University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science

What University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science does

Penn Engineering is the engineering school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League institution founded in 1850 and headquartered in Philadelphia. It provides undergraduate, graduate (Master's), doctoral, and online education across six academic departments and more than 25 programs, with a 13:1 undergraduate student-faculty ratio and strong placement outcomes (89% of students receive a job offer before graduation). The school serves primarily prospective and current undergraduate and graduate students, with secondary engagement of industry/corporate partners, lifelong learners, and academic collaborators across Penn's 11 other schools.

Core research spans AI and data science, robotics, machine learning, bioengineering, materials science, and advanced manufacturing, supported by 30 interdisciplinary research centers and labs, 159 tenure-track faculty, and 100+ active patents. Notable technical assets include the newly opened Amy Gutmann Hall (January 2025) consolidating AI and data science work, the NSF-funded AIRFoundry applying AI to RNA research, the STELLAR platform using LLM agents for mental health clinician training, aroLNPs (lymph-node-targeted lipid nanoparticles for mRNA vaccine delivery), and nanostructured amphiphilic materials for passive atmospheric water harvesting. Research outputs are documented in peer-reviewed venues (e.g., Science Advances) and translated into patentable technology.

As a non-profit academic unit, Penn Engineering generates revenue through tuition and fees, government and private research grants, and charitable donations. Go-to-market is structured around traditional admissions for on-campus programs, an online education platform (including the new MSE-TI degree), and corporate engagement channels for research partnerships, talent recruitment, and technology transfer. The school is governed within the University of Pennsylvania's administrative structure under Dean Vijay Kumar, with disclosed grants of $18M (NSF, 2024) and $4M (Wellcome Trust, 2025) as recent funding signals.

Name

University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science

Legal name

University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science

Website

https://seas.upenn.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1850

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Penn Engineering is the University of Pennsylvania\u2019s Ivy League engineering school, offering undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and online programs across six departments while conducting interdisciplinary AI, robotics, bioengineering, and materials science research for students, industry partners, and lifelong learners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education - Engineering

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Universities with Computing, Data & AI Focus (EDAHAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Engineering & Technology Institutes (Comprehensive) (EDAHAEAA), Online Technology & Computer Science Universities (EDAHALAH), STEM-Focused Technical Universities (EDAHAEAD)

Keywords

• Engineering education
• Graduate research
• AI research
• Online masters
• Biomedical engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Penn Engineering offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral engineering degree programs across six academic departments and over 25 programs, alongside a portfolio of interdisciplinary research spanning AI, robotics, bioengineering, materials science, and advanced manufacturing. The school delivers on-campus and online education (including the MSE-TI program), pursues sponsored research initiatives (NSF AIRFoundry, STELLAR), and supports corporate engagement and technology transfer from faculty innovations.

Product overview

Penn Engineering is an academic institution offering undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs across six departments with over 25 programs. The institution operates as a research-focused organization with named facilities (Amy Gutmann Hall for AI), research initiatives (NSF AIRFoundry, STELLAR Platform), academic programs (MSE-TI), and scientific breakthroughs (aroLNPs mRNA delivery technology, passive water harvesting materials). The portfolio comprises academic programs, research facilities, and technology innovations rather than commercial products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Undergraduate Engineering Programs

Quantifiable outcome

• 89% of students receive a job offer before graduation
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• ModernaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerModerna's ionizable lipid is referenced as a benchmark comparison for the aroLNPs research. This is a research comparison context rather than a formal partnership.
• University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of MedicinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCross-school collaboration with Penn's medical school for interdisciplinary research including AI for antibiotic discovery, mRNA vaccine delivery, and other health technology advances.
• University of Pennsylvania School of Arts & SciencescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration across Penn's 11 schools including Arts & Sciences for interdisciplinary AI research combining engineering, social science, and medicine.
• New York UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration partner in the STELLAR project for developing AI-powered training platform for mental health clinicians.
• Penn's Linguistic Data ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration partner in the STELLAR project for developing AI-powered training platform for mental health clinicians.
• Philadelphia Water DepartmentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on microplastics research with Penn Engineers Samantha McBride and Derek Ho to study how microplastics enter ecosystems and human bodies.
• Industry PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPenn Engineering collaborates with industry leaders across various sectors for research partnerships, technology transfer, and talent recruitment, driving responsible AI innovation that addresses real-world challenges.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Stanford University School of Engineering: Stanford's engineering school is a top-tier peer with similar scale, AI/biotech research intensity, strong industry and venture partnerships, and comparable student-faculty ratios at the elite tier.
• Columbia Engineering: Columbia's engineering school is a peer Ivy League peer based in a major US city with similar AI, data science, and biomedical engineering research emphasis and comparable graduate program structure.
• MIT School of Engineering: The engineering school of MIT, a peer Ivy-tier/Caliber research university with comparable AI, robotics, and bioengineering research output, faculty scale, and undergraduate/graduate program structure.
• Princeton School of Engineering and Applied Science: Princeton's engineering school shares the same name and Ivy League status as Penn Engineering, with a directly comparable portfolio of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral engineering programs and research output.
• Cornell College of Engineering: Cornell's engineering college is a peer Ivy-tier institution with comparable scale, multidisciplinary research centers, and a similar mix of bioengineering, AI, materials, and applied science programs.
• Duke Pratt School of Engineering: Duke Pratt is a peer private research engineering school with comparable scale, interdisciplinary research centers, and overlapping AI, biomedical, and materials science research portfolio.
• Carnegie Mellon College of Engineering: CMU's College of Engineering is a direct peer with especially strong overlap in AI, robotics (GRASP-style labs), and computer science research, and a comparable mix of interdisciplinary centers and industry partnerships.
• UC Berkeley College of Engineering: Berkeley's engineering college is a top public research peer with comparable scale, AI/data science strength, deep industry partnerships, and a similar translational research and tech-transfer orientation.
• Georgia Tech College of Engineering: Georgia Tech's engineering college is a leading public peer with comparable scale and research output across AI, robotics, and bioengineering, plus a strong industry partnership model.
• Caltech Division of Engineering and Applied Science: Caltech's engineering division is a peer elite STEM-focused technical school with similar small-scale, high-output research orientation and comparable faculty-driven patent and breakthrough profile.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/penndps

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science