Penn State DISCUSSION THREAD Fall 2022 Admission

Nothing against these other campuses, they are a good fit for many. It just creates confusion when forced to pick one when applying to UP. Altoona had about 7,000 applications last year, accepted about 80% and enrolled 25%. On paper it looks like a campus with interest given the applications if you don’t have the background. If a good number of those applicants were forced with no interest then it means there is really less interest Another impact is the limited financial aid now gets spread over more admits so others might get limited funding. The gradation rates are much lower too maybe due to the campus. But these are students with less credentials which also impacts graduation.

Seems the forced admin is to improve applications on the campuses. If it wasn’t then they would not ask about interest summer, they would just consider everyone for summer.

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I guess I kinda take offense to you saying these are kids with less credentials at a satellite campus.

My daughter is a 3.958 UW gpa, will graduate high school in 3 years along with completing her AA degree during those 3 years.
she took 20 college credits both this semester and last and will In fact graduate with her AA before she graduates from High school.

She is a 3 sport athlete along with managing the football team. She is president of our non drinking group, vice president of NHS, on student council, part of the peer advisory group and helped write a positive norm grant for our school.

She applied criminology and was offered 2+2. She has outstanding credentials. And has no less credentials than someone admitted to UP for 4 years

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I would be interested in hearing about Altoona. My daughter got accepted 2+2 there for criminology. We are currently working with Penn State to figure out how long she would really be at Altoona due to the fact that she has completed her AA degree while in high school and has 60 credits. Depending on how those transfer she may not stay there the entire 2 years.

I know you aren’t speaking to me, but I wanted to clarify my comment as well. I don’t “think less of” the branch campuses, my point was that kids looking for a large school with big football, greek life, lots of clubs, etc ( ie main campus) aren’t likely to be attracted to a smaller school. That is why I wish PSU admissions was more up front at the get-go and eliminated the option for those not interested. Then we could stop getting “Apply to Honors” information from Altoona lol

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Hi - She applied to Smeal which I understand is one of (if not the) most competitive. Is it really worth it to try to adjust to DUS? She is ready to move on to out of state options, not interested at all in smaller schools, but if there is a real chance to get on campus at University park would be worth trying.

Definitely worth trying. She is clearly an excellent student so go DUS and then she can switch in later.

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I get your point, but let’s think about what you are suggesting (optional to put 2nd choice) – 95% of applicants are then going to ask for UP. Many will be denied, call in to ask for something else that will get them there, now we’re back to waitlists and deferred decisions, etc.

I don’t see any harm in asking students to have a backup campus. You are evaluated for UP and offered UP if you can be; if not, they apparently move on to a campus offer. Applicants are always welcome to say no thanks, since there are a bazillion others waiting for the spot. But making it a requirement would seem on the face of it to speed up everything in an already slow process.

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This is not normally allowed in most schools.

The point is there are not a Bazillion others waiting for the spot. The people that really want to or are willing to go to a campus might get bumped out by someone that has no interest in a campus.

What major/college?

What APs (or equivalent)?

Why not ask for reconsideration for DUS? She’d quikly switch toCriminology anyway (perhaps as early as during registration, although they’d never tell you at Admissions-- and definitely by the end of 1st semester).
My best guess is that the admission review missed something and asking for reconsideration would be sufficient to ensure admission to UP. With these credentials, did she apply to Schreyer ?

Couple things here.
#1 - MANY high stat kids CHOOSE to start at a commonwealth campus because they get the “weed out” classes out of the way in a smaller, more supportive environment. There is NO hand holding at UP, but the commonwealth campuses have smaller classes and resources easier to find because the professors know you by name. Others choose it because it’s less competitive so they get research opportunities as freshmen. Not all of the kids at commonwealth campuses were deferred from UP. In fact, most are not. 75% of the students at Erie campus stay there all 4 years. That was their choice of campus.

#2 - Penn State does not give merit financial aid. If you were expecting any, don’t. The honors college gets you about $5k and that’s about it.

#3 They certainly aren’t going to spend time evaluating applications a second time for summer for all 100,000 + applicants when even those who CHOOSE summer on their applications don’t always mean they are actually willing to go summer. What a colossal waste of time.

#4 The fact that Penn State gives an optional back up campus is to give students more options, rather than less. A Penn State degree is worth quite a lot in the job market and some students just want to graduate from Penn State for their future. They don’t care where they started, and neither do employers since the curriculum is the exact same. I wish Penn State gave a back up major option as well.

#5 There are a bazillion others waiting for the spot. The commonwealth campuses fill up fast because they are smaller. The University assumes, if you are accepted into a commonwealth campus and not interested in attending, that you will decline your offer thus leaving room for someone else. That said, many don’t do that so PSU has a pretty solid yield built into their calculations to determine how many will attend.

#6 Not all commonwealth campuses are created equal. The three I mentioned (Altoona, Harrisburg, Behrend) are typical 4 year colleges in small suburban areas. Many others are more community college and commuter-like and, while also a great option for someone wanting to stay close to home, would not be recommended for out of state students.

#7 You will get the ire up on a lot of people here if you say that commonwealth campus students have “less credentials”. It’s not necessarily true. The average GPA’s at Altoona, Harrisburg and Behrend are 3.1, 3.2, 3.4 respectively…similar to many colleges. There are many students that are accepted at UP campuses with a 3.5 and others deferred to commonwealth campuses with 3.8+…this depends on the major. So you could very realistically have a student at UP that had lower overall grades than someone deferred to the commonwealth campus simply because of the major chosen…when the major chosen on your application means pretty much nothing since no one is in a major at Penn State until sophomore year (excluding direct entry majors such as nursing, etc…)

Do not assume commonwealth campus students aren’t as smart. Some of those same students will actually graduate engineering because they started in a smaller environment vs the wiz kids that flame out at UP campus because they don’t expect the level of work or distractions involved. Happens every single darn year.

Off my soap box now! UP is an amazing campus and for some, it’s UP or bust. And that’s a valid choice. My one daughter had no interest in a commonwealth campus and luckily got in at UP (graduated 2019). But for others who may not have considered the value in starting at a commonwealth campus, disparaging them as “less than” is just not accurate. I’ve had one start at Altoona and two start at UP and we’ve toured Harrisburg and Behrend a number of times. If you’ve done none of the above, it’s difficult to judge.

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Most schools allow for an appeal of some sort. I think It’s awesome that Penn State allows you to ask for reconsideration without needing to reapply.

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Absolutely worth it. Ask for reconsideration for DUS and if she’d be willing, say yes to summer option. But if not, just reconsider for DUS. She can get into Smeal after completing all entry to major requirements her first two years. No one is in a major at Penn State until they complete those entry to major classes, unless they applied to a direct entry major such as nursing or in the arts.

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Agree with MYOS1634. Ask for reconsideration to DUS (undecided) first. If that doesn’t work, Altoona is a great campus. I can give you more info about it if reconsideration doesn’t work. There is no reason she shouldn’t be able to get into UP campus with her stats.

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Does anyone know how truly competitive the engineering school and the business school is at UP? Still a 50 perc acceptance rate like the overall?

Much much much harder, with higher GPA expectations, much higher rigor expected (both total AP/IB/DE and specific subjects taken), and greater competition. Smeal and Nursing are the hardest colleges to get into, then Engineering; Eberly, Belisario, Earth&Mineral, IST, and Liberal Arts vary greatly depending on major (Criminology is more competitive than Russian although Russian may be more selective…) with Ag, BBH, and Education easiest to get into. This is informal and can change depending on new majors being created, changes in demand.

Finally, no one is into their major (out if several hundreds majors&concentrations, only a handful such as Turf science or Nursing are direct entry) until they meet specific criteria (courses taken, grades achieved, GPA). That’s why DUS is such a great option – easier to get into than most majors and still gets you where you want to go. However kids who want Smeal or Engineering have figured it out so for the past 2-3 years DUS has become more competitive.

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My D requested her application be reevaluated after being offered alternante campus for nursing in Dec - she asked to be considered for UP under nutritional sciences
She received admission to Up last night with intended new major - took approx 5 weeks from time of request
This board has provided great info to me and I hope our experience can help others curious about the process of reconsideration
good luck!

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I am a Penn State grad (my daughter was admitted for Fall 2022 which is why I’m on this thread) - I spent all 4 years at UP. My brother on the other hand went to Altoona his first 2 years. Its 45 minutes from UP. For him it was a GREAT experience. He had small classes, established a great group of friends and after 2 years transitioned to UP. He made every football game by coming and staying with me on the weekends. With Altoona being right down the street - many of the kids come to UP on the weekends. I am super disciplined and the large 400 person classes didn’t bother me but for my brother I think starting out with small classes as a freshman really helped him succeed.

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We have thought about it. She is not against Altoona partially because it is cheaper for the first couple of years. She has an offer at George Mason with honors and a $72,000 scholarship but her heart is really set on Penn State. George Mason has told her that she could complete her Master’s in Criminology in her 4 years there. Waiting to see what Penn State will take in terms of her credits. We have sent them in for review. She is really on her own on this…small school in Minnesota (graduate 60 in a class) no one ever chooses to go to school out East. But she is determined to get the best of the best.

Not to mention we are Steelers fans and Altoona is close to Pittsburgh AND UP LOL!

Yes she did apply to Schreyer. But I am really confused how that works since she got into Altoona.

She is also interested in the dance team…been dancing since she was 3 and has won several state Championships on high school dance team.

Also waiting on University of Maryland’s response

Any guidance, help, information would be greatly appreciated from this forum