Finding Your Major through Intro Courses

Going into college I always thought I wanted to be a doctor. At a young age, my vascular surgeon grandfather would force me to sit down and study surgeries with him. Since then, my love for health care and medicine only grew.

But when I got to Penn, and took CHEM-101, all of that changed. I was struggling to keep up with the problem sets and understand the complex way chemicals interact with one another. I toughed it out in Chem but luckily, during my second semester at Penn I got exposure to a new major that I had never heard of: Health and Societies. My major advisor told me I should take an intro HSOC course and I truly fell in love. I was able to look at healthcare from an entirely new perspective, focusing on populations instead of individuals and making a larger impact on the world.

With 6 different concentrations, HSOC is so broad but you have the ability to focus on whatever you feel most passionate about. This experience taught me the importance of keeping an open mind. Just because you think you might know what you want to major in, doesn't mean you should close all other doors. It is also important to keep in touch with your advisor. They are here to help so use them as resources!

- Alexandra M.

So, What's Your Major?

“So, what’s your major?”. For many, this is just an ice-breaker—a go-to query to prevent awkward lulls in conversation—but for those of us who are undecided, it’s the dreaded question we constantly have to field at family dinners and introductions. All of freshman year I attempted to formulate an answer that didn’t make me sound like a flounderer with commitment issues:

“I’m not sure yet. Maybe anthropology?”

“Criminology looks cool, but I don't know” (fun fact: Penn is the only ivy to offer a crim major!)

I switched so many times that my roommates began asking what my “major of the week” was. They thought that was funny. Me? Not so much. The problem for most of us that fall under the undecided umbrella is not a lack of interests, but too many. This produced somewhat of a dilemma when course registration rolled around: I wanted to take everything! Politics of Food? Sign me up! Infectious Diseases? Seems topical. Sex with Shakespeare? Sure, why not? Without a major to guide my choices, I didn’t feel pressure to pursue only one path. I dipped my toes in just about everything, satiating my curiosity while allowing myself to give each subject a fair shake.

While psychology turned out to be “the one”, I don’t regret any of the courses I've taken. Each one refined different skills and offered opportunities to connect with a new set of professors and students—that, my friends, is the beauty of a liberal arts education. *Eyeroll* I know, but the College is the perfect place to be undecided (even if you have to field the dreaded question until you finally figure it out).

- Julia P.

My First Superlab Experience

Signing up for a lab course where you have to design your own research project sounds intimidating, but the lab class I am taking this semester has been so much more fun and enriching than I could have ever expected. I had taken all kinds of lab classes before, particularly the intro biology, general chemistry, and organic chemistry labs. These classes were oftentimes fast paced and it was hard to build connections with other students besides your own lab partner. So when I signed up for BIOL 425 - Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics Superlab, I was expecting a very similar lab environment.

To my surprise, the lab environment of the class was extremely friendly and collaborative, facilitating great connections between me and my classmates. Although I work closely with my lab partner, we always share resources between tables and ask questions ranging anywhere from “What buffer are we using?” to “Can I look at the data you collected?” Something I particularly did not expect was how often we would actually use and analyze data from other groups in the class to make meaningful comparisons with.

Another thing the class does really well is normalizing running into problems when doing science: we come up with an idea for an experiment, try it, find out what doesn’t work, and try the experiment again with some changes. My lab group has run into our fair share of issues, whether it be accidentally putting antibodies in a negative control or having an antibody not bind to cells like we expect. However, there are never any “failures," and Dr. Wagner and Dr. Punt maintain a very positive environment while we problem solve and refine our experimental methods. They help guide the individual research projects each pair in the class is pursuing, and their insight and interest in our work is so inspiring.

Still to this day, my friends are always shocked to hear how excited I am to spend 6 hours in class (3 hours twice a week!), but it honestly is a class I would highly recommend to anyone interested in biology research!

- Viktoria B.

My Experience with the College Advisors

As I sit at the first lecture of my Intro to Data Science class I realize a wonderful thing about the College. Somehow, maybe by magic, my classes all compliment each other. However, this is no magic, rather a mix of great academic guidance.

In the College, you will have three different kinds of advisors throughout your academic career. One is the peer advisor; an upperclassman who helps you figure out where your classes are, advises you on which classes to take, as well as gives you survival tips (for example, what the best way to arrange your classes in PennInTouch is). The second is the Academic Advisor. These are advisors in the College Office who aid you in exploring possible majors. The third is the Major Advisor, which you get when you (surprise) choose a major. 

Fresh out of High School, I was completely baffled as to what I wanted to do in my time at the College. Luckily, I put time and effort into building a strong relationship with my Academic Advisor, so he could get to know me, my skills, and my potential career interests. Doing that allowed me to have a solid start to my career and academic path.

Now, looking back at my transcript, I remember the way each class complemented and balanced each other out. The knowledge I gained from my Modern Latin American History class prepared me for in-depth discussions on my U.S Intervention in Latin America class. My Intro to Psychology class facilitated my understanding of addiction, which we dove into at my Addiction: Understanding How We Get Hooked and How We Recover class. Now, as a junior, I realize that my Major Advisor’s advice on taking a language course, along with a data science course allows me to challenge myself and think in different ways.

I am thankful the College provided me with these awesome advisors, who have played a key role in my search for my passions and interests.

- Majo R.

Did I Choose Research or Did Research Choose Me?

In the fall semester of freshman year, I applied for and got my research opportunity. I would be

working in the Wenqin Luo lab in the Perelman Department of Neuroscience. Her lab focuses on

studying somatosensory behavior in mice, with a special interest in itch behavior. I was so

excited to get research experience so early, especially because at Penn, an unofficial

requirement set by Penn students is that you must get research experience by the summer

before sophomore year. Of course, I didn’t believe this because 1) research doesn’t define you,

2) it’s very hard to get research jobs because EVERYONE is trying to get one or researchers

aren’t hiring someone of lower qualifications, and 3) not everyone wants to do research. For me,

I was just happy I was getting experience so early, especially as a premed student.

Because of COVID, I wasn’t able to work in the lab until December 2020 and even that was

restricted. I was there maybe once a week or every two weeks because we were just beginning

the research process. The research stalled heavily after that because there were a few

difficulties with our original design (we needed to build a 3D camera arena to house and record

the mouse). Around March, I realized that I had nothing to do in the summer. Since high school,

I’ve always participated in some sort of academic summer program. With this in mind, I kind of

started freaking out because I knew that I needed to do something that would build my resume

and make my med school application stand out.

Then, I met my current close friend. She was a friend of a friend and I met her by chance in Hill.

We were talking about research and then she brought up autism research she was doing at

CHOP. I was so excited for her because autism research is something I’m extremely passionate

about and hope to do post-graduation. She then urged me to reach out to her linguistics

professor, who told her class about the research, and ask him if I could apply. I wasn’t too sure if

I would get it because I wasn’t his student but she sent me the email and I decided to try. Fast

forward, I’m now working at the CHOP Roberts Center for Pediatric Research doing autism

research. Soon after in May, my PI at Perelman offered me a full-time research job for the

summer to continue the mouse itch research and as a bonus, I would help a Ph.D. student with

his own research, making it a 2-in-1 opportunity.

I went from having half a research job to having three in the course of a couple months. It’s an

understatement to say my summer was extremely busy, commuting 1 hr and 15 min from

Northeast Philly to West Philly at 7 in the morning to work from 9-5 at both labs. It was very

challenging but very rewarding as well. I’m now participating in my fourth research project at

Annenberg and I couldn’t be more blessed and happy. So, what I would say to incoming

freshmen and current underclassmen is: you don’t need to be like me and be working in four

labs. If you’re lucky enough to get one, do extremely well in it and if you can’t get one freshman

year summer, don’t worry! You have so much time to get into research so just take your time

and enjoy college.

- Joyce D

Grit Lab

Taking a course with a world famous psychologist feels intimidating, until you actually start

learning from them. When I originally heard about Dr. Angela Duckworth’s inaugural version of

Grit Lab, I was intrigued. The syllabus claimed that this class would teach you about the basics

of grit and teach you how to apply it to your own life, and in turn, maybe some certainty about

what you want to do with your life after college. I wanted to learn more about what makes

people successful and content in their jobs. As a sophomore on the verge of declaring my major,

it felt like a good fit.

I applied and miraculously got in through a completely random lottery system. The course had

generated a lot of buzz before course selection had even opened up, demonstrating how badly

college students want assurance and certainty about their lives before they even happen. I felt

lucky, but a little bit uncomfortable—what was I going to do with this exclusive opportunity to

learn from the best of the best about grit and positive psychology as a student not majoring in

psychology?

As I felt with most new things, I walked in with intimidation. I didn’t know what to expect from

this class, or the larger program it was housed in, the brand new Stavros Niarchos Foundation

Paideia Program. We were quickly assigned seats (which, even for a grown woman, felt oddly

relieving!), given notebooks, stickers, pins, and a copy of Dr. Duckworth’s influential book, Grit:

The Power of Passion and Perseverance, which would serve as our textbook. The format would

be simple: weekly meetings consisting of three hours, which would be broken up into sections

and peppered with breaks (even as a person who is no longer considered a child, I can’t bring

myself to sit down for 3 hours straight!).

The first section would consist of a lecture from Dr. Duckworth, followed by a discussion with a

new person each week. We were told that each week, in order to facilitate conversations, we

must sit next to a different person each week. The discussion would sometimes be facilitated by

our teaching assistant—mine was a former NFL player turned Ph.D student (nuts, I know!). The

last section would consist of a Q&A with a Penn alum who Dr. Duckworth felt embodied

principles of grit, alums like Kathryn Minshew (CEO of The Muse), Sophie Beren (founder of

The Conversationalist), Brett Perlmutter (founder and CEO of Google Cuba), and Kayvon

Asemani, (Product Manager at Facebook).

I won’t spoil the class for you in the case that you come to Penn and decide to take this class

yourself, but even though it got interrupted by the COVID–19 pandemic and had to transition to

the virtual space, the wisdom still wasn’t lost. I found myself more motivated than ever to

identify my passions, work hard to follow through on goals derived from my passions, and ask

for lots of advice along the way.

- Karin H.

Cogno Interview Series: My Friend Michelle

One of my favorite things about Penn is being able to meet people from all walks of life. I met my friend Michelle at our annual Student Activities Council (SAC) fair, an event that exposes students to all the different clubs at Penn. We struck up a casual conversation at a club booth and became friends through that club. Like many students, her time at Penn has been unique, so I thought I would ask her a few questions.

1) What year are you and where are you from?

A: I am originally from Jackson, Tennessee and I am part of the Class of 2023.

2) Why did you choose Penn?

A: I chose Penn mainly because I fell in love with the city of Philly. Living in a city has enhanced my college experience, and I know I made the right choice. 

 3)  What are you studying?

 A: I am on the pre-med track majoring in medical sociology with a minor in neuroscience. 

 4) What is your favorite course that you have taken?

 A: My favorite course was a Poverty and Inequality freshman seminar with Regina Baker. I thought I wanted to be a neuroscience major, but taking this course made me realize my interest in sociology. I really want to learn more about the intersection of healthcare and inequality.

 5) What club do you enjoy the most?

 A: I really enjoy the new club of UNAIDS, which is a club I helped start with a girl that went to my high school. 

 6) What do you like to do in your free time?

 A: I don’t have much free time, but when I do, I love to exercise to work off stress, hang out with friends, listen to music, and bake.

 7) What advice do you have to give to incoming freshmen? 

A: The advice I would give a freshman would be that you need to learn how to be alone. There is a common feeling of “imposter syndrome” and “FOMO,”  especially among freshmen. However, a little bit of alone time can be good to recuperate and recharge. 

- Ami I.

Cogno Interview Series: My Friend and Roommate, Emilie

I met Emilie our first year through the Wharton Latino Undergraduate Association, which is basically a group for Latin American students (although you don't have to be in Wharton or be from Latin America to become a part of it!). Initially, we bonded because of the similarities in our cultures, as she is from Puerto Rico and I'm from Mexico, but our friendship now goes beyond that. I enjoy talking to her about classes because of how different the curriculum for our majors is even though we're both in the same school at Penn.
Q: What are you studying?
A: I'm studying Neuroscience, with minors in Chem; Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies; and Healthcare Management.
Q: Why did you pick your major?
A: I picked my major because it's really aligned with what I want to study. I'm pre med, so I thought neuroscience really brought in all the aspects of science, but also anatomy and physiology. I also think it's really interesting to learn about the brain, so that's why I picked it.
Q: What extracurriculars are you involved in?
A: I'm Marketing Director for Manana, which is basically a nonprofit that works for celebrating underprivileged kids' lives. I do research at the Center for Neurobiology and Behavior—I'm researching the genetics of psychiatric disease. I'm in the Penn Women's Biomedical Society in the membership committee, and I'm in Wharton Latino.
Q: What do you like about the College of Arts and Sciences?
A: You can take classes that are so different from each other. For example, my Neuroscience classes are super different from my Gender Studies classes. For me, I knew what I wanted to study when I got into Penn. But I know for a lot of people they like that they can explore different areas before choosing a major. I also like that, even though I already came in knowing that I wanted to be pre med, I could still take classes that were completely different to that.
Q: What piece of advice do you have for incoming first-years or prospective students?
A: I would say keep an open mind. I think that definitely, when I got to Penn, I kind of just stayed in the STEM mindset. And then as I got older, I realized that there's so many more cool classes in the College that aren't necessarily aligned with what I want to study. But that really interests me. So I would say definitely, every semester, look for at least one class that you find super interesting, even if it's not directly related to what you want to study because you could find out so many things about yourself through taking different classes.
Q: How did you meet people or make friends at Penn?
A: Yeah, so originally the first people from Penn that I met, I met them at an event for accepted students that they had back home in Puerto Rico. So those are the people I knew coming in, but really the majority of my friends I met through clubs, like Wharton Latino or through my classes, like the pre-meds, and things like that. I would say mainly clubs and classes.

- Fernanda B.

Cogno Interview Series: My Friend Alea

I met my friend Alea ('21) sophomore year when we both joined Penn's Medical Emergency Response Team (MERT) as EMT's. Through our shared shifts and meetings, we have grown extremely close. Alea has an interesting path of study which I thought would be great to highlight!

Q: What is your major/minors?

A: My major is Health and Societies (HSOC) with a concentration in Global Health. I am also minoring in Neuroscience and Chemistry.

Q: How did you pick your major?

A: I picked HSOC after taking HSOC 010 on a whim with the amazing Andi Johnson. I went on to take HSOC 150 with her and her courses inspired me to pursue a thesis in the dept. However, I’ve also always been intrigued by the sciences and ended up taking neuro classes out of pure interest, so I ended up deciding to minor in it.

Q: What extracurriculars are you involved in and why did you join them?

A: I am involved with Penn Symphony Orchestra, GlobeMed at Penn, and Penn MERT. These clubs, all of which I have been involved in since freshman/sophomore year, represent my three passions – music, global health, and emergency medicine. I’ve played the violin since elementary school, and PSO has been one of my strongest communities at Penn since the first week of my freshman year. Both MERT and GlobeMed have allowed me to engage with the Penn community from a service perspective and motivated me to eventually pursue an MD/MPH.

Q: What is your favorite thing about the College of Arts and Sciences?

A: I really appreciate how the College allows us to take pretty advanced classes outside of our major without having to complete multiple prerequisites beforehand. For example, I am currently enrolled in my first Near Eastern Language and Civilizations (NELC) seminar ever on Middle Eastern migration. It’s only a 15 person class and involves topics which I’m not super familiar with; however, it’s given me the opportunity to pursue classwork I’m deeply interested in, even if it’s outside my major (I wrote my HSOC thesis on healthcare for refugees in Philadelphia, many of whom migrated from MENA countries).

Q: What do you wish you had done differently or what advice do you have to incoming freshmen?

A: I wish I had given myself more of a chance to explore certain College gen ed classes to help me decide on a major rather than jumping straight into a certain curriculum. I declared HSOC pretty late in my sophomore year, and I wish I had discovered HSOC courses earlier so I could take more of them across my time at Penn.

-Kaitlyn B.

Sci-Fi Literature

I’m a second semester senior, but it doesn’t feel real. I still think I’m a freshman or sophomore with all the time left in the world, when in reality I am currently taking the last set of courses I will ever take at Penn. There are so many classes I wish I could still take, like Existential Despair (fitting), Positive Psychology, Nutrition in Nursing, anything in Wharton; however, I did manage to take one class this semester that I have had my eye on for a long time. 

Sci-fi literature taught by Dr. Kate Dorsch is a course in the Science, Technology and Society (STSC) department. I found the class on our course database simply by typing in the phrase “science” and scrolling through the results for something exciting to take my senior year. As a huge reader and a massive sci-fi fan, I knew this would be the perfect class for me. 

Each week, we read excerpts or watch clips from some of the greatest sci-fi works in history, starting from as far back as pieces from the Industrial revolution to modern movies such as Black Panther. Assigned novels for the course include some of my all time favorites like Orwell’s 1984. Dr. Dorsch explained that the syllabus changes each time she teaches the course, as she allows students to make suggestions for changes and new novels to include. 

My advice for current and future Penn students is to start taking classes you are passionate about earlier on during your time here. While I don’t think my experience was lacking (I thoroughly enjoyed all of the 400 level Biology classes I took for my masters and journalism courses for my minor), I definitely wish I had begun exploring all of the incredible departments here much sooner. 

- Kaitlyn B.

The Importance of the Staff and Faculty in the Penn Community

Something that will naturally occur during your college experience is building relationships with faculty and staff, which has probably been one of my favorite aspects of Penn. The staff and faculty have been able to get me through some of my toughest times in college. 

My go-to place on campus to get lunch (during a normal semester) is a salad place in Houston Hall called Ivy Leaf. Because I am a regular at  Ivy Leaf, I have been able to develop a relationship with the workers there- specifically a woman named Dawn. Dawn is like my mother away from home because every time I see her, she has a radiant smile on her face and greets me with her signature warm bear hug (obviously during pre-pandemic times). 

One of my fondest encounters with Dawn was back in February. It was one of those days where everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong- I was running a slight fever and had scheduled an appointment with Student Health Services later that day, I had performed poorly on a midterm, and on top of that, I was having some friendship drama. I stopped by Ivy Leaf to get lunch on the way to my work-study job, and naturally, I was greeted by Dawn and her warm smile. She automatically sensed something was wrong when I approached her and left her workstation to talk with me. She then fixed me a free bowl of soup and crackers and reassured me that everything was going to be alright. Her gesture of kindness and compassion meant the world to me, and it is an amazing reflection of the staff and faculty at Penn. Dawn is just one of the many great people in the Penn community that make this campus an amazing place. 

-  Ami I

Pre-Professional Greek Life

Before coming to college, I was unsure about a lot of things, but one thing I knew for certain: I would not rush Greek Life. I thought I would be too busy as a pre-med student, and did not want to go through the rush process. If I could tell my younger self now that I am now a proud sister in a sorority, she would be shocked. 

In addition to normal Greek Life, Penn has a wide variety of pre-professional sororities and fraternities, many of which are co-ed. There are several pre-law and pre-med co-ed fraternities, as well as a community service co-ed fraternity and an environmental co-ed fraternity. 

In the fall of my sophomore year, I rushed Alpha Omega Epsilon (AOE), a sorority for women in STEM. Since coming to campus, I had searched for a group of supportive girls who shared my same passion for science. I found this in AOE. 

AOE has been the best of both worlds for me. We do “typical” sorority events such as big-little week and formals, but we also do things such as professional development and mentoring with Penn grads in STEM fields. I have made incredible friendships and bonds with my sisters in AOE. For anyone looking for a great community of like minded, passionate individuals, pre-professional Greek life is an amazing option. 

- Kaitlyn B.

Small Bites, Enriching Experiences

As a freshman, I wanted to take a big bite out of Penn, enjoying everything it has to offer all at once. However, I quickly realized attempting to do this is undoubtedly a choking hazard. 

With a whopping 650 clubs at Penn, choosing which ones I wanted to join was overwhelming. So after thoughtful deliberation, I decided to take a smaller (and more manageable bite) and chose a couple of clubs that I really wanted to focus on.  

Back home, I run two organizations that contribute to my local community in Tampico, Mexico. I avidly searched for clubs on campus that allowed me to continue supporting my homeland and Latin America from Philadelphia. That’s when I found Wharton Latino! After an application process, I became part of their Philanthropy Committee, which heads the logistics for one of the club’s biggest fundraisers, the Rose Sale. 

In February of every year, you can hear Latin music blasting on speakers, and cheers of passionate members of the club selling roses on every major point on campus. This, for me, is what makes the Rose Sale so successful every year. Wharton Latino members are the best, and most energetic salesmen. That, plus their willingness to help a cause close to home, makes them the most persuasive and enthusiastic rose sellers. 

The roses are brought all the way for Colombia, and delivered around campus (on some occasions even to other cities)!  All the money raised is donated directly to the club’s designated annual charity. Last year, it was Proyecto Mayú, a charity in Venezuela providing citizens with medical aid.

Besides being able to help Latin America from afar, Rose Sale gave me fun memories. All those conversations we had as we cut thorns off roses, and all those insomnia cookies our committee heads fed us are definitely things I’ll cherish forever. 

At Penn, even clubs devoted to your old passions give you new skills, wonderful memories, and new friendships! 

- Maria R.

Asian/Pacific Islander Identity Exploration at Penn

Growing up, I did not have many opportunities to connect with my Japanese culture. When I came to Penn, I was excited to explore all it had to offer. One day, another incoming student reached out to me on social media and asked if I was interested in joining the Japan Student Association with them. We actually ended up doing this, and I was happy to find that the group welcomed students who did not necessarily speak Japanese.

Later on, a co-presenter in Cognos actually recommended that I apply for a program under the Pan-Asian American Community House (PAACH) called APALI (Asian Pacific Islander American Leadership Initiative). While I did not know much about the program at the time, it turned out to be an extremely impactful experience for me. APALI brings together students from all corners of the Asian American community at Penn to have open discussions about Asian American challenges and our cultural identities. Hearing students open up about their own experiences, struggles, and journeys changed my view on how beliefs form and develop. Additionally, APALI introduced me to a new group of students that I never would have met otherwise. Even years later, after many members of my cohort have graduated, we still keep in touch.

In an interest to continue exploring this identity, I took a course on Asian American Popular Culture. The course itself was integrated with outside activities, such as exploring the architecture of Chinatown or attending speaker events with visiting authors on campus. Throughout our discussions, we unpacked the historical context that predates our contemporary pop-culture climate. At the recommendation of students that I met through these experiences, the following year, I became involved as a mentor for the student group PEER, another PAACH organization that pairs upperclassmen with incoming Asian/Pacific Islander students at Penn. PEER, like APALI, introduced me to yet another community of people with diverse backgrounds.

This year, as a senior, I am now a facilitator for APALI. This journey has taught me so much that I cannot fit easily into words. The people I met have continued to shape me throughout my time at Penn, and I have no doubt that this impact will continue to resonate after I graduate. I think it is important to emphasize how much experiences lead to each other at Penn. Looking back, I never would have guessed that joining College Cognoscenti could lead to my involvement in multiple student organizations and new courses. 

At the end of the day, what makes Penn unique is the people. The world is vast, but I feel fortunate to have the opportunity to explore it with other students that both challenge and empower me to understand my place within it.

- Daniel K.

Discovering My Interests at Penn

Something that I love about Penn is that it encourages its students to explore different activities and pursue their interests outside of the classroom. Even though this may look different for each student, Penn definitely has something for everyone. For some it may be joining a business fraternity, for others joining a consulting club or a performing arts group on campus, for me it was joining 34th Street Magazine as a writer. 

I always knew I enjoyed writing. Growing up, I always told my parents I was going to write a book when I was older, and writing essays in high school was always one of my favorite projects. However, I never really had the opportunity to practice my writing skills outside of academic assignments. 

When I came to Penn, I discovered 34th Street Magazine, the student-run culture magazine on campus. It wasn’t until my first semester sophomore year that I decided to apply, I told myself it was “just to see what happens,” but I was met with one of the best experiences I have encountered. 

I joined Street as a beat writer for Ego, a section in which we write profiles on students and faculty members who are doing interesting things on and off campus. For this reason, I have the opportunity to interview people each week in order to write articles on their various extracurricular involvements. What I love about Ego is that it not only gives me the opportunity to improve my writing skills, but also the chance to meet interesting people at Penn each week. Since Penn is a relatively large school, meeting new people gives the opportunity to see the different communities that are alive on campus. Each week, I am introduced to facets of Penn that I don’t have the opportunity to interact with that often, which makes interviews so much more interesting. 

Thanks to 34th Street, I have the opportunity to learn skills that are extremely valuable and gain firsthand writing experience that I can’t gain by simply fulfilling assignments for class. More than anything, Street constantly exposes me to new, unique individuals, the people who undoubtedly make Penn my favorite place.

-Fernanda Brizuela

My Remote Classes

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Penn has officially transitioned to remote classes for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester. While this news is undoubtedly devastating for students, especially for seniors, I instead want to talk about how our online classes have been so far. 

Most Penn courses use a platform called Zoom, which is a video chatting software. Some larger lectures with multiple sections have started recording each class, and then students can take notes on their own time. These conditions are not ideal for learning, but I appreciate the efforts that my professors have taken to maintain as much normalcy as possible. 

In one of my classes, which consists of student presentations each week, one student will share his or her screen on Zoom, and present a powerpoint remotely. In another one of my small group biology seminars, students can “raise their hand” using a Zoom feature if they have a question or comment. Since both of these classes are small (approximately 15 students), our Zoom sessions work out very well. 

In my journalistic writing class, we had been working on long-form pieces following some sort of topic in Philadelphia. Instead, our professor has asked us to write something about how coronavirus is affecting each of us separately. 

The biggest change for me was independent study. All of the labs on campus are closed other than those doing coronavirus research, meaning that even if I wanted to conduct experiments I could not enter the building. Instead, the Biology Department provided us with several alternative options, such as writing a research grant or a review paper. Although I would much rather spend time in my lab, I will still gain a lot by reading literature in the field related to my projects. 

Ultimately, while online classes are not the ideal scenario, in the situation that we are living in today, it is important to practice social distancing in order to prevent a rapid spread of coronavirus. I sincerely appreciate all of the support and effort that my professors have put into our classes this semester. 

- Kaitlyn B.

Philadelphia and Beyond

While I love the excitement that comes with being on campus during the week, sometimes the best way to relax and unwind without taking a full-blown vacation is leaving University City and exploring Philadelphia. As a Philadelphia native, I still find myself discovering new things about my city even as I go to the same places I did as a child.

Whether it’s a stony walk on the cobblestoned streets of Old City or a rush down Walnut Street in Center City to make a dinner reservation, there’s something special about being able to leave University City and immediately be in a place that doesn’t carry all the weight and pressure that campus carries. Whatever you want to call it, stress, anxiety, and pressure exists on every college campus, but the ability to keep that isolated and cross a bridge into the peaceful green spaces or hustle and bustle of downtown Philadelphia to destress is really helpful.

One thing I’ve learned in my three full semesters at Penn is that when you put thousands of young people in the small area that is University City, things get to be intense. When you’re in college, sometimes it feels like the things going on in your life are the most pressing or important things ever. Leaving campus every now and then and taking in some different surroundings has proven itself to be one of the best ways to learn how to take things in proportion and appreciate the little things in life.

That being said, with a city that houses a booming food scene, amazing museums, and great urban greenspaces, it’s not hard to go on an excursion into a different area of Philadelphia. Some of my favorite things to do downtown is combining dinner with a movie, some shopping, or a museum visit. There are a bunch of great movie theaters in the area, but to take in indie or foreign films, the Ritz theaters downtown never fail to please. Closer to campus in Rittenhouse Square is the PFS Roxy theater, which also plays indie films as well as some more mainstream ones.

Both theaters are situated next to a bunch of different restaurants, from fast-casual Shake Shack and Poi Dog for burgers or poke, or something more upscale and celebratory like The Continental in Old City or The Dandelion for English pub fare. As for museums, my personal favorites are the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Franklin Institute, and the National Museum of American Jewish History, all of which are easily accessible by SEPTA or a longer walk.

With all of the possibilities to pass the time or distract from stress, there’s always new things to do, see, and eat in Philadelphia.

- Karin H.

Penn Perspectives

As a second semester senior, a lot of my extracurricular involvements over the past four years have inevitably died down. However, I’ve actually gotten involved with a new student-led group this semester called Penn Perspectives. Every Wednesday for an hour and a half, a lecture hall full of seniors meet and listen to a popular professor talk. The professor changes every week, and the choice of professor was solicited by seniors Penn Perspectives. The students who lead the group claim that the seniors in Penn Perspectives encompass all of the majors at Penn. This gives seniors a chance to learn about different disciplines from amazing professors and to foster curiosity beyond what we currently know. I really enjoy the experience every week because every professor has a very interesting story to tell about their life and career path, and they’re all really fun and genuine people.

Here are the professors who we have listened to so far:
-Professor Paul Rozin: He teaches a popular class at Penn called “Psychology of Food.” He’s been teaching at Penn since 1963 (!!).
-Professor Jeffrey Babin: He teaches Engineering Entrepreneurship in the School of Engineering, though he graduated from Penn with an undergraduate degree in Anthropology and later received his MBA at Penn. After undergrad, he actually was a drummer in a band and eventually ended up in entrepreneurship.
-Professor Fariha Khan: She teaches in the Asian-American Studies department, and her commentary was especially relevant since she talked to us a few days after the debacle with President Trump’s immigration ban. I learned a lot about Asian-American refugees in the Philadelphia community, which was super interesting.
-Professor David Eisenhower: He teaches a seminar about Political Communication in the Annenberg School of Communication. He takes a class to the Republican and Democratic conventions on election years and described his perspective on elections over the years to us. Oh, by the way, he’s the grandson of President Eisenhower and is married to President Nixon’s daughter.
-Professor Jamie-Lee Josselyn: She teaches Creative Writing and majored in English at Penn as an undergrad as well. In her lecture, she incorporated one of her essays, in which she wrote about an experience teaching in class.

Obviously, these little blurbs do not give these professors justice, and I am not accurately listing out all their lengthy credentials -- but regardless, I have loved listening to these incredible professors that I have heard great things about over the course of four years in a more informal setting. One of the best things about Penn is being an arms-length away from experts and scholars in all sorts of fields and taking advantage of that learning opportunity.

Hillel

To say I was overwhelmed with the possibilities for community when I came to Penn is an understatement. With hundreds of clubs, classes, sports teams, and more, it felt like there were endless options to build community. All I had to do was choose—which felt like a pretty hefty decision to make.

That being said, one community I knew I wanted to be a part of was Penn Hillel, which is one of two Jewish cultural and religious centers on campus. I grew up not being as immersed in the Jewish community as I wish I was. And while I celebrated the holidays with my parents and felt strongly connected to my Israeli roots, I wanted to meet people I could share that with.

When I arrived at Penn Hillel on the first day of New Student Orientation (NSO), I was immediately overwhelmed by all the options. Here I was thinking that Hillel was the community, little did I know there are dozens of communities within Hillel! With all of these communities, t took me a bit to find my place. Whether it was Israel clubs, fellowships, or religious communities, I hopped around for a bit before I found what was right for me.

The first community I joined was that of the Penn Israel Alliance, which is one of over a dozen clubs under the Penn Coalition for Israel. We organize large-scale events with big speakers to share their thoughts on anti-Semitism, anti-Zionism, the peace process, and more. Our first speaker was Israeli Ambassador to the U.S., Ron Dermer, who actually happened to be a Penn alum too! Hearing him speak on his time at Penn, his position as an ambassador, and see two hundred people in the room as a result of our work was an amazing feeling.

I continued to serve on the board, and over the course of the semester we brought in MK Tzipi Livni, one of the most famous women in Israeli politics to speak about her time as a Parliamentary representative, and journalists Bret Stephens and Peter Beinart to have a debate on Israel, anti-Zionism, and American Judaism. All three of these events left me feeling so proud and fired up to continue our work in bringing voices from all over the political spectrum to come and speak about Israel as a form of education and critical thinking for all.

Along with that, I took part in the Jewish Learning Fellowship during the spring semester. We met every week for an hour and a half, ending with dinner, and discussed modern topics like love, relationships, and family through a Jewish lens. We read the writings of different rabbis, discussed our personal experiences with practicing our Judaism, and connected as a group. It was a great way to meet people and strengthen my relationships with other members of the greater community.
You could now say that I’m a Hillel regular. I have the pleasure of knowing most of the staff from working there over the summer and now as a work-study student. I come to the Challah Bakes, study there from time to time, and help plan shabbat dinners and speaker events. Through all of the things I’m involved in at Hillel, I feel a little less lost than I did a year ago as a first-semester freshman. I’ve made great friends, been supported through times of difficulty, and cheered on by staff and students there. I’m proud to be a part of the greater Hillel community, to have connected with my Judaism on my own terms, and to have made lifelong connections.

- Karin H.

Submatriculation at Penn

One really unique aspect of the Penn curriculum is the ability to submatriculate. Essentially, this means to graduate in four years with both a Bachelor's degree and a Master's degree. Some students also choose to do this program over a five year period. Many different majors offer the ability to submatriculate, something that I decided to pursue in Biology. 

The Biology sub matriculation program involves several semesters of independent research projects, which count for course credit. Each week, I spend approximately ten to fifteen hours in the lab working with my mice and E. coli. Specifically, I am interested in the gut microbiome and how bacteria colonize in the intestine. Research has taught me how to think like a scientist, and how to adapt experiments based on the results. 

In addition to a heavy research curriculum, the program also requires several upper-level Biology seminars. These seminars have been some of the best classes that I have taken at Penn. Held in a small group setting of fifteen students, these classes operate on a graduate level curriculum. Each week, we read two research papers for homework, and come to class prepared to discuss the findings, methods, and anything else we don’t fully understand. The classes attract a nice mixture of graduate and undergraduate students, offering a unique blend of perspectives. 

Biology seminars often involve some sort of presentation aspect, which has strengthened my public speaking abilities in science. For example, in my Biol 480 seminar, or Advanced Cell Bio, my partner and I taught the class for the full ninety minutes, where we discussed a research paper on endocytosis. 

Some of these classes also involve a research paper on a unique topic of our choosing. In my Biol 404 seminar, or Immunobiology, each student chose a different field of immunobiology to pursue in the form of a review paper. 

Many of our departments at Penn offer not only submatriculation programs, but also these incredible opportunities for learning outside of simply large lecture classes. Ultimately, I have gained more from research and seminar classes than I ever expected. 

- Kaitlyn B.