Fun Penn Traditions

Penn is a historic university, chartered even before the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. So in the span of this nearly 300 year history, many interesting traditions have emerged amongst student life! Here are some of my favorites:

Museum Night: During New Student Orientation (NSO), all first-years are invited to attend a gala at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (where Rocky was filmed!) and enjoy an evening socializing while surrounded by beautiful artwork. It was that moment I first realized the scale of Penn’s resources. Museum Night was a scene out of a movie, where I saw the most lavish gowns and literal towers of hors-d'oeuvre. Coming from a relatively rural community, it was a night I’ll never forget.

Spring Fling: Spring Fling is an annual festival for the students at the end of each Spring semester, usually beginning on the Friday of the second to last week of the semester and continuing until Saturday night. Dubbed the largest college party on the East Coast, Spring Fling is definitely one of the wildest times new students have in their first-year. Last year, Metro Boomin was invited to campus and I had a blast going to Penn Park with my friends, screaming the night away. If you’re into large parties and raves, then this is the right tradition for you!

HeyDey: This is a tradition available only to juniors, where third-year students gather on the High Rise Field for a picnic donning Penn-colored straw hats and canes, and march down Locust Walk to officially be declared as seniors by the President! This triumphant tradition is a major stepping stone to any Penn student, and something I am seriously looking forward to as a junior this year. The canes and corny hats might be a little off-putting, but I think that’s part of the charm.

This list is non-exhaustive, as Penn truly has hundreds of traditions for students of all interests! Feel free to plug any of these events into your application to Penn to showcase demonstrated interest. Good luck and have fun everyone!

- Seyoon C.