School of Engineering and Applied Science
Follow a clear step-by-step framework to write essays that highlight your academic interests and fit with the university.
School of Engineering and Applied Science
prepares its students to become leaders in technology by combining a strong foundation in the natural sciences and mathematics with depth of study in focused disciplinary majors. Please share how you plan to pursue your engineering interests at Penn, particularly within the intended major you selected. (150-200 words)
Step 1: Pick one clear engineering problem thread
Start with the kind of problems you want to work on, not the name of the major.
Examples:
- reliable ML systems in high-stakes settings
- medical devices and diagnostics under constraints
- robotics for human assistance
- energy storage and grid resilience
- secure systems and privacy
- infrastructure resilience and climate adaptation
Step 2: Connect that thread to your intended major’s toolkit
One sentence explaining why your chosen major is the right toolset:
“I chose ___ because it’s the best lens for ___, especially through ___ (methods: systems, controls, materials, computation, design, modeling).”
Step 3:Give one proof point from past experience
One compact line showing you’ve already acted:
- project you built and iterated
- research exposure
- internship/work/volunteer problem you tried to solve
- a failure that taught you something technical
Step 4: Build a Penn pursuit plan using “coursework + making”
You need 2–3 actions that show you’ll learn by doing:
- specific kinds of classes you’d prioritize (foundations + depth: circuits, mechanics, data structures, thermodynamics, signals, controls, materials, etc. depending on major)
- research or lab involvement as an undergrad
- design/build culture (project teams, makerspaces, competitions, applied projects)
Frame each as: “I want to learn/do X so I can build Y.”
Step 5: Add one line about contribution
Penn wants leaders in tech, which usually means you can collaborate: document, test, mentor, translate between disciplines, keep teams honest about constraints.
Step 6: A clean 150–200 word structure
35–50 words: interest thread + why it matters to you
80–110 words: why major + Penn plan (2–3 concrete actions)
25–40 words: contribution + what you hope to be capable of by graduation
Step 7: Avoid
- generic “innovation” language
- listing labs/teams with no action
- naming multiple majors
- career-only reasoning as your main motivation
