<p>So I know there is a lot more than just stats that goes in to a transfer decision, but I am curious about whether or not I would be in the ballpark for a sophomore transfer to Wharton. Some stats:</p>
<p>College: Ivy
Major: Economics
High school GPA: 4.6/5
AP scores: APUSH 5, Calc AB 5, Stat 5, Psych 5, Physics B 4, Econ Macro 5, Econ Micro 5, Eng Lang 5
College GPA: 3.7-3.8
SAT: 2360 single sitting
Math II: 800
Attended LBW (summer program at Wharton) as a rising senior in HS
Assume strong to very strong recommendations, work experience, campus involvement, and essays</p>
<p>So is it worth a shot?</p>
<p>I’m in the same situation as an Econ major. I’m attending Chicago over UPenn. This was one of the factors:
I get the impression you need a ~3.8 in the College to be considered, and even then it’s relatively low success. I’d say probably 20-30 transfer spots a year.
I also got the impression that there is significant attitude and tension between the Econ majors and the Wharton kids, even with the course overlap.
Also, Wharton seems to have much better name recognition than Econ at Penn. I would consider Penn’s (undergrad) Econ program top 10, but still.</p>
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I don’t think that’s the case. Also, there really isn’t much overlap between Wharton courses and those of the typical Econ major. Of course, Econ majors are free to take some Wharton courses, just as anyone in the College is free to do. But the “significant attitude and tension between the Econ majors and the Wharton kids” is, quite frankly, a myth.</p>
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In the business world, Wharton has much better name recognition than Econ at just about any school. Wharton is a business program, albeit with a significant liberal arts component, whereas an Econ major is a much more theoretical liberal arts program. You seem to be conflating the two.</p>
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So does virtually every ranking of Economics departments (regarding its graduate program, of course, since there are no real rankings of undergraduate Econ programs).</p>
<p>This is for an external transfer</p>
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<p>Your stats are not entirely correct, but yes it’s very, very competitive. </p>
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<p>There is no course overlap whatsoever. Wharton even has a separate Intro to Economics course that non-Wharton students aren’t allowed to take. </p>
<p>As for the tension, I personally haven’t seen any but, fwiw, I have had several friends complain about it. </p>
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<p>There are no undergrad Econ rankings. Penn Econ produces great research but its teaching is very weak. I’ve sat in on intro Econ classes at Dartmouth and Duke and can tell you they were much smaller, more intimately taught, and generally better organized. Also, Duke Econ does better than Penn Econ in job placements, for instance.
For graduate work, however, Penn Econ is far superior. </p>
<p>And, yes, Wharton has unrivaled name recognition. As 45Percenter said. It definitely crushes UChicago in that regard as well.</p>
<p>IMHO, Penn and UChicago are pretty much equals when it comes to post-college opportunities. So, you wouldn’t have made a bad decision either way.</p>
<p>Please help! All comments on my chances as an external transfer are much appreciated.</p>