Advisory boards at Penn began in 1928 when the Statutes of the Corporation were amended to allow for constituent boards to provide counsel for each of the University's faculties. In 1972, the Trustees and the President decided to build on this earlier precedent by establishing boards of overseers for Penn's schools and major resource centers. In 2020, the Trustees and the President approved the renaming of Penn's boards of overseers to boards of advisors.
Ten of Penn's twelve schools have boards of advisors:
- School of Arts and Sciences
- School of Dental Medicine
- Graduate School of Education
- School of Engineering and Applied Science
- Penn Carey Law School
- School of Nursing
- Stuart Weitzman School of Design
- School of Social Policy & Practice
- School of Veterinary Medicine
- The Wharton School
The Annenberg School does not have a board of advisors, relying instead on an informal board to advise on the affairs of the school. In 2001, the School of Medicine Board of Advisors was folded into Penn Medicine.
In addition to the aforementioned schools, the Office of the University Secretary works with the following resource center boards:
- Penn Live Arts
- Athletics
- Institute of Contemporary Art
- Library
- Penn Museum
- Penn Press