Last Thursday was Ivy Day, when Penn released its regular decision results, offering admission to the bright-eyed and eager future students whose tour groups on Locust Walk bring back memories of our own applications and eventual acceptances. The weeks spent crafting personal statements, carefully detailing our honors and awards, and lining up to secure the perfect letter of recommendation were all in the hopes that we would receive that confetti-filled email. But that process, rewarding as it was, pales in comparison to the application we really seem to care about: the transfer into Wharton.
On Apr. 1, the application to internally transfer to Wharton will open and hundreds of students who wrote about how perfect the College of Arts and Sciences was for them will suddenly realize their divine passion for business. Of course, every once in a while, a student will apply to the College, get in, and then genuinely have a change of heart about their future career, what they need to achieve it, or decide they want to work toward earning an innovative dual degree. That’s exactly who the Wharton internal transfer was designed for.
But, more often than not, the application portal is flooded with students applying for all the wrong reasons: students who only applied to the College to then transfer to Wharton, students applying for an uncoordinated dual degree program just to drop the College degree, or students applying for the name and not the actual resources of Wharton. These people not only take away from all that the College has to offer, but they take away opportunities from genuine and passionate applicants.
The College provides an interdisciplinary education for a reason — you’re supposed to explore programs, classes, and even academic minors in other schools. What’s so versatile about the College is that you can major in biochemistry or cinema studies while taking classes at Wharton, rushing business fraternities, and joining preprofessional clubs to get that additional business experience and perspective. The College isn’t a barrier preventing you from achieving your consulting dreams — it’s an education that encourages you to look at those goals from a different angle. In reality, you have access to Wharton classes, clubs, and programs, all while reaping the benefits of attending the College. So what it really comes down to is whether you applied to transfer to Wharton for the resources or the name?
Other than its access to other schools, the College itself is known around the world for its education, and tens of thousands of prospective students apply each year in desperate hopes that they could get the experience that many dismiss. What’s so ironic about students applying to the College just to apply to transfer to Wharton a semester later is that the College has the same acceptance rate as every other school. It’s a complete misconception that the College is easier to get into than Wharton — it’s not the easy way into Penn. People from every state and over 87 countries apply for the academics, resources, and opportunities provided by the College.
Similarly, the uncoordinated dual degree program at Penn offers another gateway into Wharton, one that is abused beyond its intended purpose. Students often opt to complete two separate degrees between schools instead of the straightforward transfer. However, there is nothing stopping students from dropping one degree (usually the College one) by not finishing the requirements, then graduating with just the Wharton degree. This undermines the innovative and dedicated purpose of a dual degree, and once again takes opportunities away from the genuine applicants.
It’s not a problem of wanting to be in Wharton. It’s not a problem of wanting to concentrate in finance or management. It’s not even a problem of wanting to go into consulting. It’s a problem of hundreds, if not thousands, of qualified and passionate College applicants getting rejected, so that a student whose main goal is to transfer to Wharton can take their spot. The College is its own institution with its own purpose, and that purpose is not to be a placeholder for those who want to sidestep into Wharton.
Why did you choose to apply to the College? More importantly, why did you choose to apply to Penn? Frankly, it would be ridiculous to pretend Wharton wasn’t a draw for all of us; its resources and reputation precede it. But there’s so much more to Penn that not only deserves recognition, but deserves to be experienced by passionate students.
Applying to the College in hopes of just transferring to Wharton within a year undermines the education Penn is meant to provide you. Nothing can undo what’s done — you can’t be unaccepted into the College. But you can begin to see the College for what it actually offers and not just a stepping stone to Wharton: a highly prestigious interdisciplinary education that has brought hundreds of thousands of dedicated students to success.
CHARLOTTE PULICA is a College first year studying communications and consumer Psychology from Enoch, Utah. Her email is cpulica1@sas.upenn.edu.
