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University Scholars
This program promotes the ideal
of a community of scholars: a working relationship and
exchange of ideas among faculty and students. With a
commitment to independent thought and research, the
program allows students to explore the links among
questioning, research, and knowledge, and thus become
better prepared to delineate and solve problems.
University Scholars are students who want to learn
beyond the boundaries of formal coursework. The primary
aim of the program is to encourage independent
intellectual initiative, whether undertaken in
archives or with test tubes, stock market series or
microscopes. The University Scholars program is
overseen by the University Scholars Council, which is
composed of distinguished faculty members from all
academic fields. Students can apply to the University
Scholars program from the end of their freshman year
through the first semester of their junior year.
However, students who plan to be abroad junior year
MUST apply to the program no later than the second
semester of their sophomore year. Applicants must meet
with the University Scholars academic advisor at least
one month before the deadline for each cycle, to begin
to prepare for applying.
University Scholars are expected
to be significantly involved in research and planning
to continue in it, although not necessarily in the same
topic/discipline. They should also have specific ideas
of what they would like to study and be able to give
evidence of their commitment to research, e.g., having
talked with professors with whom they might work, or
having already begun some research on their own,
perhaps in the form of a paper or independent study.
These specific ideas of intellectual and academic plans
will be the backbone of any University Scholars
application essay. For more information see www.upenn.edu/curf/uscholar/index.html.
Fellowships
Penn students are eligible for
many fellowships, and have consistently obtained some
of the most competitive in the country. For
example, in the 1990s, eight Penn sophomores and
juniors
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received the prestigious Truman
Scholarship. In 2001, twenty-three Penn
undergraduates received national awards such as the Rhodes,
Marshall, Fulbright, Beinecke, Mellon, Gates, Rotary,
National Science Foundation, Luce and Soros Fellowships.
Many of these awards are for sophomores and juniors,
so students are encouraged to look at the directory and
visit CURF early in their academic careers. Several
presentations are offered during the year to provide
students with general fellowship information as well as
information on specific fellowships. Additional
information is available online at www.upenn.edu/curf/ fellowship.html.
STUDENT LIFE
The College House System
Living intersects with learning
at the University of Pennsylvania, where every corner
of the campus and every hour of the day are filled with
the activities of an extraordinary collegiate
community. A vital part of this lively picture is the
University’s innovative system of 11 College
Houses, where a majority of undergraduates live. The
College Houses stand at the center of the Penn
undergraduate experience, bringing together
undergraduates, faculty, staff and graduate students to
form shared communities within the larger context of
Penn’s vibrant campus.
Each College House offers its own
unique combination of architectural features,
specialized programming and distinctive staff, while
also providing advising and support for academic and
co-curricular activities. Students from all four
undergraduate Schools, in any year of their academic
careers, may choose the College House that best suits
their interests, confident that the same outstanding
services are available everywhere. In all Houses,
enormous strength is derived from the interaction of
students of different ages, varied experiences, and
diverse interests. Traditionally,Du Bois, Gregory
and Stouffer house an equal number of first-year and
upperclass students. Hamilton, Harnwell and
Harrison have largely upperclass populations.
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