University of Pennsylvania - Drug Scene

Quick Stats

College Prowler Take

Not surprisingly, alcohol and marijuana are common and easily obtained at Penn. However, students feel that the drug scene is easy to avoid if you simply do not make an effort to become involved in it. Since very few people have cars on campus, designated drivers are not necessary, which may decrease the number of sober people at parties. There are, of course, other drugs of choice among smaller groups of students. Cocaine, ecstasy, and opium are among those that can be found on campus in some instances, but it seems that most students make it through their Penn career without coming in contact with any of these.

It is easy to set your own standard of drug use while you are here. If you do not drink or do drugs at all, you will not necessarily feel deterred from going to parties, joining a fraternity, or finding people to hang out with. On the other hand, if drugs are a part of your every day life, you can find people to smoke with all the time. Besides alcohol, marijuana is the most common drug, and there is a relatively large amount of people who smoke at least occasionally. If you are into harder drugs, you can still find them, but you’ll have to search a little bit harder than you would have to for beer and pot. Some say that if you join the rumored “drug frat,” you should be all set.

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Students Speak Out

Anonymous says:

There’s a big misconception that,... There’s a big misconception that, because Penn is a top-caliber university, there are fewer drugs circulating around campus. This is Tom Clancy fiction at its best. Penn kids like their drugs just like other college-age kids. Weed is ubiquitous but not the problem; X and coke are. It’s a shame, but college is just a microcosm of the real world. 12345 Drug Scene Report

Anonymous says:

The drug scene is present but not... The drug scene is present but not rampant. I won’t lie. People smoke weed, most drink, and some people do other drugs. But it’s not a major issue. 12345 Drug Scene Report

Anonymous says:

I had heard rumors of drugs like... I had heard rumors of drugs like coke before I got to Penn, but at no point was I ever exposed to it directly. Drugs are present, but they aren’t something that is forced upon you. 12345 Drug Scene Report

Anonymous says:

The problems with drinking and... The problems with drinking and drugs are baseline; people are smart about not getting caught, especially with drugs. There are occasional alcohol-related incidents but nothing major, in my memory. 12345 Drug Scene Report

Anonymous says:

It’s easy to get and easy to... It’s easy to get and easy to avoid. There is a lot of weed and ‘shrooms around, but if you aren’t into it, it is not central to the social scene. There’s not much hard stuff, but you are in Philly—if you really are into that, you are in one of the bigger cities in the country and can find it if you want to. 12345 Drug Scene Report

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