Philadelphia was amazing. I fell in love with the city, with Penn, with the nursing program, and with the architecture. I knew that it would be amazing, but I didn't realize how just how much I would love it! I had an incredible experience and I'm so excited to hear back.
Me playing around with the panorama function on my iPhone while I was waiting at the gate during my connecting flight in Atlanta... hehe
I was lucky enough to not have to deal with any delays! My flights there and back were smooth as well. Once I got to Philadelphia, I checked into my hotel. It was SO nice and was in the middle of everything! I dropped my luggage off, and went off to find the train so that I could explore Penn and its beautiful campus. I was anxious to get to my destination, as my friend Sara from school, who also was selected for an interview, was waiting for me there. And of course, I was excited to explore!
Finding the train was an adventure, but I did it! SEPTA employees aren't necessarily the friendliest, but I managed to find someone who would direct me towards the right train line (turns out that I needed the blue line), and I was on my way!
Once I got off of the train, I walked in the wrong direction and ended up on Drexel's campus! I quickly realized that I needed to go the other way, thankfully, so I didn't get too far from where I needed to be. I walked quickly, and started to fall in love with Penn's beautiful campus.
Pictures of Perelman School of Medicine, and HUP (Hospital at the University of Pennsylvania)
I eventually made my way to CHOP (Children's Hospital of Pennsylvania), where Sara was waiting for me. As hopeful pediatric acute/critical care nurse practitioners, we couldn't help but wander around the hospital in awe of its beauty... it was unlike anything we had ever seen before! It was like Disney, but in the form of a children's hospital!
Pictures of the inside of CHOP
After wandering around CHOP, we walked around the rest of the Penn campus. It was so beautiful! We took pictures in front of College Hall, which is an important building with regards to admissions. We also took a picture with a Benjamin Franklin statue! Pretty cool, if you ask me ;)
After doing some more sightseeing around the Penn campus and its surrounding areas, we decided to eat lunch! It was almost 4 PM, and we hadn't eaten lunch yet, so we were starving! We found a cool cafe called Caprigio. It sold sandwiches, coffee, tea, hot chocolates, and REALLY cool gelato! It had some interesting flavors, like butternut squash. It was unlike anything I had ever seen in the small southern towns I had lived in. So I got a sandwich, and eggnog flavored gelato :) Sara and I sat and ate our food, talked about life, and did some people watching (there was a gym next door to the cafe, so it was the perfect opportunity for people watching).
After we ate, we decided to walk around some more. Sara wanted to go into the Hillel and ask some questions, so I went in with her. The lady we spoke to was so nice, and even extended an invitation to me to come in whenever I wanted! After this, we explored more of campus. It was starting to get dark out, even though it wasn't even 5 yet, and it was getting pretty cool out!
Our walk back through campus through Locust Walk
(the main drag of campus)
Sara and I decided at around 5:30 to go towards the medical part of campus so we could find the nursing building. We ended up taking a break and sitting and charging our phones. Sara was also staying with a friend (Daphna) who was currently in the nursing program, so it was convenient so she could wait for her to finish an exam! When Daphna was done with her exam, she came out to meet Sara and introduced herself to me. She invited me to go to dinner with them, which I was so excited about. Her close friend from the program, Priscila, came with us to dinner as well! I was ecstatic to get the chance to pick some current students brains. We went out for chinese food, and talked a lot about what the interview day would be like, and what their lives were like in the program (CRAZY!). They then walked me back to my hotel, and I took a shower, laid down, watched some Grey's Anatomy, and went to bed early.
Thank goodness I went to bed early, because next day started at 6:15 AM! I woke up, got dressed, did my hair and makeup, and checked out of my hotel. I was out of the hotel by 7:15. I was supposed to meet Sara and Daphna a few blocks away at 8:15 so that we could catch a cab to the nursing school together, but I wanted to leave early so I could grab coffee, breakfast, and allow myself plenty of time in case if I got lost. I'm glad that I allowed myself some time, because I definitely got a bit confused on my way there, but not lost, thankfully! That wouldn't have been fun, especially because I had all of my luggage with me!
Philly was beautiful so early in the morning.
^^^ That's Rittenhouse Square! It's so pretty at night, especially because it was Christmas time... the park's trees were all lit up. I loved it.
Daphna and Sara met me right on that very corner in the picture above, and we took a cab to school. It was drizzling when we got to campus, which made me nervous because I was wearing my hair straight. I was very early, because we got there around 8:30, and I didn't interview until 10:30, but I didn't mind. I was just excited to be there! I figured that I'd take the extra time to read over my resume and personal statement, and help myself "get in the zone". I also socialized, and met a lot of awesome people! It was so much fun to meet so many likeminded people with common goals. I felt that Penn did a really good job of screening applicants, and putting together a group of people who would mesh well. It was a lot of fun!
My interview came around, and it went SO well! The interviewer was so nice, and we really clicked. She seemed genuinely interested in my resume and my related experience, so I was appreciative of that. After the interview, we had a tour of the simulation labs which were outstanding. They have an entire floor devoted to simulation labs, and have state of the art facilities and simulation models. They truly showed us why they were the number 1 nursing school!
After the simulation lab tour, we went to lunch. This was a really cool part of the day, because they sat us with current students! I asked my student SO many questions... oops! She was incredibly nice though, and was really informative. She answered my many questions about housing, how intense the program was, loans, and more. I'm so glad we had that opportunity! I also learned about living with mice... hearing about that made me a little nervous, but I'm glad I got to learn about it!
After lunch, it was time for an information session. We received some pretty exciting information - they have a 50% interview rate for applicants, and then you have a 50% chance of acceptance after the interview, so about an overall 25% acceptance rate. We also found out about minoring, study abroad/outreach trips, and financial aid! We were also told not to bring a car to Philly due to the expense. Then, it was 2:30 and it was time to go on the tour of campus. It was a short, quick tour, but it was nice to hear about the buildings. And of course, I fell in love with the campus all over again.
I brought my luggage with me on the tour, and they pointed out the train station for those of us who had to jump on the train to get to the airport. A few of us went together, and we talked some more about how well the day had went, and how much we wanted to get into the program! The train ran a little behind, but we didn't mind! I had a few hours til my flight departed anyways. When we got on the train, it only took about 10 minutes to get to the airport.
Waiting in line at security was a completely different story. The lines were LONG - I'm guessing that's because it was a Friday night, and people were leaving to go away for the weekend. After going through security, I sat down, ate dinner, and called my mom to update her on my trip! My flights both went well, and I made it to the Orlando Airport by 12:30 AM and was in bed by 2:30 AM!
I had an awesome trip, and I am absolutely in love with Penn... but even if I don't get in, at least I got invited for an interview and had the opportunity to see their gorgeous campus! I'm so excited for what the future holds and can't wait to see where life takes me after this semester. :)
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