nel09

How is everyone planning on making decisions with campus visit days cancelled and many universities moving courses online for the rest of the term? This definitely complicates the decision making process.

How is everyone planning on making decisions with campus visit days cancelled and many universities moving courses online for the rest of the term? This definitely complicates the decision making process.

Hi @renforall & @Fast_Talking_Dame i corresponded with the dept -- sounds like they're working to get things up online slowly but surely, so you may be able to see things there (my portal does not appear to have changed).  however, they did say that they have made offers to their five candidates and further that they are not taking any Americanists -- so if that applies to you too, alas!  best of luck with Penn & your other applications!

I can't say for sure about those waitlisted, but admits have all definitely been notified. Open house for admitted students will be in a few weeks.  

Penn's reputation is excellent. It's a smaller program than Harvard/Yale/Princeton, which can be good and bad, and it's reputation is, I would say, just below those schools'--in the same league as Chicago, Hopkins, Northwestern, Stanford. If you get in to HYP and there are people there you could like to work with, you may have a (very) slight advantage on the fellowship/job market than if you went to Penn, but Penn would still be an excellent choice; once you're at that level, what will really separate you from the pack is the quality of your work, your perceived promise, and one or two publications in top venues. 

Hi all, long time lurker. I'm lucky enough to have been accepted at Penn for my Phd. I was curious about current perceptions of the program and if anyone had an assessment on its ranking/placements at present. How does it stand next to HYP or is it generally thought of as a lower tier? What are some comparable programs to Penn at the moment? 
I realize this is not what it's all about, and there are several advisers at Penn I'd be delighted to work with. But, I understand the competitiveness of this world as well and want to make an intelligent decision that could ultimately put me in an upper tier of scholarship.
 
Thank you.