Graduation reqs. rise for students in all four schools

Citing the need for Penn's graduates to remain competitive, University officials announced yesterday that the number of credits needed for a bachelor's degree in all undergraduate schools will increase by four. For students in the College of Arts and Sciences, graduation will now require anywhere from 36 to 40 credits depending on a student's major, and those in the Wharton School must now earn 41 credits for graduation. And while requirements vary depending on concentration, Engineering and Nursing students will need as many as 46 credits to graduate. Provost Robert Barchi said that the greater number of credits Penn students will soon boast on their transcripts will help give them an edge in an increasingly competitive job market. "We're seeing graduates from our peer institutions, like Harvard and Yale, increasingly be preferred by the nation's top employers when compared to their Penn counterparts," Barchi said. "Dr. Rodin and I are hoping that by raising graduation standards, students will leave the University with an even greater breadth and depth of knowledge than any of the other Ivies can offer." Barchi said that a committee composed of students, faculty and administrators had been deliberating the matter in private for several months now, and ultimately decided that the four-credit increase would best allow students to take advantage of Penn's course offerings. "The committee and myself came to the conclusion that while there are certainly immeasurable academic and professional resources here at the University, many students were not taking advantage of these," Barchi explained. "The new policy will unquestionably force students to embrace the hundreds of academic options open to them." While the new policy will not apply to current seniors, it will affect current juniors, leaving hundreds wondering how they will scramble to fulfill the graduation requirements in time. "I'm planning on graduating in a year, and I only have 24 credits," College junior Anna Roberts said. "There's no way I can get the extra four in the next year. It means I'd have to take six classes both semesters of my senior year." And some said the increased credit requirements were simply the University's attempt to force more students to stay longer than four years, demanding more tuition. "Few students, especially those in Engineering and Wharton, are going to be able to fill these new requirements in a four-year period," said College junior Lindsey Mathews, the chairwoman of the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education. "With the recent tuition increase, you can't help but wonder if Penn is trying to squander even more of its undergraduates' money," Mathews added. Mathews said that she sat on the committee to represent undergraduates' wishes and remained opposed to the increase, but that her advice was ignored by administrators, as is usually the case. College Dean Richard Beeman said that while the increase may represent a burden for many students, the eventual benefits will far outweigh the costs. "It comes down to making our graduates better prepared for the real world," he explained. "The more classes a student takes at Penn, the greater the base of knowledge they leave the University with. It's to everyone's advantage, really." However, Faculty Senate Chairman Larry Gross said that requiring additional credits to graduate would drive up class size and ultimately demand more from professors. "With students taking five classes per semester on a more frequent basis, class size and course offerings are bound to increase," he said. University President Judith Rodin said that despite the potential increase in class size, Penn had not plans to recruit more professors. "I'm just not sure our professors can take this," Gross said in response. "Our professors are overworked and overburdened as it is. I'm just concerned that this is going to cut into our teaching and research time." Gross also said that faculty members are hesitant to accept more students into their classes until the University repairs significant problems with the floors of several classrooms.