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I LOVED this weekend! I didn't attend every event, just picked and chose what sounded interesting, but I think I saw enough to confirm I will definitely be attending Penn in the fall. The students (0Ls and 1Ls) were wonderful...very impressive yet still friendly and down to earth. The class was interesting. Penn's campus is everything you'd imagine an Ivy League university to be...lots of beautiful old buildings and quaint little lanes filled with restaurants and pubs. And I think I fell in love with Philadelphia. As a history major, I was uber-impressed with all the old buildings and historical landmarks. The neighborhoods are so different and unique. They've got everything you could want without being overwhelming. There is also a ton to do. Yesterday I had a fascinating shopping experience at the Reading Terminal Market, and this morning I went to a Tibetan Buddhist Meditation Session. I'm still in town so tomorrow I'm going to the Cezanne exhibit at the Art Museum.

As for housing, I visited some buildings nearby campus and here are my thoughts:

Domus-INCREDIBLY luxurious and right next to the law school. Beautiful hardwood floors, marble countertops, concierge, a pool/gym, etc. etc. The downside, naturally, is the cost. About $2400/month for a 1BR without utilities.

Stratum-Kind of sketchy. The residents didn't seem happy or particularly friendly. The rooms/hallways seemed older and not very well-maintained. It was more reasonably priced at about $1500/month.

Sansom-On-campus grad housing. The building seemed ok, but not particularly easy on the eyes. The 1BR apartments seemed adequate, if a little on the small side. The residents I talked to also didn't have many nice things to say about living there. But the price is about right at $1300 including utilities.

Left Bank- GREAT building. Just a few blocks away from campus. I'd describe it as the best of the Domus without the inflated price. The loft apartments are lovely, with great views of downtown and Penn's campus. It also has a concierge and really nice gym. The 1BRs seemed to start around $1800.

Looking forward to meeting y'all at orientation!

Couldn't make it to ASW, but I'm going up to Philly for the preview day event on Saturday. Is it me, or were not many of you people who went ga-ga over the school? It just seems like, from reading these posts, most people thought it was fine but were somewhat underwhelmed.

Also, did anybody notice that Penn only includes about $866 a month in its loan budget for rent ($7,980 for 9 months in the 2008-09 budget)? That seems pathetic from what you guys are saying rent's like. I mean, that's not even enough for Sansom.

I thought it was a great weekend. I really had a great time and I LOVE philly!. It honestly made my decision much harder because i fell in love with the city and based on that, as well as the academic rigor and opportunities from Penn, I could see myself there for the next 3 years. I thought it was a good time and I would have a plethora of opportunities if I went there. Even the negatives I heard were relatively minor because I'm a pretty proactive person so anything that was not great I could take initiative and figure it out on my own. Overall, i def began to lean towards Penn after this past weekend. i visit my other choice this week so that will be a big determining factor. But I thought it was a great weekend...and we got tshirts and a bumper sticker saying penn law! yay free stuff!!! oh and the dean is awesome

Id Engager wrote:Couldn't make it to ASW, but I'm going up to Philly for the preview day event on Saturday. Is it me, or were not many of you people who went ga-ga over the school? It just seems like, from reading these posts, most people thought it was fine but were somewhat underwhelmed.

Also, did anybody notice that Penn only includes about $866 a month in its loan budget for rent ($7,980 for 9 months in the 2008-09 budget)? That seems pathetic from what you guys are saying rent's like. I mean, that's not even enough for Sansom.

Not in the running for Penn but just wanted to post about housing in Philly... I lived in Philly for a year (West Philly near Penn) and it's definitely possible to get a nice place for less than the above mentioned rents. If you want to live in the Left Bank or swanky on campus housing, you are going to spend quite a bit. Coming from more expensive cities $1,000-$2,000 month might not seem like too much, but it's actually pretty high for Philly. You can live very close to campus in a pretty nice place for $650-$900 a month depending on apt size and whatnot. Further away from campus but still very close (south to Baltimore and west to 48th) you can get bigger/nicer places for the same range.

Id Engager wrote:Couldn't make it to ASW, but I'm going up to Philly for the preview day event on Saturday. Is it me, or were not many of you people who went ga-ga over the school? It just seems like, from reading these posts, most people thought it was fine but were somewhat underwhelmed.

Also, did anybody notice that Penn only includes about $866 a month in its loan budget for rent ($7,980 for 9 months in the 2008-09 budget)? That seems pathetic from what you guys are saying rent's like. I mean, that's not even enough for Sansom.

http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd/financing.html

Says $12,090... If you can find someone to sublet for full rent during the summer then you've got over $1300 per month to work with

YoungTwerk wrote:

Id Engager wrote:Couldn't make it to ASW, but I'm going up to Philly for the preview day event on Saturday. Is it me, or were not many of you people who went ga-ga over the school? It just seems like, from reading these posts, most people thought it was fine but were somewhat underwhelmed.

Also, did anybody notice that Penn only includes about $866 a month in its loan budget for rent ($7,980 for 9 months in the 2008-09 budget)? That seems pathetic from what you guys are saying rent's like. I mean, that's not even enough for Sansom.

http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd/financing.html

Says $12,090... If you can find someone to sublet for full rent during the summer then you've got over $1300 per month to work with

That's what the website says, but it's not true. The budget they sent me for next year allotted only $8,280 for 9 months, or $920/mo. It's not too bad, but I definitely have to think people able to pay $1,500 or more per month have a little extra help.

dresq wrote:

YoungTwerk wrote:

Id Engager wrote:Couldn't make it to ASW, but I'm going up to Philly for the preview day event on Saturday. Is it me, or were not many of you people who went ga-ga over the school? It just seems like, from reading these posts, most people thought it was fine but were somewhat underwhelmed.

Also, did anybody notice that Penn only includes about $866 a month in its loan budget for rent ($7,980 for 9 months in the 2008-09 budget)? That seems pathetic from what you guys are saying rent's like. I mean, that's not even enough for Sansom.

http://www.law.upenn.edu/prospective/jd/financing.html

Says $12,090... If you can find someone to sublet for full rent during the summer then you've got over $1300 per month to work with

That's what the website says, but it's not true. The budget they sent me for next year allotted only $8,280 for 9 months, or $920/mo. It's not too bad, but I definitely have to think people able to pay $1,500 or more per month have a little extra help.

Again, and I cannot stress this enough, unless you absolutely require luxury living there is no reason to pay over $1,000/month in Philly. Even living by yourself there are much cheaper rents to be had. I haven't looked at vacancy rates for Philly but I would expect rents to even be down a little bit across the board.

I thought the weekend was great. All the incoming students I met were friendly and impressive. I will most likely be attending unless Columbia gives me some financial aid I can't refuse!

Hey, does anyone know how we go about being compensated for the weekend? Has anyone already been compensated? I think they said they're offering $150-250. I missed some of the scheduled events so I don't know if it was mentioned. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you.

Cashmere wrote:Hey, does anyone know how we go about being compensated for the weekend? Has anyone already been compensated? I think they said they're offering $150-250. I missed some of the scheduled events so I don't know if it was mentioned. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you.

email bayrex and he will send you the info

tcortez wrote:

Cashmere wrote:Hey, does anyone know how we go about being compensated for the weekend? Has anyone already been compensated? I think they said they're offering $150-250. I missed some of the scheduled events so I don't know if it was mentioned. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you.

email bayrex and he will send you the info

I was there, but I ditched about halfway through 'cuz I was tired of the boring panels. I found my friend from college and ate raw fish and pickled my liver instead. People were really nice, for the most part, though.

I can't believe how expensive Philly rents are. I thought it was supposed to be a cheap city, but I guess when there's only one "nice" part of town the rents are bound to be high in that area.

Pretty sure I met someone who's posting on this thread.

ScarletHammer88 wrote:Did anyone attend the cross disciplinary panel. I did not get the chance to and kind of regret it. I am interested in learning more about the 3 year program with Wharton.

That was pretty much all they discussed -- the relationship with Wharton. The particulars of the program weren't very surprising. I'm sure if you emailed the admissions office and asked them to put you in touch with someone who was completing the JD/MBA they'd be happy to oblige.

huckabees wrote:

tcortez wrote:

Cashmere wrote:Hey, does anyone know how we go about being compensated for the weekend? Has anyone already been compensated? I think they said they're offering $150-250. I missed some of the scheduled events so I don't know if it was mentioned. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you.

email bayrex and he will send you the info

Bayrex is one of the adcomm dudes. I stopped by the admissions office and picked up some forms to mail in, they can probably get them to you online or something.

lostmyname wrote:Pretty sure I met someone who's posting on this thread.

I am wondering now if I met any of you! *looks around*

Is the travel stipend for ASW supposed to be for people who could otherwise not afford to travel? Or is it for anyone who had to take an expensive flight?

journogirl wrote:Is the travel stipend for ASW supposed to be for people who could otherwise not afford to travel? Or is it for anyone who had to take an expensive flight?

more so for people who otherwise could not afford to travel. So that money would not be a reason why you couldn't come to visit.

I missed almost all of ASW. Is anyone else going to the events this Saturday?

I will be there.

ILikeIke wrote:I will be there.

+1

Wow, just found this. I had a great time at the Penn ASW and was more impressed with Philly than I had expected. I figured that there would be a lot of TLSers there, but I didn't reveal myself...

Has anyone received their travel reimbursement yet?

regatsrj wrote:Has anyone received their travel reimbursement yet?

I received it a couple days ago.