree, b) internal transfer to Wharton is not guaranteed at all.
Good luck with the application! I am also applying to Wharton, via Early Decision. My one tip is to be specific in your essay about why you want to apply to Wharton/UPenn. Don’t just say you like business.
I do interview for all 4 undergraduate schools. I have not found any applicants to any one school to be smarter, better, or whatever. Nor have I found any one school to be more rigorous in applicants accepted. But I have only interviewed about 400 applicants for 17 years, so my experience might be more limitied that other posters.
This was really helpful! I guess I’ll have to weight out my options, but it looks like I’ll be applying to Wharton after all.