<p>has pitts started to send rejection letter? my roommate told me i had a mail from pitts today but i were somewhere else so i cannot think of what’s in the mail. but i am super nervous!!</p>
<p>Hi AwesomeO - I posted this on another thread but I know you can provide advice: I made a mistake when ordering my daughter’s textbooks at the PITT book center. I ordered used books when possible and apparently didnt check “if used books not available replace with new”. The book store ran out of the books and it may take 3 weeks to get new ones. Now my D has no text books for Biology 150 and no study guide for Chemisty 110. I spoke to a few people at PC and they said this happens and its no big deal. Well, I am very worried, should I be, what should she do, will this impact her grade, etc. Help, advice, etc.</p>
<p>hi awesomeO do you know what’s the difference between all other regional schools? is there any one better than another? i got rejected by the main campus, and they offer johnstown. I wonder how hard it is to relocate to main campus?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I don’t think so. They don’t start sending out acceptance letters (and therefore rejection letters) until early October.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well if you can, order the books from Amazon or Half.com instead and have them shipped in 2 days. If you don’t mind waiting, have her team up with a friend in each class and either study with them, or borrow the book once a week to do the reading/homework. I didn’t have any of my textbooks for the first 3 weeks of class my freshman year and didn’t have any issues getting my work done (Physics, Chem1, Calc3). It really isn’t a big deal.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Johnstown is probably the best branch campus. Then Greensburg. Then Bradford and Titusville are kind of the same (and much lower). I have had many friends who transferred into Pitt Main from Greensburg after 1 year, I’m sure Johnstown too. All you do is talk to your advisor at the end of the fall semester and say you want to transfer. If your grades are good enough, they will do all the paperwork to get your transfer application ready and then in early summer you should hear back about whether or not you got to transfer. Pretty easy process.</p>
<p>do they get jobs in engg right after graduation? is biomed good and do people get jobs after bs?</p>
<p>is it competitive like transferring from another university? can i also transfer after half year?
btw i saw your replying saying that they havent started to send rejection letter, but i received mine yesterday.</p>
<p>thank you AwesomO- you have been very helpful. My daughter is at the lantern ceremony tonight and said she already loves PITT.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Most engineers I know already had a job lined up before graduation. Very few students did not have jobs. From what I understand, many bioE friends either went into Med School or Grad school as it seemed to be a bit of a harder market to get into with only a BS as compared to an MS or PhD.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>It is probably somewhat hard to transfer, but I’ve never heard of it being overly difficult. The important thing is to do really well your freshman year, as both your freshman year (of college) and your high school transcript will be looked at for transfer. I have never heard of someone transferring in after one semester, it generally happens after one or more years.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Interesting, did you apply for next fall? When did you put your application in? It’s interesting that they’re sending out rejections but will not send out acceptances until October.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Glad to help! I’m sure she’s going to have a wonderful time here :)</p>
<p>My son is visiting campus soon. He will take general tour and Engineering Info. Session. He has a couple of hours free in the morning. Is there anything else that is a must see or that might be useful in his decision process? Thanks</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I would definitely check out the Cathedral of Learning, specifically the Nationality Rooms on the first and third floor and the Honors College on the 35th and 36th floor (great views!).</p>
<p>Both tours should cover most stuff. If your son is interested in UHC housing (or the gym) head to upper campus to check out the Petersen Events Center and the upper campus dorms.</p>
<p>Hi, Awesome Opossum. I’m a senior in high school who plans to go into computer engineering, and I want to get a masters. Do you know anything about the acceptance rate to grad school, specifically CMU? Thanks!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not specifically about CMU but I will say that everyone I know of who graduated either had a job waiting for them after graduation or had plans for graduate school lined up. Pitt does a really good job of preparing you for both, although you yourself have to take the last steps (i.e. for grad school, make sure you get into research, study for your GREs, know professors who can write you a rec letter, etc.)</p>
<p>First off, I want to say thank you for answering all these questions - wow, someone needs to give you a CC lifetime achievement award. :D</p>
<p>What do you think made yout application stand out from others? This was a question from the first few pages that I’ld like answered again (you responded through PM to the poster I think).</p>
<p>What meal options/plans are there? How is the food on a scale of 1-10? I love food and don’t want to survive on noodles in college.</p>
<p>How are the sports facilities? Where do most people go if they want access to a gym? </p>
<p>I know you said that having a major makes it easier for alums to give out endowments and the like, but what are some courses of action for undecided majors? Still apply to the honors college?</p>
<p>How do full tuition and 1/2 tuition scholarships work? I’m assuming they’re competitive? I have a 3.7 ish GPA (at top 100 HS), 2310 SAT, taken 4 AP’s, just for some context; don’t want this to derail into a chance thread - just want some info on financial aid.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’ll PM you my response to that again if that’s ok. I’d rather not sound like a braggart on here. :P</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Here is a link to the various meal plans: [University</a> of Pittsburgh - Dining Services](<a href=“http://www.pc.pitt.edu/dining/mealplans/mealplan_pass.php]University”>http://www.pc.pitt.edu/dining/mealplans/mealplan_pass.php)</p>
<p>There’s also an unlimited plan, but don’t even bother getting that as you’ll never eat that much on campus.</p>
<p>I recommend a plan in Tier 3, probably B or C, which has a good mix of swipes (what you use to eat at the all-you-can-eat dining halls: Market Central in the Towers and The Perch at Sutherland) and dining dollars (kind of like campus money that you can spend at any ON CAMPUS eatery like: Einstein Bros, The Cathedral Cafe, Schenley Cafe in the Union, Taco Bell, etc.). I’ve found that for lunch, it’s generally easier to grab something and go (i.e. from an eatery) using Dining Dollars and for dinner you’ll end up at Market or the Perch for a longer sit down meal.</p>
<p>The food is actually pretty good. The eatery options are fantastic (Einstein Bros, Burger places, a grill, sushi, Salad Bars, Chik-fil-A, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, etc.). The dining halls aren’t bad either, there’s a bunch of stations like: International food, a small bakery/cafe area, pizza, pasta bar, asian grill, vegan area, salad bar, etc. It’s not so much bad food that gets to you as it is the repetition of eating the same thing all week.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Well you can’t apply into the honors college as a freshman, you are either UHC eligible or not upon coming to Pitt (top 5% of class & >1400 SAT/32 ACT). After a semester if you have above a 3.25 GPA (cumulative) then you are also automatically UHC eligible. Not automatically being in UHC is not a deterrent though, you can still sign up for UHC classes and activities/advising etc. You just are not eligible to apply for the UHC housing (which is actually quite nice).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Many people have speculated that Pitt decides ahead of time how many scholarships they will give out to residents of each state (i.e. 4 Full tuition, 7 half tuition for CA residents, 5 full tuition 5 half tuition for VA residents, etc.) Therefore, it is ALWAYS in your best interest to apply as early as you possibly can. If you are interested in a scholarship, you MUST apply before January 15. However, if a scholarship is a big deciding factor for you, apply EARLY on (late summer, or early fall). </p>
<p>The scholarships are competitive to a degree. If you are automatically UHC eligible when you apply to Pitt, you have already shown a competitiveness for the scholarships. It is easier (in my opinion) to get a scholarship if you are from OUTSIDE of Pennsylvania. It is also easier if you are a “minority” student-- whether that be ethnicity, planned major, gender, or the state you are from (i.e. less students apply from Alaska than Ohio for instance). </p>
<p>In the years since I have applied to Pitt, it has become more and more competitive to get in and receive a scholarship. It has definitely started to attract a higher caliber of students. Be prepared for the fact that even though you might think you should be guaranteed a scholarship, you may not get one.</p>
<p>Do students at Pitt ever cook their own food or shop for groceries ont heir own? The eateries and meal swipes sound pretty convenient though.</p>
<p>Apply early: got it. Did you just use your Common app essay for one of their prompts? I haven’t started on my essays yet… I’m such a slacker. I’ld really feel better if I had an acceptance in my pocket so I’ll try and use that as motivation. :P</p>
<p>By competitive, are there any extra requirements for those scholarships? Like extra essays, an interview… any extra hoops to jump through?</p>
<p>Also - what aspects of Pitt do you think could be improved or you just flat out dislike? I’m sure you like the college if you’re taking the time to answer questions but there’s got to be at least a few cons… right?</p>
<p>What is the general claiber of the other students at Pitt? Every college has their share of nerdy hardworkers and partiers but I find that having others competing (not cutthroat like John Hopkins or something though) with me has helped me push myself, but that, like most people, don’t want to sit at the bottom of the pack.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Absolutely. That’s why a lot of them try to move into an apartment-style dorm or off-campus sooner (generally by junior year). Although even the sophomores without full kitchens will go out and get yogurt/cereal to eat in their room before class or as a snack, etc. Or microwavable food. Freshman can’t really cook because unless you know someone with a kitchen, you don’t have access to one.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I used my Common app essay (which I told you about). I never used the prompts because I feel like the Admissions Committee sees way too many of those essays (Why Pitt, Why XYZ Major, Someone who Influences you, etc.) compared to an original, more unique essay. (I think I fell into the original one, but not unique. I wrote about my love of reading but it started out kind of funny).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not at all, although I believe you have to submit an essay (i.e. common app or other) if you want to be considered. It would definitely help to have a FULL application (essay, rec letters, resume/list of ECs) compared to the bare minimum (transcript). That will give them more of a basis to judge you on. At the very least, send in an essay!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Hm…well not so much Pitt as Pittsburgh-- the winters are VERY grey. I’m sure a lot of people get weather-influenced depression during our winter months. It can be rare to see the sun (just lots of grey skies) and it can get quite cold (one time it got to -26F). Those days make it harder to schlep to class and pay attention. But the beautiful fall/spring/summer make up for it. Plus cold weather means hot cocoa and pumpkin spice lattes! </p>
<p>Also, this is just me, but I definitely think we spend too much money on the wrongs things at time. The Athletes get so much money and attention compared to really great students doing research (this is an example) and it irritates the heck out of me. Pitt has started getting better about focusing EQUALLY on academics and athletics, but we’re definitely not there yet. (I mean Pitt as a community, the school really does love it’s students as well, but the athletes…sometimes I want to kick them).</p>
<p>It’s actually kind of hard to find cons with the school…I mean you will always run into weird bureaucracy issues and what not, but overall they do a great job at taking care of the students, the faculty (that I have interacted with) are almost all superb, the facilities are either newly renovated or waiting to get spruced up, and the campus is filled with a sense of Pitt Pride.</p>
<p>The one other thing that will continue to irritate me is how we are often looked over in comparison to CMU. Both schools are obviously great schools for different reasons, but it irks me when people generalize by saying CMU is filled with genius students and academic prodigies while Pitt has the average student. Obviously, on CC you won’t see this as an issue, but in the real world, it can be aggravating. (Ex: Google only hires CMU grads, they refuse to hire Pitt grads. Talk about discrimination!)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Hardworking. Down to earth. Ridiculously friendly. Helpful. Intelligent. Fill with school spirit and pride.</p>
<p>Seriously, the kids at Pitt are fantastic. They’re really friendly, will work hard, and love to help others. I have never seen any of the cutthroat atmosphere at Pitt that I’m sure is common at schools like Hopkins or WashU. I know my freshman year, we would have huge study groups to work on homework, labs, or just help each other out with any questions. I would help a friend with his Calc homework at 11pm the night before it was due because he asked me and I could. My other friend and I met once a week to work through our DiffEq assignments together to ensure we could both do every problem.</p>