Submatriculation 101

Submatriculation programs, broadly defined, allows undergraduate students to take graduate level courses alongside their normal coursework to partially/fully complete a masters degree when they graduate. These programs also encompass a great deal of disciplines, from philosophy, criminology, or english to linguistics, mathematics, or biology. Personally, I’m submatriculating (or “submatting” as Penn students call it) in the East Asian Languages and Civilizations department, which I decided upon in my junior year.

There are certainly some pros and cons to consider when thinking about pursuing such programs, and I’ve highlighted some of my personal insights below:

●      Cost - Your financial aid will apply to any graduate level courses you take, provided that you enroll in them whilst still finishing up your undergraduate degree. This has allowed me to take the majority of graduate courses, which are normally significantly costlier than undergraduate courses, for virtually free. Hence why so many students, myself included, work to finish their M.A and their B.A simultaneously so they don’t have to pay out of pocket. Also, you still have to be taking majority undergraduate courses in order for your financial aid to still count.

●      Extra semester/year - That being said however, the majority of students find it very challenging to plan out their semesters years in advance, and for some programs it's just plain impossible. So the majority of submatriculation students, in my circles at least, stay an extra semester or two in order to finish the M.A, which is still saving a lot of money/time. For some STEM programs though, like medical physics, students usually stay a minimum of two extra years.

●      Rushed feeling - Some of my professors actually discouraged me from submatriculating because in their opinions, taking your time to finish a masters program would put you in much better shape if you wanted to pursue a PhD than rushing through it in undergrad. To an extent, I can see and agree where they’re coming from, but since the program was basically no cost to me, I decided to go through with it. It is advisable for some disciplines to pursue another M.A in order to best prepare you for the rigor of PhD programs.

●      Community - Honestly, one of the best things about submatriculating was meeting all of my graduate student friends and being able to escape the undergraduate bubble. I’ve met some of the best people ever in courses and since the class sizes are quite small, it’s a great way to make friends, find out about cool opportunities, and grow as a person.

So there you have it! Submatriculating certainly comes with pros and cons, but it is a fantastic opportunity to accelerate your education to the next level. I highly recommend consulting with your academic advisors before making any decisions. Best of luck!

– Seyoon C.