The Undergraduate Assembly wants to make it easier for students to get a dual degree.
The general body met Sunday night to discuss uncoordinated dual degree requirements as well as recommendations for the Penn Bookstore and the Penn Transit system.
Uncoordinated dual degrees are when students decide to complete the requirements for an additional degree in another school at Penn, but without the guidelines of a program like the Huntsman program. UA representative and College freshman Aymen Saleem presented on the topic of uncoordinated dual degrees, which require a higher number of courses for graduation than coordinated dual degrees.
Saleem is exploring the possibility of reducing these requirements. She admitted that only a small number of students would be affected by the project since “the University doesn’t encourage [dual degrees]. That’s why it’s so difficult to get in.”
Related: Alexey Komissarouk | The hidden pitfalls of a dual degree
UA president and College and Wharton senior Abe Sutton noted that Wharton in particular only accepts around 100 internal transfers per year, which include dual-degree applicants.
Members also raised concerns about the plausibility of restructuring dual-degree curricula. UA representative and Engineering freshman Margaret Li said that it would be difficult to decide which courses to exempt uncoordinated dual-degree students from since each of their programs of study is different.
UA Vice president and College junior Gabe Delaney then reported to the general body about the Bookstore Innovation Group. He said it has been successfully created and will soon begin acting as a student advisory board. Delaney added that the Graduate and Professional Student Association and different branches of undergraduate student government will send members to the group. He is interested in bringing in members from the Wharton Retail Club, among other organizations.
Delaney said that one idea the group might work toward is using the Bookstore as a forum to sell limited runs of successful products from senior design projects.
The UA is also working with Penn Transit to increase the use of its services. UA representative and College junior Danielle Golub said that shuttles will be in operation during Homecoming this weekend to bring students to Franklin Field.
More details on the service will be available later this week.
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