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Since you are coming from NY it shouldnât be a hassle to get to Quaker days but I agree with Metawampe it is not really helpful or very informative. Having attended several other Ivy and LAC admitted student events not much is gained from Quaker days and I would rank it far below the others I have attended for helpful info, student interaction and activities.
Itâs no Bulldog Days, thatâs for sure! Seriously, I wish Penn would step up its game for all this stuff, including Parents Weekend. They donât seem to put in the level of effort Iâve seen at so many other schools.
It must have changed! We went(RD but met lots of ED families ) last April to one of the Quaker Days: the band, a cappella groups, and a couple of dance groups performed in the palestra, there was tons of free food, there were professors and upperclassmen available to meet and greet for her dual degree but also hanging out in Engineering answering questions for all, there were 2 different talks we went to(President was one), then they had all the activity tables on locust plus a very detailed engineering tour in addition to the regular admitted day tour. It was a lot.
Parents weekend had an Engineering breakfast and then a deanâs talk and student panel for Q&A, the college had a research /poster session, there were way more parent talks than we had time to attend, and they had an arts concert/performance medley show in Irvine.
We thought it was fantastic and very comparable to what Duke does.
I also went last year and was very disappointed. Kid was still deciding between schools and this did not help. Compared to Bulldog days, Visitas or even Bowdoin it didnât even hold a candle. On the saturday Quaker day the CAS did not even have an event. Yes you got to eat out of a vendor stall at the palestra (where they ran out of food). I also agree about parents weekend. We went this year and wonât be going back.
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Theyâre notorious for running out of food. During move-in day for first-years in the summer of 2022, they promised a family picnic for President Magillâs welcome speech. They ran out of food so quickly, most families went away hungry (and angry).
Goodness, maybe I have low expectations. My only other point of reference is how it was done at the state flagship my eldest attended. For me, a good admitted students day includes schwag for my kiddo, a Q&A panel, maybe a performing arts showcase, and a catered lunch. We are that family who neither wants nor needs a jam-packed day of activities; we prefer free-range to over-scheduled.
And, by the time we got to admitted students day, we already knew a lot about the school. As long as people are friendly and willing to answer questions, Iâm good. If you expect a school to pull out all the stops to woo your child, then I can understand how QD may have been underwhelming.
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I agree with not needing a jam-packed day. The specific problem with Quaker Day programming is that itâs a pitch aimed at students who havenât committed. Our ED student realized we neednât have made special plans to travel for the occasion of Quaker Day itself. A revisit to the campus and Philly is generally a good use of time, however; as you suggested earlier, sample area restaurants, go to the Penn Museum (or the Barnes, or the Philadelphia Museum of Art), stroll campus, load up on merch at the bookstore, etc.
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