University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine Admission
University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine Undergraduate Program
University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine Application

The Facts

The University of Pennsylvania is a rather large, private institution located in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and has a combined graduate and undergraduate population of over 30,000 students. The university's School of Medicine, however, is significantly smaller, and is home to about 700 graduate medical students. The average age of enrollment is around 24, and it is fairly rare for any of the students to enter the school directly from their undergraduate education. The school is perhaps best known for its world-class research facilities and programs, as well as for its emphasis on the biomedical sciences. Aside from the basic MD degree, the school offers joint degrees in the MD/MBA, the MD/MA, the MD/MS, the MD/MPH, and the MD/PhD in the areas of cell and molecular biology, neuroscience, chemical and structural biology, biophysics, health care systems, immunology, pharmacological sciences, psychology, bioengineering epidemiology, public policy and management, history and sociology of science, as well as philosophy.

Admission to the University of Pennsylvania's School of Medicine is extremely competitive among the many students who apply; last year, over 7,465 students applied for admission to the school, and approximately 400 of those students were accepted. Eventually however, only about 240 of the admitted students actually enrolled for the coming semester. The admitted students had average MCAT scores of about 10.8 in Biology, 10.7 in Physics, and 10.5 in Verbal, as well as an average undergraduate GPA of about a 3.7. Students are notified of their admissions status on a rolling basis, and there is currently no early application program in place.

The university's School of Medicine has about 1,400 faculty members, all of whom come from relatively diverse medical and academic backgrounds. The school also boasts a very manageable student to faculty ratio of about 1:1, and the small classes allow for plenty of discussion and interaction between students and their professors.

Graduates of the School of Medicine often go on to be accepted to some of the nation's most prestigious and competitive residency programs, and most frequently specialize in the areas of medicine, surgery specialties, general surgery, pediatrics, family practice, ob/gyn, orthopedics, radiology, emergency medicine, as well as psychiatry.

Clinical Programs

Students are required to complete extensive clinical training including 9 weeks of internal medicine, 3 weeks of family medicine, 6 weeks of ob/gyn, 6 weeks of pediatrics, 9 weeks of surgery and anesthesia, 3 weeks of emergency medicine, 6 weeks of psychiatry and substance abuse, 3 weeks of neurology, as well as 3 weeks of clinical specialties.

What's Good

"The administration does a terrific job of attending to the needs of individual students."

"The faculty here is second to none. They are very experienced and love what they do."

"The clinical training is essential in preparing you for your residency."

What's Bad

"Tuition is sky-high, and you never ever get enough financial aid to make a difference."

"There is never enough on campus graduate housing, and it can be difficult to find anything affordable in the area."

"Students can be pretty competitive, and it will get to you after awhile."

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