sorry for being so MIA! I was applying to grad school, and I can breathe a little bit now!
Hey, PennFresh! I just got accepted to Penn ED, and I am so excited. I just found your blog and it is so helpful (although it’s getting me a little too excited when I have to wait to long to come).
Anyways, I have a couple of kind of silly questions (if they’ve already been answered feel free not to answer, I’ll probably find them in the archives later).
Congratulations! You made the best choice- Penn is awesome.
1. What is the “style” at Penn for girls? I know there probably isn’t a typical student, but generally what groups of styles do you see around campus?
Visitors to Penn comment that everyone on campus dresses pretty well; however, that’s not entirely true. You can find every style on penn’s campus: pajamas, sweats, workout clothing, dresses, etc. Most of my friends dress pretty well, but that’s just personal preference. A lot of girls wear boots, jeans and sweaters in the winter, sundresses or shorts and tshirts in the warm months. Honestly, anything you are comfortable wearing will fit in here. There’s no dress code, and no expectations, so whatever you want goes!
2. Would you recommend living in a triple? Do you know the pros and cons of living in a triple vs. living in a double?
Pros: always having friends around.
Cons: Having to worry about one more person’s hookups kicking you out at night, tiptoeing around one more person in the morning when they want to sleep in, etc. Basically, living in a double is fun because you always have someone to hang with, but there isn’t really a time when you get to be by yourself. Each additional roommate adds another person who you have to live your life around, which sometimes can get tiring. The majority of people do doubles and get along just fine.
3. What kind of the specialized programs within the dorms have you heard about? I’m interested in the Mentors program, but I’m hesitant because I think it might be all girls, do you know what the boy/girl ratio is for some of these programs?
Actually, I don’t really know. The programs don’t have a strong presence in the Quad– very few actually do anything for their “program.” The groups are also interspersed with non-program kids in the quad, so even if you program is girl-heavy, you’ll have guys right next door. The only program that I do know tends to be overwhelmingly female is healthy living.
4. Are rain boots a good idea to bring, in other words, does it rain enough for rain boots to be a good investment vs. regular boots?
YES. PHILLY IS RAINY. Rain boots are a MUST. When it rains in Philadelphia, the last thing you will want is to walk around in sopping wet shoes all day. You will see rain boots everywhere if it even threatens to rain. I have gone through three pairs in my four years.
