Description
The University of Pennsylvania (often abbreviated simply as Penn or UPenn) is a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is one of nine colonial colleges and was chartered prior to the U.S. Declaration of Independence when Benjamin Franklin, the university's founder and first president, advocated for an educational institution that trained leaders in academia, commerce, and public service. Penn identifies as the fourth oldest institution of higher education in the United States, though this representation is challenged by other universities, as Franklin first convened the Board of Trustees in 1749, arguably making it the fifth oldest institution of higher education in the U.S.
The university has four undergraduate schools and 12 graduate and professional schools. Schools enrolling undergraduates include the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and Applied Science, the Wharton School, and the School of Nursing. Among its highly ranked graduate schools are its law school, whose first professor James Wilson participated in writing the first draft of the U.S. Constitution, its medical school, which was the first medical school established in North America, and Wharton, the nation's first collegiate business school. Penn's endowment is US$20.7 billion, making it the sixth-wealthiest private academic institution in the nation as of 2022. In 2020, the university was awarded $1.5 billion in research grants, the fourth-largest of any U.S. university.
The University of Pennsylvania's main campus is located in the University City neighborhood of West Philadelphia, and is centered around College Hall. Notable campus landmarks include Houston Hall, the first modern student union, and Franklin Field, the nation's first dual-level college football stadium and the nation's longest-standing NCAA Division I college football stadium in continuous operation. The university's athletics program, the Penn Quakers, fields varsity teams in 33 sports as a member of NCAA Division I's Ivy League conference.
Since its founding, Penn alumni, trustees, and faculty have included 8 signers of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, 7 signers of the Constitution, 3 Presidents of the United States, 3 U.S. Supreme Court justices, 32 U.S. senators, 163 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, 19 U.S. Cabinet Secretaries, 46 governors, 28 State Supreme Court justices, and 9 foreign heads of state. Alumni and faculty include 39 Nobel laureates, 4 Turing Award winners, and a Fields Medalist. Penn has graduated 32 Rhodes Scholars and 21 Marshall Scholars. As of 2022, Penn has the largest number of undergraduate alumni who are billionaires of all colleges and universities (17, counting only Penn's four undergraduate schools). At least (a) 43 different Penn alumni have earned 81 Olympic medals (26 gold), (b) 2 Penn alumni have been NASA astronauts, and 5 Penn alumni have been awarded the Medal of Honor.
