2008 Woodie Awards
Video related to this article is available below.Issue date: 2/19/08 Section: News
Even in the liberal arts job pressure hits home
From Wharton to the College, Penn's pre-professional climate keeps students looking forward
Inna Lifshin
"I didn't realize people are applying for jobs so early. My friends at liberal-arts schools haven't begun to think about getting jobs and won't until March," she said.
Career Services Director Patricia Rose said she "would bet [her] house" that the number of Penn students getting job offers early senior year is indeed greater at Penn than at many other schools.
Of the members of the class of 2007 who went straight to work, 88 percent had accepted offers by graduation and 66 percent by the end of December. And workforce-bound College students fit in with the University-wide trend, with 77 percent receiving offers by the end of May and 43 percent by the end of fall semester.
Sophomores and juniors say they feel the same kind of pressure when it comes to the internship search.
"So many people I know are doing it," said College junior Cecilia Vogel. "It's just like you can't ignore Huntsman - it has a very dominating presence on campus."
College junior Amanda El-Dakhakhni said that recently she's seen "a lot of non-Wharton kids starting to panic."
"Seeing people walking around in suits and getting summer jobs in February makes you feel like you're behind for some reason," she said.
This Penn mindset manifests itself in many ways, she said, such as the prevalence of pre-professional extra-curricular groups, like the John Marshall Pre-law Society, of which she is a member.
But this isn't necessarily a bad thing.
For some College students, having three other undergraduate schools gives them a chance to supplement their liberal-arts studies with courses that look at the same material from a more practical angle.
"I think a lot of students who apply to the College have [such opportunities] at the back of their minds," Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Dennis DeTurck said. "Here's an Ivy League school where I can take classes at the business school without any kind of special permission."
Career Services Director Patricia Rose said she "would bet [her] house" that the number of Penn students getting job offers early senior year is indeed greater at Penn than at many other schools.
Of the members of the class of 2007 who went straight to work, 88 percent had accepted offers by graduation and 66 percent by the end of December. And workforce-bound College students fit in with the University-wide trend, with 77 percent receiving offers by the end of May and 43 percent by the end of fall semester.
Sophomores and juniors say they feel the same kind of pressure when it comes to the internship search.
"So many people I know are doing it," said College junior Cecilia Vogel. "It's just like you can't ignore Huntsman - it has a very dominating presence on campus."
College junior Amanda El-Dakhakhni said that recently she's seen "a lot of non-Wharton kids starting to panic."
"Seeing people walking around in suits and getting summer jobs in February makes you feel like you're behind for some reason," she said.
This Penn mindset manifests itself in many ways, she said, such as the prevalence of pre-professional extra-curricular groups, like the John Marshall Pre-law Society, of which she is a member.
But this isn't necessarily a bad thing.
For some College students, having three other undergraduate schools gives them a chance to supplement their liberal-arts studies with courses that look at the same material from a more practical angle.
"I think a lot of students who apply to the College have [such opportunities] at the back of their minds," Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Dennis DeTurck said. "Here's an Ivy League school where I can take classes at the business school without any kind of special permission."
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Anthony C Pants
posted 2/19/08 @ 4:16 PM EST
Unless Daddy is picking up your life tab in addition to your college, breaking into 6 figures within 2 years of getting out of undergraduate is a much more "firm base" than winning the perfect attendance ribbon at Kelly Writer's Sock Monkey night. (Continued…)
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