Here’s how to get involved in STEM organizations at Penn

Are you a STEM kid? Here’s the ultimate guide to navigating the various healthcare, medical, engineering, and science opportunities on campus.

The “Major” Clubs

Penn offers more than 600 clubs, many of which allow students to further explore their major or other academic interests in a real world context. 

These student-run societies — which often serve as a liaison between students and the department — include Penn Neuroscience Society, the Penn Undergraduate Chemistry Society, the American Society for Mechanical Engineers, and the Biomedical Engineering Society at Penn, among others. For any looking to gain insight into how a major might be applied to real world jobs through attending social and professional events, these clubs are your first stop.

Breaking into Research From Day One

It can take years to make advancements in research and publish new data, so many Penn students take up lab positions as early as their first semester. Luckily, with over 200 research centers and labs across campus, there is an abundance of opportunities available.

The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships is one of the main gateways for getting involved with research at Penn. In the online research directory, you can get access to open positions across Penn departments, Penn Medicine, the Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania, and the local Philadelphia community.  You also can choose to connect with faculty advisors and peer mentors and even receive stipends for your work.

Clubs on campus also offer ways for students to discuss and research topics for publication in club journals such as Synapse, Wharton Undergraduate Healthcare Club’s Penn Healthcare Review, and the Penn Bioethics Journal, among others that were present at the Student Activities and Council Fair.

Pre-Med At Penn

Penn provides numerous avenues for pre-medical students to explore their interests and advance their career.

Newsletters like the Penn Pre-Medical Association alert you to ongoing campus opportunities, such as health conferences, clinical study volunteers, and club events.

For direct hands-on patient experience, students may join the Medical Emergency Response Team, a student-led EMT organization that responds to medical emergencies on campus. Despite EMTs comprising the club, you don’t have to be one to apply, as the club sponsors free EMT classes for unlicensed members. 

Otherwise, down the street is Penn Medicine, where students can choose to volunteer, work as a medical scribe or technician, and shadow and connect with physicians.

Want to combine your social life with your medical aspirations? Penn offers two professional healthcare fraternities, Phi Delta Epsilon and Alpha Iota Gamma, where you can receive mentorship on academic and career guidance from upperclassmen and even alumni.

Multiple clubs prioritize volunteering efforts beyond campus, such as the Shelter Health Outreach Program, which trains members to provide free blood pressure screenings at Philadelphia shelters, Penn Global Brigades, which takes its members on mission trips in areas around the world with limited access to healthcare, and Kesem at Penn, which runs a free summer camp for children impacted by a parent’s cancer.

Engineering a Better Future

While engineering coursework may teach you the principles of your degree, campus activities are one of the best ways to apply that knowledge.

Penn Electric Racing is one of the premier clubs for this hands-on experience, known for building America’s fastest student-designed race car — with an acceleration faster than free-fall! — and accepts members across multiple engineering departments. Penn Aerospace Club works towards aerospace technology innovation through technical projects, collaborative work, and community events.

There are also numerous makerspaces for students to work on personal interest projects, such as the Education Commons, Bio-MakerSpace, and Penn Venture Lab.

Ranking fourth in its number of undergraduate startup founders, Penn owes much of its success in student innovation and discovery to the Venture Lab, where students can pitch, build, and scale their ideas into successful ventures. It offers annual challenges where students can secure thousands in funding, join internship programs, and gain mentorship from industry experts.

If your interests align with the rapidly growing tech field, PennApps — not only the nation’s first student-run college hackathon, but also one of its biggest — offers members the chance to both participate in and run its annual hackathon. 

Penn Blockchain, Penn Quantum Computing Club, Quant Trading Club, and Locust Bioventures are similar club opportunities for students to intersect their interests in business and engineering.

As with pre-med students, students interested engineering at Penn also have their own professional fraternities, including Penn Theta Tau and Alpha Omega Epsilon.