You will find your personal and academic niche in the College at Penn, it's just a question of when, where and how! For highly motivated students, the College and the University offer unique joint and dual degree opportunities between the undergraduate schools, and the ability to submatriculate into many of the graduate programs in the School of Arts and Sciences as well as many of the professional schools at Penn. These are just a few of the programs that make the College a special place to study:
Joint, Dual And Accelerated Degree Programs
with the Wharton School:
with the School of Engineering and Applied Science:
with the School of Dental Medicine:
*Students may only apply as high school seniors.
Dual Degree Programs
Through a competitive application process, students may apply for dual degree standing between the College and one of the other three undergraduate schools at Penn. While it is feasible with careful planning to complete both degrees' requirements in four years, it is often the case that an extra semester or year is necessary.
Double Majors
Wholly within the College of Arts and Sciences, students may choose two majors. No special permission is required to double major within the school provided the normal major requirements are met.
Submatriculation
This option allows a student to apply to be considered as a graduate student while still an undergraduate in his/her junior year in the College. College students may submatriculate into Arts and Sciences graduate programs in order to earn the Bachelor's and Master's degree in four years. In addition to Graduate Arts and Sciences, students may apply to submatriculate into the Graduate School of Education, the School of Design, the School of Medicine (Ph.D. only), the School of Veterinary Medicine, the Law School, or the School of Social Policy and Practice. Submatriculating saves one year of study for most of these options.
Juris Doctorate and Bachelor of Arts
Students may apply to the Law School for admission to the J.D. degree program in the fall semester of their junior year. The B.A. degree will be awarded when the requirements of a standard College program are satisfied. Students must satisfy all the requirements for the J.D. during their fourth, fifth, and sixth years of study, resulting in one less year of study than is traditionally required for both degrees.
Medical School
Students may apply to submatriculate into the Ph.D. programs of the Penn School of Medicine. This option does not include the M.D. degree. Current Ph.D. programs in Penn Medicine include Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Cell and Molecular Biology, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Genomics and Computational Biology, Immunology, Neuroscience, Pharmacological Sciences, Biology and Bioengineering.
Dental School
Students have the option of applying to a seven-year bio-dental program. Typically, one can only apply to this program as a high school senior, but a few exceptions are made once students matriculate and show interest in the program. This saves one year of study, and about a dozen students are currently in the program.
Vagelos Scholars Program
The Roy and Diana Vagelos Scholars Program in the Molecular Life Sciences is entirely contained in the College of Arts and Sciences. Students begin as freshmen and major in two sciences or submatriculate for a Master of Science in the standard four years. Students in this program plan to pursue scientific research careers. Scholars are invited from the admitted pool of high school seniors at the beginning of April.
