Community

Penny values the cohesion in Huntsman Program curriculum. “You can’t do international business without knowing the cultural traditions and values of a country. Once you know the culture of a country, you need the business background to really make a difference.”

As a freshman, Penny is still exploring her different interests, but she has one clear goal in mind—“I want to give back to the community,” she says.

It isn’t just from the curriculum that Penny has learned about different cultures. Huntsman freshmen all live on the third floor of King’s Court College House, and Penny loves returning to “KC3” in the evenings to hear her fellow students speaking all sorts of different languages.

Penny will be studying this summer for two months in Munich, Germany. Since she will be going abroad as a sophomore, it was imperative that she perfect her language skills during her freshman summer. "I am grateful for the Huntsman Program's financial support, " says Penny, "and know that this experience will enrich my learning experience in German classes later at Penn. Munich is a stunning city, and I cannot wait to immerse myself in the Bavarian culture."

Penny Metchev was born in Australia to Bulgarian parents. She watched her parents build the “Australian dream” as they created a successful family business from nothing. This early exposure sparked her interest in business.  

During her senior year in high school, Penny won the Sydney division of the Lion's Club Youth of the Year competition and was invited to speak at the Australian Citizenship Ceremony. The youngest person to ever speak at a Citizenship Ceremony, Penny talked of her father’s immigration from Bulgaria to Australia and of his resolute escape from communism in the 1970s with only four dollars in his pocket. “My father told me that hearing his daughter speak about what it means to be Australian was the proudest moment of his life.”

Penny serves as the Wharton representative for the University of Pennsylvania Class of 2012 student board. As an active member of both the Wharton Russia Society and Wharton German Society, Penny has learned about different business cultures. Penny is working with Huntsman upperclassmen to develop Beyond the Bottom Line, a corporate responsibility group on campus. She’s also a member of the ski team.