Penn's double vision

It is possible to get almost any dual degree imaginable from Penn.

Most conceivable pairings of Penn's undergraduate schools offer the chance for students to be credited by both, simply by fulfilling both sets of requirements.

Two of these programs, however, have enjoyed greater prestige than their peers.

In 1977, dual degree programs got a fresh look with the advent of the Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology, which formalized a connection between the Wharton School and the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Since then, the inauguration of the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business in 1994 has continued to move the interdisciplinary ball forward.

But these initiatives were never a major part of the University's mission, and the weight of Penn's administration was not necessarily at their root.

"Some of these programs resulted from students taking the initiative," said College Dean Dennis DeTurck, who added that "students continue to come up with new, interesting combinations" of areas of study.

In place of advancing a goal of the University, the programs have traditionally focused on student need, taking advantage of Penn's resources and providing an alternative for students who refuse to be tied to one school.

"If you're not sure if you want to go into engineering or business, these programs give you those options," Wharton Vice Dean Barbara Kahn said.

But now, with the Penn Compact -- President Amy Gutmann's three-pronged plan to improve the University -- putting emphasis on interdisciplinary study, dual degree programs are exemplary of the University's direction.

And a new initiative -- the Vagelos Program in Life Sciences and Management -- represents a current incarnation of that goal, playing on the old inter-school theme with variations intended to move the focus from study to real-world experiences in multiple fields.

Where this leaves the other two programs, however, is less clear. Professors and students are generally optimistic about the goals and future of the Fisher and Huntsman programs, but administrators can offer at best vague statements as to their role under the Penn Compact.

Because of the push toward greater interdisciplinary efforts, DeTurck said, some things about the dual degree programs will change -- though he declined to say exactly what.

"The exclusivity of the programs will continue because they are really high-level programs that require a combination of academic talent and an enormous amount of self-discipline," DeTurck said.

Continuing to offer students dual degree programs is "a no-brainer," he added. What form they may take, however, is anything but.

Huntsman program 'model' for interdisciplinary study

By Zoe Tillman

The Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business' Director of Academic Affairs and Advising Inge Herman believes that the program serves as the "perfect example" of how to structure an integrated program as Penn begins to think more and harder about interdisciplinary study.

For now, however, administrators seem to be leaving the program to its own devices, which means a focus on what students are looking for rather than on the University's goals.

Although the program has a set curriculum, students have recently gained a more focused approach to international affairs, and the Huntsman curriculum has adapted to what students want.

"It has changed in the sense that increasingly, students are interested international development and [we're] putting courses together that really focus on that topic," Herman said.

Huntsman senior and program student advisory board member Thomas Altmann said that talks are now under way about changes to Huntsman, but that these changes were in no way inspired by the Penn Compact.

"We're running our own initiative to change some of the curriculum. It's pretty much up to [Huntsman administrators] to do what they want with our recommendations, but they're usually pretty good about incorporating the student view on certain issues," Altmann said.

Penn Compact or no, the state of the program seems to suit students just fine.

For Huntsman freshman Shreyans Parekh, it was the unique pre-professional nature of the curriculum that inspired him to apply.

"I knew from high school that business and international studies was the career track that I wanted to follow," Parekh said. "I don't know of any other undergraduate programs that connect both fields together."

As Penn focuses on promoting interdisciplinary studies and global outreach, faculty of the Huntsman Program believe the program has greater relevance.

Roger Allen, one of Huntsman's two deans and a professor of Arabic, said that it is "the model of what other programs may wish to do."

The program "produces a very particular product," Allen added.

Vagelos provides a new take on an old idea

By Tommy Acchione

The Vagelos Program represents Penn's new take on interdisciplinary work, de-emphasizing shared coursework in favor of a common experience.

And as it is forming entirely under President Gutmann and the Penn Compact, it represents a different take on studying between fields.

The Program -- whose inaugural class of 25 will enter this fall -- offers students a single degree for their work across fields, a break with Penn's other interdisciplinary programs.

"The focus is on getting students to bring the two disciplines together, and you don't need two degrees to do that," said Andrew Coopersmith, the Vagelos Program administrator. Instead of "crowding [students'] schedules entirely with science and business, ... one of our goals especially is to have students talking to each other with different areas of expertise."

Even though students in the program emerge with one major, they must pursue both a Wharton concentration and a life science, like biology or chemistry, in the College -- taking a scaled down courseload in the major they do not receive a degree in. As a result, the academic experience will vary.

This is where one of the main pieces of the program -- the senior Capstone Experience -- unites the students.

In the program, groups of Vagelos seniors will spend their last year at Penn working to develop a new technology and then to write business plans to market it.

Coopersmith said that having a program where the students have the same goal and diverse class experiences and focuses will add to the success of the final project.

An additional feature of the program is that after both the sophomore and junior year, students will be required to participate in a business-geared internship.

Wharton professor Mark Pauly and Biology professor Philip Rea have taken the reins of the department as faculty advisors and professors. They say that this kind of interdisciplinary study is necessary for society.

"A part of this program is an attempt to provide young people with the tools to take science to the street level," Rea said. "I think America is supremely technologically advanced in society yet there isn't a widespread understanding in basic technology."

High school senior Sudha Megan is part of the program's inaugural class.

"The fact that it houses 25 students from around the world, you know you are in an environment with similar interests and at the same time diversity," she added.

Being a part of the first class not only means that "the program will be able to cater to our interests, but we'll also be able to build the program for the future classes," Megan said.

"Like many programs, the idea is to offer something that will attract to Penn the highest quality students. And if we do that it will be a benefit to [the Penn community," Pauly said.

Wharton meets high technology in M&T;

By Richard Strohmenger

A rigorous course structure, a growing population and a strong alumni community all help to make the Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology one of the most successful and prestigious programs at Penn.

Founded in 1977 by the eponymous Jerome Fisher, owner of the Nine West shoe company, the program combines classes from the Wharton School and the School of Engineering and Applied Science to create an interdisciplinary program that is designed so that students study the best courses the two schools offer.

"The program has been wildly effective and successful, and the outstanding 1,400 alumni are a gauge for that," Senior Fisher Program Fellow and Class of 1982 alumnus Rob Weber said.

"They always look back to interdisciplinary education as the starting point to their success," Weber said.

Fisher administrators have also recently created a summer program, the Management and Technology Summer Institute, designed to allow high school students to experience the same kind of curriculum.

Both the Fisher undergraduate program and summer institute provide "a lot of options by having two degrees. It offers a whole series of options that students can experience in their careers," Weber added.

He also added that, since its inception, the program has grown in size from about 20 to 25 students per class to around 50.

While the program has become more popular over the years, many students are leery to apply due to the immense amount of coursework and commitment the program requires.

For Engineering and Wharton junior Sharanya Srinivasan, a student in Jerome Fisher, the work "has been very rigorous, and I am taking seven courses this semester. It is pretty tough taking hard engineering classes along with upper-level management ones."

However, she believes that the program's benefits dramatically outweigh the costs.

"It is a unique concept, and the two fields complement each other very well," Srinivasan said.

Deeksha Hebbar, a Fisher senior, also believes in the effectiveness of the program.

"It has been awesome, very challenging and exciting, and the people in the program make all the work worth it," Hebbar said.

Hebbar believes that, since the class size is so small, a strong community bond is formed among students as well as with the active alumni community.

The program sponsors an annual alumni career dinner, and alumni frequently give guest lectures in classes.

"The most important part of the program is the alumni network, since it brings really bright, motivated people in the public and private sectors who are always willing to help," Hebbar said.

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