University of Pennsylvania Government and Politics Association

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Description

The Government and Politics Association is the largest student political organization at the University of Pennsylvania. Devoted to non-partisan and balanced dialogue, the organization does not adopt positions on political issues; we leave it to our members to make up their own minds and discuss diverse perspectives. We host over 40 events per semester, ranging from informal discussions and social events to formal debates and speaker events. Our membership is 100% inclusive; anyone who wants to join GPA is welcome. GPA consists of four branches: the Polybian Society, the Penn Political Union, the Penn Political Review, and the Penn Policy Action group (formerly known as Fedpass). 

Polybian Society - Penn's informal and social branch with weekly Symposium discussions around a designated topic open to all. It is a great way to meet new people, enjoy food and drinks while thinking about politics, share your intellectual opinion, and learn from others!

Penn Political Union - PPU is the formal debate branch that hosts events with student debates, faculty discussions, and prominent speaker events. All of these events are open to everyone and food is usually provided. 

Penn Political Review - PPR is GPA's political publication branch, periodically releasing a publication and online articles from an array of students and faculty members. PPR has open participation where anyone interested can directly contribute to the original publishing and magazine editing teams or articles can be submitted to be reviewed for publication.

Penn Policy Action (Fedpass) - The PPA group is a legislative advocacy program where members spend a year writing an original policy, navigating the legislative process, consulting with legislative offices and partner organizations, and working to get policy passed. The group strives to create and implement nonpartisan and feasible policies at the state and federal level, which includes an annual trip to Harrisburg or Washington D.C. to lobby for the respective policies. Sign up for GPA updates to hear how to apply to be a part of PPA for the 2023-2024 academic year. 

For more information on GPA or any of our 4 branches, check out our website penngpa.org!

FAQ

Most Recent
Question: How do you join? - Anonymous

Hello! GPA is an open membership organization, meaning that anyone from the Penn community can attend our events. However, each of our four branches has a membership process that can entitle you to certain benefits.

Polybian, our informal discussion group, has a casual initiation process once every semester that can allow you to access some of their social events. Please fill out our interest form , or check out the Polybian Society on Facebook.

Penn Political Union, our formal debate organization, has a system of 5 caucuses, small, informal groups of politically like-minded students that do events together and encourage people to join our debates. If you'd like to join a caucus, please fill out this form.

Stay tuned for the Penn Policy Action application for next year that is offered at the beginning of each academic year. 

Finally, Penn Political Review, Penn's only politically-focused magazine, has positions for writers, editors, layout designers, and interview team members. If you're interested in these positions, email our Editor-in-Chief. Thanks for your question!

- Sage Mehta
~2 people found this question helpful~

Basic Info

140 Registered (> 100 Members)

Currently Accepting Members

Open Membership

Open Recruitment


Contact

How to Get Involved

Anyone is free to attend GPA events! Likewise, there are no membership requirements for Polybian, PPU, or PPR and a very brief application process for PPA/Fedpass.

Interested in hearing more about our organization and its branches and getting in touch with our officers? Please fill out this short interest form!

Subscribe to our newsletter using this link to learn more about our weekly events, leadership opportunities, and any applications!

Additional Pages