What separates University of Pennsylvania from other Ivy Leagues, if at all?
I have this notion that it is in some way unique, but I’m not sure in what ways.
Penn is know as the “Social Ivy”. It also has a big focus on interdisciplinary study. Look into both of these.
Those are the two big distinctions I can think of.
Some special qualities unique to Penn:
- Actual Campus in a Truly Large Urban Environment Penn's has a 300 acre from which you can walk to the center of the fifth largest urban metropolis in the United States in under 15 minutes. Harvard has an 'urban' campus but it's situated in Cambridge which is adjacent to Boston which itself is not even one of the 20 largest cities in the US. Columbia is in Morningside Heights which is of course part of NYC, America's largest city. But it's campus is about 30 acres and the only part that truly feels like a college campus is smaller than that. Furthermore, while Columbia is in Morningside Heights, a neighborhood that is exciting and unique in its own way, it is extremely far from NYC's most exciting/desirable areas. Penn, conversely, has a beautifully landscaped, quiet but bustling, green campus that fosters an intensely strong sense of community but still has access to all of the city-life amenities a college student would want to have. Thus Philly is large enough to provide you with everything you could want in an urban environment but Penn is large enough to keep you busy every hour of every day if that's what you're looking for. http://www.citymayors.com/gratis/uscities_100.html
- One University Policy and All Schools on One Campus Penn's One University Policy allows undergrads to take classes in any one of the other 3 undergrad schools in which that undergrad is not enrolled and almost all of the graduate schools as well. And since all of Penn's graduate and undergraduate programs are housed on one campus, you can literally be taking classes at the Law School, doing research at Wharton, and earning your degree in Engineering without ever leaving University City. Penn has 4 seamlessly integrated undergraduate schools that allow for collaboration and interdisciplinary study in a way that no other university can match. With a set of requirements in each school that encourages a deep understanding of the foundations of your discipline without being so over burdensome as to inhibit intellectual exploration, your Penn education will be one of great quality and limitless possibility.
- Research Penn is a research university much like it's peers but the amount of research being done per person at Penn is enormous. Penn receives the most government grant money in the Ivy League to conduct research and is one of the largest produces of scholarship in the world. Only Columbia is comparable in its research output. The low barriers between schools and disciplines at Penn, however, create an environment in which even undergrads can partake in the highest levels of research with these tremendous minds. The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships is a part of Penn dedicated entirely to connecting undergrads to research opportunities and which, in recent years has been focused on situating students in order to apply for Rhodes, Gates, Truman scholarships and more. Penn was late to the game in the focus on these scholarships, to be sure, but these recent efforts have reinvigorated campus efforts to find more suitable candidates. And it's paying off- In recent years, Penn's number of winners of these awards has been growing very quickly.. Essentially, you can be doing research in any field, with any professor, all on one campus in University City, with the most grant funding of any Ivy. It's a pretty incredible opportunity. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/27/universities-government-money_n_3165186.html http://mup.asu.edu/MUP-TARU-Natl-1-25.html http://www.thedp.com:8080/article/2015/03/penn-top-10-fulbright-students http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/news/university-pennsylvania-senior-rutendo-chigora-awarded-non-us-rhodes-scholarship http://www.upenn.edu/curf/news/adam-cohen-named-2015-truman-scholar
- Pre-Professional/Intellectual Balance Penn was founded by Benjamin Franklin who wanted students to be exposed to everything both practical and "ornamental." His emphasis on balancing the two resulted in ensuring that even the most esoteric and intellectual disciplines at Penn are grounded in their ability to impact the world beyond our campus. It also serves to connect even the most practical fields to their theoretical and 'ornamental' counterparts. That's why almost half of the classes a student takes while at Wharton will be outside of the Wharton School. That's why students in the Engineering school can pick up a second Major in the College and students in the College can pick up a second major in Engineering without having to be enrolled in the other school. That's why Penn has pioneered Academically Based Community Services courses in the college of arts and sciences, making it possible for students in a sociology class or a class on Urban Green Space in the Urban Studies Department, to do real world field work right in our own back yard of West Philadelphia. This also makes for a more pre-professional vibe than at most other ivy league schools. There is an ENORMOUS emphasis placed on the Liberal Arts at Penn but at the end of the day you will find higher concentrations of students at Penn who are considering how their educations will lead them to their ultimate career goals than elsewhere. Though this is changing across the ivy league as the most recent recession has injected even the smallest liberal arts colleges with greater fervor in finding real world applications for the things they learn in class. The pre-professional culture at Penn, however, is certainly undeniable. As a major in the humanities, I always found it refreshing to have so many peers and resources keeping me focused on where my education would lead, but not everyone might enjoy that experience in the same way.
This pre-professional vibe, however, also leads to outstanding job placement and grad school placement records. Check out these senior surveys for each undergrad school: http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/reports.php
It’s clear that Penn students do incredibly well in finding the jobs of their dreams or gaining admittance to the top grad programs that fit best with their intended fields of study.
- The Social Ivy You will make friends no matter where you go- but Penn is known as the Social Ivy because of the emphasis that it's students place on socializing and, yes, networking. Penn has an extremely vibrant social scene, enhanced by the Greek life that adds to campus without dominating it and the city life that also adds to campus without ever detracting from the offerings one can find at Penn itself. Penn is large enough that anyone can find their niche but the University does an awesome job of creating smaller environments through extra curriculars, the College House System, the small advising groups, and more to ensure that students have frequent, informal and formal interactions with one another. Events like Spring Fling lead to a lot of partying on campus and traditions like Hey Day unite the relatively large undergraduate population. Other colleges students like to talk about the way they "work hard and play hard." But visit a couple of them on the weekends and then come to Penn-- there's a difference. Or ask any of our Ivy peers who come to Penn for Spring Fling why they're there- they'll tell you ;) But if being excessively social is not your deal, Penn is also large enough to keep a low profile. There are plenty of kids who never leave the library or their dorm rooms. The benefit of Penn is that both are genuine options and you are never forced to be part of just a party culture or just a loner culture. The opportunities are endless.
- Ben Franklin was our Founder And he was a colonial boss.
- Also Foodcarts and Cheesesteaks Magic Carpet and Hemo's.
There’s too many special qualities to name- you’ll just have to get in, matriculate and find out for yourself.
I agree with @jackrabbit14. Penn is one of the more progressive Ivies in terms of interdisciplinary studies and social engagement, and it touts both of those aggressively, with Benjamin Franklin as the role historical model for interdisciplinary studies with worldly impact and engagement:
http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/academics/interdisciplinary-programs
http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/academics/local-and-national-civic-engagement
http://www.admissions.upenn.edu/academics/global-civic-engagement
https://pikprofessors.upenn.edu/about-pik
I tend to think of Duke, Stanford and UChicago as being more comparable to Penn in this kind of emphasis (though each has a slightly different twist) than H-Y-P.
These are some really great posts! A couple things I would add are:
Attitude: Students tend to be helpful, and cooperative. I think the positive social vibe really helps with this. If you want to know who the top students are, you will probably have to figure it out from observation, they are not usually talking about it.
Practicality: Students tend to want to do things themselves, and value hands-on experience. Classes often have hands on components, and additionally, it is common for a student or a group of students to undertake a project that is not related to a class.
Students also like the flexibility of the curriculum at Penn, and use it to explore multiple interests or related interests.
Well, @PennCAS2014 said practically everything. I think the greatest differences between Penn and the other Ivies are the following. If you want to have great job opportunities once you graduate, Penn has the greatest pre-professional focus of all the Ivies, so it’s fantastic for preparing you for the job market (naturally, this is balanced by its top-quality liberal arts education). If you want to study business, Wharton offers a full-fledged undergraduate business education, which is something other Ivies don’t have at all. If you’re looking for a balance between academics and socializing, Penn’s social life is also famously the best among the Ivies.