Chance Me?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Penn State
1

Hey guys! I am currently a senior in high school from northern New Jersey attending one of the top public schools in the state. I applied to the Engineering School at Penn State with Computer Science as my intended major. I know that Penn State is very competitive for computer science/engineering majors and I do realize that it may be a reach for me. I have visited the school and I loved it.

I applied with a pretty strong essay.

I did not apply for an alternate campus, but I did apply for summer.

What are my chances of getting into Penn State for Computer Science?

Unweighted GPA: 3.3

Intended Major: Computer Science (It is in the School of Arts and Sciences)

ACT Composite (Not Superscored): 27
Math: 27
Grammar: 28
Reading: 28
Science: 25

School does not rank.

Classes:
Freshman Year - CP English I (B), CP World History (B+), Spanish 2 (A-), Film and Literature (A-), Algebra I (B), Biology (B+), Physical Education/Health (A)
Sophomore Year - CP English II (B), Geometry (B), Financial Literacy (B+), Intro to Web Design (A), CP US History (A-), Physical Education/Driver’s Ed. (A+), Chemistry (B-), Spanish 3 (B+)
Junior Year - CP English III (B), Algebra II w/Trig (C-), Computer Science(Java) (A), Physical Education/Health (A), Physics (C+), CP US History II (A-), Spanish IV (A)

This year (Senior Year) I am taking:
Language, Myth, and Human Culture
Functions, Statistics, and Trigonometry
AP Computer Science
Phys. Ed/Health
Honors Forensics - Syracuse University
Honors Sports History
Honors Syracuse University Public Affairs
Video Production

EC:
Volunteer at a local camp (9)
Head counselor at a local camp (10) (11)
Varsity Football (11) (12)
JV Football (9)
JV Baseball (10)(11)
DECA Member (11)(12)
Spain Pen Pal Correspondence (11)
Coach at baseball camp for young kids (9) (10)
75+ volunteer hours (community service/church) (9) (10) (11)

2

You have a good shot of getting in. With a 3.3 and a 27act composite, your chances according to prepscholar says you have a 40% of getting in. Since you have a good number of sports mixed in there I think you are about a 55-60 percent chance of getting in. Looks like a match for you.

3

@reformedman I hope so, but I’ve heard the engineering school there is the most competitive and I’m not a super competitive applicant compared to most of the people from my school who have gotten in/applied.

4

@fball7411 Engineering will require work in the math, chemistry and physics areas. Stick to it and remember that out of WORK, PLAY, SLEEP you are only allowed to pick two.

5

What is your weighted GPA? A 3.3 is under the middle 50% for all majors and well below for engineering.

6

@jlhpsu I’m not entirely sure what my weighted GPA is. Up until senior year I had not taken any honors or APs, so I’m guessing it would be the same as my unweighted? However, the semester is about to end and I have high grades in my honors and AP classes so maybe that will boost it a very small amount.

7

Unfortunately, they don’t take the senior year grades into account at all. I don’t think a 3.3 will get you into the engineering program. It may get you into DUS (undecided) so if you get denied, you can always call and ask to be reconsidered for DUS and summer session which has slightly lower GPA requirements. Two years ago, my daughter had a 3.5 and 29 ACT and still had to start in the summer.

8

@jlhpsu @reformedman I received my acceptance into the College of Engineering to start in the summer last week! Thank you for your feedback on this thread!

9

@fball7411 That’s awesome!! Congratulations!!
Penn State is a nationally recognized school, and a reputable degree is a definite. You have a good kickstart on your life.

10

@fball7411 when did your application submit? I submitted mine before the Late December deadline but my transcript ended up arriving by January 11th-ish. I still have not heard back :/.

11

@csrobots I submitted mine around late October, so I heard back around January 31st.