Penn State announced this week that it will be test-optional for the 2021 application cycle due to COVID.
https://admissions.psu.edu/coronavirus/
For students who have high GPA’s but have lower test scores or weren’t able to take them at all, this is very helpful because you can have your application considered without test scores at all. If you are a lower GPA, higher test score person, it doesn’t hurt you as you can still submit the test scores for consideration.
thoughts on submitting ACT score of 32 with a WGPA 4.5556 OOS NJ
thx
Wonder how that’s going to work in practice because I thought Penn State did a first culling using test scores because they receive so many applications. Maybe GPA will be the number they use going forward.
Actually, Penn State uses test scores very little. 2/3 of Penn State’s decisions have always been GPA and class rigor. The other 1/3 is made up of all other factors, including test scores, state residency, extra curriculars, legacy, etc… So for Penn State, this isn’t that difficult to do. For other schools, like Pitt, that look at test scores more than GPA, the transition would be more difficult.
Your test scores and GPA are above the middle 50% So submitting your test scores makes sense for you.
I am unsure if I should submit my SAT scores. I have WGPA of 102.06, UWGPA of 95.87. I have only been able to take the SAT in my sophomore year (as practice) and scored a 1200. I have had 5 SAT tests canceled due to covid since then, including today’s test. I have taken 17 honor/AP classes and 3 dual enrollment classes. I have many extracurriculars including captain of miniThon, varsity sports, NHS, 100+ hours of community volunteering, etc. My mom called the admissions office and they said that it would not hurt chances in any way if scores were not submitted. However, I still want to stand out. I am really on the fence about whether or not to submit scores because I know that the golden number for University Park is a 1250 (which I could attain if I only had the chance to do so! ). Thanks in advance for any advice.
I don’t think with your GPA that you will need to submit test scores. It doesn’t hurt you to not submit them, it only helps you if you do and they are representative of your abilities. Some people aren’t good standardized test takers but have very high GPA’s. In those cases, their GPA is representative of their abilities but the test scores may not be.
In your case, a 1200 is below the 50% for admitted freshman, but with your GPA I don’t think it will matter much. For reference, my daughter has a 3.9 GPA and did not submit test scores because the only ones available were from sophomore year and were in no way representative of her achievements.
If I were you, I’d submit the application without the test scores. But you have to decide for yourself.
@jlhpsu - do you have a daughter applying this year? I followed the threads 2 years ago when my middle daughter applied (just starting sophomore year now), and my son applied about a week ago. We’re in Chicago - between last year’s strike and covid, they haven’t taken a standardized test since 10th grade. So the test optional option was a huge relief!
Yes, I do! Test optional was key for all of my daughters applications this year. She took the SAT’s and ACT in 10th grade as “practice”…ie…scores were not great - and she hasn’t been able to take them since. Her GPA is a 3.83 so she has a lot of options with GPA alone that she wouldn’t have had if they’d made her submit her test scores. She’s already accepted into Arizona State directly into a program she really likes that PSU doesn’t have - so we shall see. I’d love her to go to PSU like my other two kids but because of her interests, it’s not looking like it’s her first choice.
@jlhpsu - Exciting! I wish her luck. It will be another interesting admissions year - class of 2023 was first Common App year, so that was unpredictable. Now 2025 is test optional. Given how little Penn State seems to weigh them though, I hope it’s not too unusual. I feel like the potential bigger wildcard is students who decided to defer this year because of covid. Penn State is one of my son’s top choices, and his academic record is pretty solid, so fingers crossed for nothing dramatic.
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I think some publics may be tougher with in-state applicants because with out-of-state, they’re able to charge higher tuition so they want to make sure they accept/enroll some of them. Is Penn State known for being easier for out-of-state applicants?
I’ve not seen any hard and fast patterns showing that PSU is easier for OOS students. I’m sure there is some consideration that OOS students will be full pay, but it’s not translated into an easily defined pattern of acceptances. Since Penn State isn’t a “state school”, in state students do not get as much of a price break as one would think.
Penn State is a public school. Publics usually charge less for residents of their state. Why would this not be the case with Penn State?
It is the case with Penn State as well. In state pays less than out of state. However, Penn State is not a Pennsylvania “state school”, meaning they only get a small percentage of their funding from the state, so Penn State, even for in state students, is much more expensive than true “state schools” in Pennsylvania. Penn State is a Land Grant university that operates somewhere between a private and a public school. It is among the most expensive public schools in the nation.