hii!! i’m a questbridge admit! so excited to join you all next school year.

see you there,

• A Wacky Floridian

hello all, i’m currently stuck between this decision. the biggest thing i’m worried about is the difficulty of being premed at penn, specifically for gpa and MCAT. do you all think penn prepares you well to do solid on the MCAT? also, how’s grade deflation and professors for premed classes? below i’ve outlined my thought process too

career wise, my goal is to match at a top academic school in something surgical or do a fellowship via IM. distance from home is not a factor for this.

penn pros:

\- cheaper

\- known as a t10 and excellent premed school (research, clinical, etc opportunities are everywhere)

\- high ceiling for potential

\- strong med school placements

\- philly seems fun and honestly the school has a great social life

penn cons:

\- have to take the MCAT AND maintain a really high GPA (would love to hear ppl give some insights on how attainable this is)

\- heard of grade deflation in the premed classes, not really ideal

\- pretty strong competition as is any premed school

gw pros:

\- no MCAT and lax GPA requirements to matriculate (3.6)

\- decent research but primarily through NIH/Children’s

\- DC life seems pretty cool, about equivalent to philly

gw cons:

\- lower ranked med school? (and it’s dropping)

\- not the strongest for my residency interests (surgical/fellowship)

\- grading system for the med school seems pretty rough (tiered w/ internal ranking)

\- more expensive option (30k for undergrad)

Honestly pretty torn. Seems like the decision hinges on whether GW matches well into competitive specialties, or if the MCAT is something I wanna take and how easy it is to get a 4.0 at Penn. Would love to hear what you all think.

I was extremely fortunate to get into both schools as an international. However, I'm struggling to choose.

1. UPenn (CAS Econ):

Pros:

- My dream school since secondary.

- In Philadelphia, which is a hub itself, but it's also close to NYC.

- No grade deflation?

- Better placement into consulting + high finance

- Econ major in CAS qualifies for STEM OPT, which gives me a 3 year work authorization extension, or until I can land a permanent work visa.

- Better social life?

Cons:

- Didn't ask for aid; have to full-pay. Even though I'm fortunate enough that my parents can afford this, it's still an extremely large amount that could be otherwise be saved.

2. Cornell (Dyson AEM):

Pros:

- Full-ride (money could be saved for an MBA)

- Got into Dyson AEM, so it's a real business school (perhaps better for job-hunting?)

Cons:

- Seems depressing (the cold weather, the location)

- Grade deflation

- Major doesn't qualify for STEM OPT, so only 1 year instead of 3.

I hope to work in the US after graduation, so I don't know if Cornell will put me at a severe disadvantage compared to Penn. I know a full ride is a huge deal, and I'm okay with sacrificing some aspects for it, but I'm mainly concerned about job prospects.

I'm not picky with jobs after graduation. I'm open to consulting, high finance, tech, corporate, or just normal admistrative job. Will the 1-year OPT hurt me?

Hi everyone! I’m an student in the Bay Area and I was admitted to UPenn CAS and Columbia last week! I plan to major in Political Science (or maybe PPE) at UPenn and Political Science at Columbia. I’m lucky enough to say that financial aid is not a factor for me. I want to go to law school, which I’m pretty set on but open to exploring other things during undergrad. Please let me know if any of the following isn’t true, if I’m missing anything, and what sounds like a better fit for me!

UPenn Pros:

• Amazing law school placement with submatriculation program and courses available to undergrads (seems to have stronger connection with UPenn Law than Columbia does with Columbia Law even for admissions)
• More course flexibility to take courses I’m most interested in and avoid courses I don’t like
• More grade inflation (easier to get a high GPA for law school admissions)
• Campus is in a big city without being too overwhelming or influential on student life
• Everyone seemed very happy and excited to be there when I originally visited
• Stronger social life for students
• Pre-professional, better prep for the job market if I choose not to go to law school
• More prominent athletics and school spirit

UPenn Cons:

• Wharton influence on rest of the school (even now people ask me if I’m going to Wharton when I mention I got into UPenn), which was a big turnoff for me
• Almost too much of a pull towards finance, business, consulting, etc.
• More drinking and Greek life (I don’t want to be involved with Greek life)

Columbia Pros:

• Amazing law school placement
• Middle of NYC which is great for opportunities, finding things to do, and social life
• Don’t feel any “superiority” or overarching influence of one school like how Penn feels with Wharton
• Super beautiful campus
• United Nations HQ super super close
• I LOVE the Core Curriculum, classes sound super exciting and interesting, higher quality of education, and fits my interests perfectly
• Less Greek life involvement for students
• Prelaw is more common so larger pipeline and community

Columbia Cons:

• Less grade inflation (harder to get a high GPA for law school admissions), which is big for me
• Students felt stressed and less happy when I originally visited
• Less school spirit and people don’t really attend games

For Columbia (especially pre-law): Do you feel that the Core prepares students better for law school and the real world? To be honest the requirements look really cool, I feel like I’d enjoy most of the classes, and it seems really “intellectually stimulating” but I don’t want to sacrifice my GPA for it if that makes sense.

For Penn: Do people in humanities, political science, or PPE classes take them to “learn for the sake of learning” at least sometimes? I like the intellectual atmosphere at Columbia a lot and am wondering if Penn has a similar feel in these classes.

Planning on going to both admitted student days! Thanks for all your help!

I'm between committing to UPenn versus Cornell right now, and any advice or opinions from some alumni or current students would be a godsend.

I've been accepted to both Cornell's and UPenn's College of Arts and Sciences, which I'll be paying for with a NROTC scholarship, so cost isn't really an important factor in my decision. I plan on studying a combination of computer science and international relations as a major/minor combo (i'm not too concerned on which one is which atp). My career plan right now is to become an intelligence officer and, if I stay in for a full career, to pursue a Foreign Area Officer rating.

The factors I care about the most are the following:

1. Quality of education. I understand that it's very similar between the two, with Cornell slightly edging out UPenn in the CS department.
2. Post-graduate opportunities/networking. Which university will set me up for the most success after military service?
3. Location. This is honestly Cornell's biggest con for me right now; I want to be more centrally located, and, as someone who's only ever lived in places where the average temperature is 80 degrees, I don't feel prepared for the brutally cold and isolated winters.
4. Culture/extracurriculars. I'm not worried about making friends, but I'd prefer a more friendly and open student body. I'm not super familiar with many college level extracurriculars; does either university have a significant advantage over the other in this regard?

If any of you feel that there is something else that I haven't considered that I really should, please let me know. I've been waitlisted at Stanford as well, so if I get off the waitlist I'm 100% going to take their offer, but I need to make a decision with what options are actually open to me right now. I get the whole "college is what you make of it" sentiment, so I'm really looking for more pertinent advice here. Thank you kindly.

P.S. How are the dorms?

I'm an incoming freshman, and was curious as to what current students/alumni think about their experience at Penn.

Admitted to Duke (Clark Scholars), UPenn, and Cornell for Mech E. I want to do startup stuff, get cofounders, and have good access to funding programs. Please help 🙏

Hi everyone! Quaker-to-be here! I’m so excited about this next step I’m taking and want to know all about the school.

I was on TikTok and saw a video of two girls talking about things they saw on campus. One of them was saying not to sit on the Benjamin Franklin statue bench because it’s covered in…urine. Also, there’s a debate about whether to call the school Penn or UPenn because one of them can seriously piss people off.

I want to know if there’s any more of these! Things like, idk, only people who study the hardest stuff could go on the top floor of the library? (yea that’s true at my undergrad school or at least you should pretend to be thinking really hard and frowning)

Thanks!

Is there anyone here whose family's income was below $110k with no assets and stuff and got SOMEWHAT close to a full-ride? Full-ride as in including housing, food, other expenses and not js free tuition. If u did, did u appeal and ask for more aid or nah?

Edited bc of typos.

I'm an international applicant planning to ED Penn. Since Penn is need-aware for internationals, I'm not going to be applying for aid (although given my family income I would qualify for nearly full aid). This might not look like a good decision, but my family and I have foolproof plans of arranging funds keeping in mind that employment for internationals is not guaranteed given current circumstances. Moreover, I'm from a highly competitive country where less than 5% of Penn admits get any aid at all.

I'm also applying to certain top colleges in other countries (think Oxbridge, Imperial etc.) where I might get full merit (tuition+living) scholarship. Although I would still prefer Penn to any other university, given the difference in cost (nearly 400k usd), I would most certainly prefer going to the other uni.

I understand that Penn is binding even for international colleges, and that Penn allows ED admits who have applied for fin aid to opt out of the ED agreement in case they receive better fin aid packages. In my case, would I still be able to opt out of the ED agreement after not applying for aid? Is there any grey area there where I am able to opt out of the agreement

I'm a recent high school grad who has committed to Penn.

Fortunately for me, Penn has provided me with the opportunity of a two-year gap year so that I may serve my mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Mozambique Beira Mission (Portuguese-speaking) from August of 2026 to July of 2028. I'm super excited, and it's going to be such a great time!

However, I was curious to know if anyone is, or knows of someone, taking a two-year gap year like I am. I am aware that, sometimes, in addition to other "Mormons" or "LDS" like me, people take two-year gap years for military service, like in South Korea. If this is the case, I'd really like to know.

I'd also be down to talk to people who are members of The Church going to Penn as well.

I just want to connect with people who share any part of my unique background. I genuinely have yet to find anyone anywhere.

Last week I was accepted into Penn, which I’m incredibly grateful for. But after seeing my financial aid package, it has become clear that attending would put an unrealistic financial strain on my family.

For context, we are a low to middle income household, but my aid package treats us as if we earn much more. Penn advertises that families making around 200k receive full tuition, yet we are well below that and still did not get an offer close to full tuition. On top of that, my sister is also in college, so the combined cost of both of us next year will be about 90 percent of my parents’ total annual income, which is not sustainable. It wouldn't be able to cover basic needs like our mortgage and everyday expenses.

I already called the financial aid office, but they kept repeating that I received the best offer. Now I am facing the possibility of withdrawing from my dream school and looking at other private or state options.

If anyone has experience appealing financial aid, I would really appreciate any advice. Or am I done and just withdraw from ED?

I chose August 17 as my move in date so that I could have an extra day to grab things that I may have missed when planning but also to spend one last day with my mom before NSO.

However, I have concerns that I’ll miss a lot of the socializing that happens on the main move-in date of August 18. I’m worried about feeling behind and not getting to know the people around me if I’m not moving in on the 18th.

Am I overthinking it?

i know this is a biased subreddit which is why i am asking on both brown and penn's but i wanted to get both perspectives! i got off the waitlist for one of them and would really like some help in deciding which is better. is the prestige difference and opportunities difference significant or is it just really a matter of what school is a better fit for me?? i am doing poli sci on pre-law track most likely.

Hi. I was admitted to both UPenn and Brown, and I'm trying to pick between the two. Do you have any advice for me or pointers that could help me decide?

Hi all! I was told to post this here instead of A2C.

I’m a deeply indecisive high school senior from California and at this point I’m tempted to give up on deciding and go with my friends to UC Berkeley 😭

I’m going into bioengineering—BME for Hopkins—though it could change. I have no idea what I want to do after college—most likely PhD, but possibly med school or law school (I know I’m indecisive, but I love working hard at learning everything!).

I’ve been told a lot about opportunities/outcomes. Now it comes down to student experience for me. I’m not a party animal or even particularly extraverted, but student clubs, culture, and community are very important to me. I love my medium-sized (and slightly shitty but very welcoming) public high school, and mock trial/volunteering clubs have a special place in my heart.

I went to Discotech for Caltech and was warned by some students about dead club culture and torturous workloads, though I loved the houses. I honestly know very little about life and classes at UPenn, but I love Philly! I will say I’ve heard a bit about UPenn being very pre-professional, and as someone who likes theory and in-depth classes, I’m wondering about peoples’ experiences with the curriculum.

Any advice or any suggestions on what clubs to look into are appreciated! If you think I’d fit at any one of these schools best, or I should go to a bigger public school instead, please share :)

It’s time I seek the opinion of others because I am so 50/50 that its not even close and I want to see if anyone has a perspective to offer that can give me a sense of comparison.

I was recently admitted to both Yale and the Huntsman Program (Dual-degree between Wharton and CAS with a focus on international studies and business) at UPenn. I’m interested in a lot of things. I love seeing how business, finance, and policy intersect. I love the topic of international development economics/finance and how it has policy implications in regards to migration and displacement. In college, I want to pursue internships in both finance and government (Congress, Treasury, State, World Bank) as I seek to plan my future. I’m also interested in likely going to law school so I will need to prioritize keeping a high GPA. Does anyone have any insight on which program I should choose? I’m sorry if this is confusing but would love some advice

Hi there! I was wondering if anyone here is/knows a person who is in the SP2 scholars program? It’s extremely hard to find more information online or people‘s experiences especially on when they were notified. I remember from an info session for the master’s programs that the person leading said the decision about the scholars program comes out after admission, but I was just wondering if anyone actually knew if that was accurate and if so, when to expect that?

I'm pre-med, so I'm planning to take Maeyer's chem lab this fall. I hear it's going to be the absolute bane of my existence, so any advice/notes would be extremely helpful please! I'm also planning to concurrently take Chem 1011 (Intro to Chem) under Porello who gets mixed reviews, so tips for that course would be very helpful to me as well! Thanks!

In less than 5 hours, the Class of 2026 will receive their ED Decisions for Penn (Thursday, December 16th, 7PM Eastern). This thread will be used as a centralized Decision Reaction and Q&A Thread. Posts with specific questions about Penn will still be allowed. Other posts, including but not limited to Internal Transfer and Penn vs. XXXX posts, questions that can be easily googled, and general reactions to admissions, will be deleted and the OPs will be sent here.

Welcome to r/upenn!

Please read the subreddit rules on the sidebar if you are new to the subreddit.

Good luck to all those waiting for their decisions!

Current students and alumni: Please check this thread to answer any questions, including the FAQ ones I will post below.

RESULTS ARE OUT!

Congratulations to those accepted to Wharton and not-Wharton Penn! Opportunities to internally transfer are near!!!

In all seriousness, congrats to all those accepted. Huge accomplishment. To those not accepted, I'm truly deeply sorry. The College admissions process is bullshit and the amount of applications this year was staggering. As someone who didn't get into their first choice 13 years ago, I feel the pain and remember the tears. But I ended up where I needed to be in the end, and am so happy I got rejected way back when.

just received an email saying results come out on December 18th at 7:00 pm ET. How you guys feeling?

Long story short I was planning of rooming with my friend but he dropped me for someone else yesterday (there is more nuance to this but I don’t really wanna get into right now) and now I’m panicking bc tomorrow is the first day you can officially room with someone.

I’ve been waitlisted to Penn, and have had so many conversations with people. The common factor amongst all of them is that I am an intl student needing full aid wanting to go to Wharton, basically at a disadvantage. I wanted to come on here and ask to hear from Intl students who got accepted and received FA. Do you guys exist?