Hi everyone! I’m applying RD, and I’m a little confused about the Why Penn essay. The prompt is: “How will you explore your intellectual and academic interests at the University of Pennsylvania? Please answer this question given the specific undergraduate school to which you are applying.” Does this mean I should only address my chosen major/minor, classes, teachers, research, etc.? Or can I also talk about less academic things- clubs I want to join, fine arts, community service, campus culture? Thanks so much!
As long as they relate to your intellectual and academic interests, you can and should talk about them!
talk about anything, but focus more on the academic stuff, i wouldnt talk about campus culture
Of course you can talk about campus culture. After all, they’re building a community. They want kids who do more than study.
But, OP, since they ask about academic/intellectual and the school within the U, that’s where you start. That needs to be covered before you digress.
Thanks for the advice everyone! Do you think talking about career plans and how Penn’s academic opportunities prepare me to go into a certain field would work?
Yeah but don’t make it too academic heavy. talk about philly too bc that’s an important part of the school. talk about weird hobbies that have some sort of club/place at penn. this essay is definitely not just for academics. talking about the community (people and place) is super important and shows that you’re a real person and not someone who lives in the library
In general, tippy tops don’t want an emphasis on career plans. They’re reviewing you for the 4 years…
I wrote one short paragraph about a club I want to join while connecting it to a course I want to take. It was helpful for me to think about how the non-academic aspects synthesize with the academic ones when doubting what to include in the essay.