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The school children and teachers of Philadelphia welcome you into their classrooms so that you can get to know them and help them learn.

Student Life


Cohort experience

Master’s students report that their teacher education student cohort provides critical support for learning during their year in the program. The teacher education programs work hard to develop student cohesiveness and teamwork, knowing that it is both supportive of the students’ learning experience as well as good modeling for their practice once they enter their own classrooms. Students engage in active research, discourse, reflection, and inquiry during their time in our programs, which is one reason that the diverse cohort benefits our students: the richer and diverse the backgrounds, educations and lived experiences of our students, the richer the learning for the other students. Current students maintain blogs on which they share their learning and experiences as they move through the programs. Here are the links:

Elementary: http://www.penn-yformythoughts.blogspot.com/
Secondary: http://www.chelsbteachin.blogspot.com/

Student organizations

The Penn Graduate School of Education is privileged to have a student community of great occupational, geographic, and ethnic diversity. Our students bring with them a wealth of experiences that enrich both academic and extracurricular interactions. Students at Penn GSE have an allegiance to the cohort in their program, which creates a sense of community across the School. The hub of student life at Penn GSE is the Academic and Student Affairs Office, under the leadership ofAssistant Dean Lois MacNamara. The Student Affairs Office strives to provide support and guidance to students during their academic career in Penn GSE.

Many graduate students choose to live either on or off campus. Philadelphia offers a wide variety of neighborhoods, housing options and choices.
Here are some links that can offer you information:

Penn GSE Office of Student Affairs: http://www.gse.upenn.edu/student_life/
On campus housing: http://www.business-services.upenn.edu/housing/
Off campus housing:
http://www.business-services.upenn.edu/offcampusliving/index.php