Something isn’t making sense. I wonder if - with her AA - she was not evaluated against incoming freshman, but as a transfer student.
from their website: “You are a transfer student if you have attempted or completed 18 or more credits at another college or university after high school graduation.”
Penn State has made it extremely difficult to transfer in as a sophomore. The reason being that they don’t want kids to go to a commonwealth campus for 1 year and then try and move to UP as a sophomore. They want it to be a true 2+2. There are a few exceptions why you can come to UP as a sophomore, but every year, they close the loopholes more. (this is why there is the 18 credit limitation above).
For example, I know a kid who was unhappy at school as a freshman. Had he stopped after Fall semester and applied to Penn State, he could have come in as a freshman. Because he went back for spring semester and had a full freshman year, he could not come to UP as a sophomore. He would have had to go to another campus for 1 year and then to UP. This is a kid who was offered admission at UP the year prior.
Other kids - during covid - decided to take a leave of absence. Some wanted to stay home and take credits at the community college nearby. They were advised to take less than 18 credits so they could still come in as freshmen. Otherwise, their leave of absence wasn’t really that.
I wonder if this is what is happening. If Penn State is her first choice, then I would call Admissions and have a conversation to understand.
Have her call and ask why she didn’t get UP. WIth all of those credits, it makes no sense for her to start in a 2+2…she will be out of classes to take pretty fast! They may let her go up after 1 year in that case - but honestly, she should be a Fall UP admit. Have her call, with you right there, and both speak to an admissions counselor. It doesn’t make sense from the info you’ve provided here.
Please note: Credits earned through dual enrollment programs while in high school do not typically change a student’s status as a first-year applicant.
Even if getting into DUS is easier, is there some allocation into smeal for DUS students? you still have to take the same courses and get a GPA comparable or better than smeal pre-majors right?
There is no allocation - as long as you meet the entrance to major requirements and GPA (which are same for current Smeal or DUS students), you will get approved for the major. GPA requirements are very specific by major. I just attached the link above.
there is no “allocation” and Smeal PMAJ (pre-major) are held to the same requirements as DUS PMAJ (pre-major).
complete the 8 ETM classes with required grades
be in the credit window (40-59 credits)
You cannot enter Smeal from anywhere else than DUS or Smeal pre-major. For example, if you start in Engineering and don’t like it, you can’t go to Smeal, you must go to DUS for a semester and until your ETM’s are complete.
there is no ‘easier’ path in DUS to actually get ‘into’ your major. The only ‘easier’ path is admission into UP. And DUS has gotten more competitive over the last few years as people become aware that it is less competitive than Smeal directly - which has moved its stats up.
She would not be able to change from Altoona to UP without changing her application in some way and asking to be reconsidered. So that would mean changing her major or adding summer as an option. Unless her stats are off the charts, Smeal at UP will be a reach admit. You could call and ask for reconsideration to DUS (undecided) and, depending on her stats, add summer option.
I thought I had heard that the gpa requirement can vary depending upon how many kids apply to each major. Finance, for example, being the most popular can actually be higher than the stated 3.5 depending upon how many kids apply each year. I hope that is wrong, but with the sheer number of kids and reality of there being only so many spots in the classes they need as juniors/seniors, it sounded believable to me.