Category: Opinion

Congrats! Welcome to Penn! Before you step foot in a lecture hall or find your favorite study spot, you have to make your first major decision: where to live. The freshman dorm you choose sets the stage for your entire first year. It dictates your morning commute, your late-night food options, and the people you will inevitably bump into at 2 a.m. With the housing portal closing soon, here is an unfiltered breakdown of your options to help you make the right choice.

When the Class of ’26 graduates in a few days, there will be no more “Dean’s List” students at Penn. While it would be a point of pride if that was because the Class of ’26 were uniquely more intellectual  than anyone else, the truth is far sadder. In the spring of 2023, after decades of academic recognition, the University of Pennsylvania announced it would cease awarding the Dean’s List.

The next two weeks may determine the fate of the Islamic Republic of Iran. What began on February 28 as Operation Epic Fury, a coordinated US-Israeli strike campaign that killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the opening hours, has evolved into something far more complex and consequential than either a quick military victory or a prolonged standoff. Iran is not losing a war. It is losing a state.

This year, Penn quietly saw one of the highest volumes of “wellness concerns” ever filed. Advisors described inboxes overflowing with reports, not of mental health concerns or assault, but of political disagreements, tense group projects, awkward moments in club meetings, or offhand comments someone interpreted as invalidating.

The end of the school year is a few days away.

For many seniors, including myself, this moment prompts reflection: Have we made the most of our time at Penn? And more importantly, what does making the most of one’s time even mean?

I’ve had five advisors in four years. 

Not counting specialty advisors, two academic advisors through Wharton, two academic advisors through the Joseph Wharton Scholars program, and a minor advisor all listed neatly on Path@Penn. Every single one has been friendly and well-intentioned, but that is not the problem.

“Tariffs are the greatest thing ever invented” (Axios), then Presidential nominee Donald Trump proclaimed at a town hall. Oh no.

Physical gift-giving is valuable, and its decline serves as a lens for a broader critique of digital media, efficiency-obsessed thinking, and contemporary culture amongst the youth.

We should all be concerned that many at Penn seem either unwilling or unable to engage intellectually with ideas they oppose. If students at one of the nation’s most prestigious universities cannot respond to controversial arguments without resorting to threats or intimidation, it raises serious questions about the health of intellectual discourse not just at Penn, but across higher education.