Top 10 University of Pennsylvania Notable Alumni
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Interested in studying at the University of Pennsylvania and wish to know about some of the notable alumni? Check out the article and read about the top 10 University of Pennsylvania alumni and also about their major contributions.
Instituted by Benjamin Franklin, the University of Pennsylvania is amongst the nine colonial colleges to have been created before the announcement of freedom. Famously referred to as Penn University or UPenn, the University of Pennsylvania is a private Ivy League research institution which was chartered in the year 1755. Located in the University City neighbourhood of West Philadelphia, the university is recognized as one of the oldest institutions of advanced education in the USA.
In Fall 2022, Penn had a total of 6,931 international students pursuing various level courses. According to the U.S. News & World Report ranking, 2023 of United States universities, the University of Pennsylvania ranked at #7th position. The parameters which were considered for ranking include graduation and retention rates, student-to-faculty ratio, SAT or ACT scores, percentage of enrolled students who featured in the top 10% of their high school class, alumni giving, etc. At present, UPenn is recognised among the world’s most powerful research and teaching institutions, it has a research budget of around $1.1 billion and over 18,000 teaching staff. These reasons together attract thousands of international students each year to take admission at the University of Pennsylvania across various UPenn courses.
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Apart from this, more UPenn alumni comprise 319,000 graduates to date since its inception and form a strong community of notable alumni of UPenn. Some of the notable alumni of UPenn include heads of state, Supreme Court justices, and United States Senators. In addition, some Nobel laureates, Guggenheim Fellows, and a number of CEOs have been associated with Pennsylvania University. Check out the article for more details on famous UPenn alumni and their details as well.
University of Pennsylvania (PENN) – Top 10 Notable UPenn Alumni
Penn State Notable Alumni – One of the top universities in the US, the University of Pennsylvania is the reckoning force behind some of the best minds. The University of Pennsylvania's notable alumni include Anil Ambani; Donald Trump; Elizabeth Banks; Elon Musk; Ivanka Trump; John Legend; Noam Chomsky; Sachin Pilot; Sundar Pichai; Tory Burch and many others. Read on to know about a few of the notable alumni of the University of Pennsylvania:
Elon Musk
Co-founder and CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk is a regular on the Forbes list of The World's Most Powerful People. With a net worth of over $22 Billion, he is clearly one of the richest persons in the world. Elon is also the co-founder, CEO and lead designer of Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) an organization that deals with advanced rockets and spacecraft for missions to and beyond the orbit of the Earth, with the goal of creating a self-sustaining city on Mars.
He has also been previously associated with co-founding PayPal – the world's leading Internet payment system, and Zip2. Born and raised in Pretoria, South Africa, Musk received an economics degree from the Wharton School and a degree in physics from the College of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania.
Noam Chomsky
Born in Philadelphia, Noam Chomsky was educated at the University of Pennsylvania, where he received his B.A. (1949), M.A. (1951), and PhD (1955). A social critic and a well-known leftist activist, Chomsky is known for his work in the field of psycholinguistics. Notable literary works of Chomsky include Current Issues in Linguistic Theory (1964), Aspects of the Theory of Syntax (1965), Topics in the Theory of Generative Grammar (1966), Cartesian Linguistics (1966), Language and Mind (1968), Reflections on Language (1975), Logical Structure of Linguistic Theory (1975), and Knowledge of Language (1986). Along with his contribution to linguistics, Chomsky has also taught courses and lectured at many universities throughout the world, including Oxford University. Although Chomsky’s work is primarily of interest to linguistics scholars, several of his theories have had popular applications in psychology.
John Legend
Renowned for his numerous social and charitable causes, John Legend is a world-renowned Grammy and Academy Award-winning singer-songwriter with fans from around the world. Born John Roger Stephens on December 28, 1978, in Springfield, Ohio, Legend is often described as a child prodigy. His grandmother taught him how to play the piano, and he grew up singing in the church choir. Notable alumni of the University of Pennsylvania, he even directed a co-ed a cappella group while at the university. Among his many achievements include, Legend making history as the youngest person ever — and the first African-American man — to join the exclusive EGOT club (EGOT stands for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards) on September 09, 2018.
Anil Ambani
A highly educated billionaire, Anil Ambani pursued his Bachelor’s degree in Science from the University of Mumbai and later went up to the USA for his Master’s in Business Administration at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Ambani joined Reliance, a conglomerate company founded by his late father, as the Co-Chief Executive Officer in 1983. He currently heads the Reliance Group as its Chairman. Anil Ambani is married to Indian Bollywood Actress, Tina Ambani who is also the managing director of Reliance Industries. They have two sons, Anmol and Anshul. The Ambanis are also associated with several philanthropic pursuits from the beginning.
Sundar Pichai
Pichai Sundararajan or more famously recognized as Sundar Pichai is an Indian-born American computer scientist and CEO at Google. Born in Chennai, India, Pichai has had humble beginnings. Pichai who was pursuing his MS in Engineering and Materials Science went on to pursue his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Following a short spell at the management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., Pichai joined Google in 2004 as the Head of Product Management and Development and in 2015 was named CEO at Google.
Donald Trump
The 45th President of the United States of America, Donald John Trump had gone to the New York Military Academy, Fordham University in the Bronx and was also an alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Finance and Commerce from where he pursued an undergraduate course in economics. After passing out he started working full-time for his father’s business. He became president of a conglomeration of Trump-owned corporations and partnerships in 1974. He then re-named it 'the Trump Organization'. It is said that during his tenure, he raised the U.S. military's budget, and during his reign, the terrorist organisation ISIS was defeated.
Shakira
Born and brought up in Barranquilla, Shakira is a world-famous Columbian singer who has many hits under her belt. The versatile queen of Latin music graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in the Ancient Philosophy course, which lasted four weeks. More than 70 million albums of hers have been sold across the world. At the young age of 14, she released her first album ‘Magia’. Her overnight fame can be credited to her third album ‘Pies Descalzos’ which topped the charts in eight nations. Some of her hit records include Hips Don’t Lie, Whenever Wherever, Waka Waka, Loca, La Tortura, etc.
Elizabeth Banks
The ‘Hunger Games’ fame American actress is an alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania and was an active member of the Delta Delta Delta Sorority. She graduated Magna cum Laude from there and thereafter joined the famous American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco to pursue an advanced training program. Elizabeth Banks relocated to New York and started working in theatre after which she bagged a few roles on TV as well as in movies. The actress owns a production company named ‘Brownstone’ with her sportswriter husband Max Handelman.
John Legend
Born in Ohio, US, John Legend is an American singer and songwriter who had offers flooding in from Harvard University plus Georgetown University and the like but settled at the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated with a bachelor’s in English magna cum laude from UPenn’s College of Arts and Sciences, with a specialization in African-American literature. Legend developed a penchant for music when he was very young and at the age of four, he started performing for the church choir. He was the first African American person to win all 4 major North American entertainment awards: Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony.
Jennifer Egan
She is an American novelist, journalist and writer who was born in Chicago and brought up in San Francisco. Egan pursued a degree in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania. She has been contributing frequently to the New York Times magazine. She bagged the Pulitzer Prize for her novel ‘A Visit from the Goon Squad’ in 2011. Another famous novel by her titled ‘The Invisible Circus’ was turned into a feature film which starred Cameron Diaz. In the year 2022, her cover story on homeless children won the Carroll Kowal Journalism Award.
Also Read:
| List of Princeton University Notable Alumni | Top 5 Yale University Notable Alumni |
| Cambridge University Notable Alumni | Brown University Notable Alumni |
| List of Oxford University Notable Alumni |
Q: What GPA is required for the University of South Dakota?
The University of South Dakota expects a GPA score of 2.5 from undergraduates and 3 from postgraduates on the 4-pointer scale. Along with the GPA scores, undergraduates must meet the basic eligibility and submit an ACT score of 21 or higher and an SAT score of 1070 or higher. In addition, they must submit the required documents, such as academic history, transcripts, letters of recommendation, English language scores, and more.
Q: What GPA is needed to go to Ohio State?
There is no minimum GPA score for UG admission at Ohio State. However, International students must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale or equivalent) for graduate admission. Applicants may submit a standardized test score (GRE or GMAT) if their cumulative GPA is below 3.0 for the last degree.
Q: Is Texas A&M Commerce a good university?
Texas A&M Commerce is regarded as one of the top public universities across the United States. Moreover, the Texas A&M Commerce ranking 2024 under the category of Best Colleges is National Universities is #369. Also, the acceptance rate of this university is 42%. Additionally, the university offers the best academic programs, expert faculty, job & placement, and more. Besides, Texas A&M University-Commerce also offers over 130 academic degrees for its students.
Q: Is MIT costly for Indians?
MIT is not costly for Indian students. Applicants can study BTech program at affordable tuition fees as compared to other BTech colleges in the USA. The MIT BTech fees is around INR 50 L to INR 52 L.
Q: How long does it take to get admission to Iowa State?
After submitting the application the Iowa State admission committee will review the application for admission on the basis of documents that applicants provide. A decision may require several weeks as it depends on the time of year the applicant submits the application (Applications submitted right before the deadline require a much longer processing time due to the volume of applications received then.). Applicants will receive an admission offer letter and the I-20 Form if admitted.
Q: Is the University of South Dakota hard to get into?
With a 99% acceptance rate, the University of South Dakota is easy to get into. The university follows an easy approach during admission. The university takes a simple admissions procedure. The high acceptance percentage does not mean that the university admits every applicant; rather, it suggests permissive admittance as compared to another university.
Students must prove themselves by scoring excellent academic scores, English proficiency requirements, and standardized test scores. Also, the university prioritizes factors, such as rigor of secondary school record, class rank, academic GPA, standardized test scores, application essays, recommendations, and more.
Q: What GPA do you need to get into Iowa State?
International students who wish to study at Iowa State must have at least GPA of 3.0 on a scale of 4.0 for UG and PG admission. International transfer applicants must have a minimum equivalent GPA of C+ on a scale of A to F or 2.25 on a 4.0 scale for all transferable courses.
Q: Is it hard to get into the UTSA in San Antonio Texas?
According to various sources, University of Texas San Antonio has an overall acceptance rate of around 87% which makes it somewhat selective for international student admissions. Some of the general requirements to be considered for admission are given as follows:
- SAT/ACT scores
- Overall Student's GPA
- Letters of Recommendation
- High School Class Rank
- Additional Academic Records
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