Sunday, April 15, 2012

Why I chose Penn GSE!

Many of you are starting to make your graduate program decisions so I thought I'd tell you why I decided to enroll at Penn GSE around this time last year.

As I evaluated each program I was admitted to, I was looking for certain factors I found to be important: academics, quality of faculty, location, and social atmosphere. I wanted to attend an institution that had a solid program with a good selection of courses that I wanted to take, professors that were approachable and knowledgeable, a fun and convenient location, and a small cohort but large overall graduate population. The Counseling program at Penn GSE offered certain courses that initally drew my interest, including Sociocultural Foundations in Counseling, Career Counseling, and Adolescent Development (a PDF of course offerings is on the Penn GSE website).  The counseling staff was very approachable and supportive when I had questions to ask about the program. I think I spent almost one hour talking to a Penn GSE professor on her cell phone! She provided a personal touch that other program faculty didn't. Also, Philadelphia seemed like a great city that had a simple and convenient public transportation system, and it is affordable. The city also offered lots of things to see and do. Lastly, CMHS cohorts on average had 30-35 people which I believed to be a great size for community-building and developing relationships with faculty and staff. Surprisingly, Penn's graduate student population is slightly larger than it's undergraduate population (11,000 vs 10,000). That is quite rare among universities! There is a large graduate presence on campus and, therefore, a wide range of resources for the graduate population. Overall, I decided that Penn GSE seemed to be a great fit. Now, a year later, I can say that I am still happy with my decision to come here! Penn delivered.

As you begin to make your decision, I would highly suggest writing down what factors of graduate life are important to you. Don't hesitate to call program faculty to ask any program-related questions you have. Also, if you still have time to visit campuses, I would strongly urge you to do so because liking where you live makes the experience much more enjoyable! If you have any questions or concerns during your decision-making process, feel free to leave me a comment or send me a message!

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