For the last two years, I have led tours of Penn Engineering, or as
some of us call it “Penngineering.” Maybe you’ve seen me drag nervous high
schoolers and their nervous parents through the Engineering Quad, or maybe
you’ve been on one of my tours! I love guiding tours and answering questions of
prospective students. I joined the Advancing Women in Engineering Board to help
improve Penn Engineering by giving advice (for what its worth) to younger
female students and plan useful and fun events for women in engineering. I’ve had tours with
two people and I’ve had tours with more than thirty people and I hear a lot of the same questions. I wanted to take the
chance to answer some of these frequently asked questions here!
What programs are offered here?
There are six
engineering departments: Bioengineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering,
Computer Science Engineering, Electrical and Systems Engineering, Material
Science Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. Within these different
departments, there are different majors that are either Bachelor of Science in
Engineering, BSE, or Bachelor of Applied Science, BAS, degrees. Bachelor of
Science in Engineering degrees have more required engineering/major specific
coursework and are accredited engineering programs while Bachelor of Applied
Science allow you to take a more flexible engineering schedule. For a complete
list check out: http://www.seas.upenn.edu/undergraduate/degrees/index.php
What’s M&T? How do I apply
for M&T?
M&T Program is
the Management and Technology Program. Students enrolled in this program take
coursework in Engineering and in Wharton (Penn’s undergraduate business
school). Some students get out in four years, others it takes longer, but you
take all the courses at the same time. For more information: http://www.upenn.edu/fisher/index.html
Can you manage pre-med and BSE
in Bioengineering?
As a Bioengineering
major, many of my friends are interested in pursuing a degree in medicine. While I have decided to wait to
apply to medical school, many of my senior friends have been admitted to medical
schools already! The bioengineering BAS and BSE degrees both overlap
significantly with pre-med coursework. You will just have to take organic
chemistry I, II, laboratory, and an extra English course.
I know the job market is tough
these days. Does anyone have jobs here?
Almost everyone I
know in Engineering has plans for after graduation, which is quite different
than my friends in the College of Arts and Sciences. Many people use On Campus
Recruiting and Career Services to find summer jobs and jobs for after graduation.
Penn Engineering puts on its own Career Fairs for engineering specific
positions. In addition to traditional industry engineering
jobs, there are plenty of opportunities such as graduate school, research,
consulting, and finance that you should look into once you’re here. Check out
this link to surveys about what people do after Penn: http://www.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/undergrad/reports.html
What’s the class size like?
It depends on what
year you are. Freshman year, class sizes are larger as you are laying the
groundwork for upper level engineering coursework with courses such as physics,
chemistry, and math. These courses are often shared with students in the
College of Arts and Sciences, although there are some engineering specific
sections. These courses can range from fifty to over one hundred students. Each
of these courses has a smaller recitation section of ten to fifteen students so
that individual questions can be answered. As classes become major specific,
the class size is smaller and you will get to know your professors very well.
Can you do anything else besides
work as an engineer?
I get this question all the time. Everyone I know does
something besides just homework. Time management is something that you will get
good at as an engineer, as engineers definitely have the most amount of work
and arguably the most numbers of class time per week out of the Wharton,
College of Arts and Sciences, and Nursing students. I was in an a cappella
group, on the AWE Board, a member of a community service organization, and in a
sorority during my four years here.
Do people do research as
undergrads and how do they get into that?
Tons of engineers
participate in research as undergraduates. You can do research in any
department at Penn whether its engineering or the medical school or the biology
department. CURF, the Center for
Undergraduate Research, has lists of research teams and laboratories at Penn as
well as contact information. I always encourage people to read through some of
the research blurbs and see what sparks your interest. Also, if the lab you are
interested in cannot pay you, then try an independent study! If you can
identify a topic and come up with a research proposal, you can try to count
your research as a course for a semester. Here’s the link to the CURF website
if you’re interested: http://www.upenn.edu/curf/
Is there an engineering dorm?
There is no
engineering specific dorm, but a lot of engineers choose to live at Hill
because it’s across the street from the Engineering Quad. There is also a
Science and Technology Wing (STWING) in Kings Court-English House if you are
interested in living around engineers and other science nerds like me. Check
out STWING here: http://www.stwing.upenn.edu/
How many hours of sleep do you
get?
As
a freshman, I think I got 2 hours of sleep total, but that was because I was so
excited to be here! There are certain semesters when life gets very busy and
you will only get about five-six hours a night on average. Early classes and
late nights of work can interrupt your sleep cycle. But now that I am a senior,
I am sleeping at least eight hours every night!
Penn Engineering has
been a wonderful, challenging environment for me. I hope this blog post has
answered a few of the questions you may have had about Penn Engineering. Hope
to see you on a tour soon!
More questions for Catherine? Contact her at awe@seas.upenn.edu!
No comments:
Post a Comment