How does undergraduate academic advising compare at Brown and Penn?

Penn provides the more structured, proactive undergraduate advising experience, while Brown’s advising is designed to support a far more self-directed academic path. At Penn, students work within a specific undergraduate school, such as the College of Arts and Sciences, Engineering, Nursing, or Wharton, each with established curricular requirements and dedicated advising offices. Brown assigns advisors and offers substantial support, but its Open Curriculum means students themselves carry more responsibility for shaping a coherent plan.

At Penn, advising tends to include clearer checkpoints. Students commonly begin with a pre-major or school-based advisor, then add a departmental major advisor after declaring a major. Professional advisors are especially useful for navigating school requirements, double majors, minors, transfers between Penn schools, and course sequencing. Because many Penn programs have required courses, students often have a concrete reason to meet with advisors regularly, particularly before registration and major declaration.

Brown students have access to faculty advisors, advising deans, concentration advisors, and peer support, including Meiklejohn peer advisors for first-year students. Advisors can be quite accessible, especially when a student arrives with specific questions or wants help connecting interests across departments. However, without a university-wide core curriculum or distribution requirements, Brown does not impose the same built-in sequence of advising conversations. A student exploring broadly may need to take more initiative in scheduling meetings and asking whether their choices add up to a meaningful academic direction.

For choosing courses, Brown is especially appealing to someone comfortable experimenting across fields and building an individualized plan. Penn is more likely to provide a roadmap from the start, which can feel reassuring for a student who wants clearer guidance, regular administrative touchpoints, or a structured path toward a professional or preprofessional goal.