The University of Pennsylvania, or Penn, is one of the most famous universities in the world and a member of the vaunted Ivy League. It is also the only Ivy League college with a business school that has a full undergraduate program. Across the university there are over 10,500 undergraduate students, and more than 90 undergraduate majors across 4 schools. From the largest to the smallest, the undergraduate colleges are The College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and Applied Science, The Wharton School, and the School of Nursing.
Across all of Penn, there is an “ecosystem of innovation,” and, “if it’s cutting-edge,” Penn students have their hands in it. The college is also internationally-minded, with a global student body. 62% of the Class of 2027 identify as Black, Hispanic, Asian, or Native American, and 13% of that same class is made up of international students. The university is also first in the Ivy League for the number of students studying abroad. Every year, Penn supports more than 1,000 students in pursuing studies is over 50 countries.
Getting into Penn is hard — very hard. In recent years, they’ve been receiving just about 60,000 applications for under 2,500 spots. The acceptance rate is under 6%. It’s worth noting, though, that the acceptance rate for international students is half that at only 3%. Wherever they hail from, most accepted students (over 90%) come from the top 10% of their high school class, and have SAT scores close to perfect.
In this post, we’ll share the top 5 majors at Penn, by our estimation, across all four undergraduate colleges. We’ll go into detail on how we picked each major below, but think of these as a jumping off point. Let them spark your imagination to dig deeper and learn more about the future you could pursue at Penn!
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What do we mean by best major?
Picking the top five majors at Penn isn’t easy, and it isn’t simple. With dozens of majors across four colleges, there are so many to choose from! To pick, we looked for majors that are unique in form and depth, that have well-funded resources, and that have ample opportunities for students both during their time at Penn and post-graduation. Every program at Penn is amazing, but these five truly shine.
The Wharton B.S. in Economics
Wharton is one of the best business schools in the world, and one of the only top business schools to have an undergraduate program. The college brings together a business program and a liberal arts education, and all undergraduate students at Wharton pursue a Bachelor of Science in Economics. Students can then pick from over 18 concentrations, or can even design their own with the help of a professor. Concentrations are short, only four courses, so students can be agile, adding or changing a concentration as their interests develop. The concentrations include things like Business Analytics, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Health Care Management & Policy, and Real Estate. Students who concentrate in Legal Studies & Business Ethics also often go on to law school. One of the best parts of studying at Wharton as an undergraduate, though, is the community that comes with it. Wharton has an impressive alumni network and formidable recruitment program for students looking for a career out of college.
The B.S. in Nursing
Penn Nursing is a premier research institution and a unique experience for students who are interested in nursing and who want an exceptional education at one of the best schools in the world. The Penn BSN is ranked #1 in the world, and students benefit from being fully integrated into the undergraduate community while pursuing a course of study that is most often separate from. Students in the program experience a hands-on learning experience and exceptional mentorship and research opportunities. The nursing program at Penn is focused heavily on community health and cultural awareness, and students learn to care for patients as people. Global learning opportunities in Africa, Latin America, and across Asia and Europe. You can do a short-term program, or spend a semester at a partner institution. Students in the program are also encouraged, in their junior year, to consider taking courses towards a graduate program in the School of Nursing, or toward a graduate degree from Penn Law School or Perelman School of Medicine.
Bachelor of Science in Engineering
The Bachelor of Science in Engineering at Penn is the flagship undergraduate program at the School of Engineering and Applied Science. The program is aimed at students who want to work as engineers and in engineering after graduation, or who plan to study further in engineering. This is a professional engineering track, and the programs within the major emphasize that. There are more than 10 programs, which include Mechanical Engineering, Digital Media Design, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, and Artificial Intelligence. Classes across the program are smaller than most engineering programs, with most ranging from 10 to 85 students, and there are extensive research opportunities available. All students ultimately complete a Senior Design Project, and every year these projects compete head-to-head in a competition sponsored by the Penn Engineering Alumni Society, which gives out a prize for Technology & Innovation, a Social Impact Prize, a Leadership Prize, and a Judges’ Choice Award, with each receiving a $2,000 cash award. And students who are really into engineering but don’t want to be an engineer should look at the Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS), the other core undergraduate major within the college.
Health and Societies: Bioethics and Society, BA
The Health and Societies major with a focus in the on bioethics and society in the College of Arts and Sciences prepares students for futures in the worlds of health, medicine, technology, entrepreneurship, and innovation (https://catalog.upenn.edu/undergraduate/programs/health-societies-bioethics-society-ba/). The program is cross-disciplinary, with a foundation built on anthropology, history, and sociology. Students also take course in political science, business, law, and more. We love how the major talks about students who excel in it, “The Health and Societies graduate is a ‘multilingual’ scholar and citizen, fluent in the methods and perspectives of several social science disciplines--- theoretically informed but practically minded, with a global outlook and local experience.” Courses include things like, “Comparative Medicine,” “American Health Policy,” and classes about the history of technology in medicine.
Anthropology: Archaeology, BA
Just about every liberal arts college in America has an anthropology program, but just about every anthropology program in America is measured against the one at Penn — especially in archaeology. Due to generations of emphasis, investment, and focus, the Penn anthropology program has become the bar against which all other anthropology programs are measured. Students study the past, and the study of the past. They learn about cultures and society, but also the hard skills of field work like excavation methods and techniques. Students get to work with the Penn Museum in the Center for the Analysis of Archaeological Materials. Courses include “Food and Fire: Archaeology in the Laboratory” and “Human Origins, Evolution and Diversity,” and students study abroad around the world from Seville, Spain to Havana, Cuba. Students are also encouraged to take part in at least one internship, fellowship, or field school program, and are even highly suggested to have professional work experience as part of their collegiate experience.
Penn has something for everyone, but they shine most in the specifics. The majors we love most at Penn are those that go deep into a subject, that are intense and focused, and that encourage students to truly become experts in a niche.
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