Class of 2017 and Class of 2018 started hearing Thursday evening before MLK weekend.
So, if this still holds true - TWO mores days of waiting before the flurry of activity begins. 1/15
Good luck!
I am in the same place as you xLxNY4, I applied in early november and have yet to hear back for acceptance into the Smeal College of Business.
My stats aren’t the greatest either
GPA: 3.91 (6 AP classes 12 Honors)
SAT: 1690 M:540 W:600 R:530
Good essay and good recs also FBLA, NBHS, Football team for 4 years
I am really worried too, especially with my SAT scores leaving much to be desired, but a lot of kids in my school haven’t heard back either. What I’ve heard is that a bunch of people will hear back around January 20, but I can’t confirm this. There is a good chance we could be accepted into a branch campus but all hope is not lost yet.
EaglezFreak you should be fine because Penn State cares more about GPA and a 3.91 with all those pas and honors will do you well
My stats aren’t the greatest either…more specifically, my SATs…
GPA: 3.898 (with several honors courses)
SAT: Around 1500
Good essay and great recommendation letters… also President of Student Government
Top 1/3 of my grade
My SATs are low, however, I applied to a less competitive program: Meteorology. I really hope this one test score won’t keep me from attending my top choice…plus I applied for Summer Session so that should help.
I have friends with slightly higher GPA’s and much higher SAT scores than myself; they have yet to hear anything! So that still gives me (and hopefully others) some hope that not all is lost.
Hopefully tomorrow we start to hear! This long anxious wait will be over soon…
Accepted: Penn State University Park Campus, College of Arts and Architecture
Intended Major: Architecture
Stats:
ACT: 26
GPA: 3.31 (unweighted, 4 point scale)
Rank: school does not rank
Essay: Began with the question “find x”. I then explored some of the possibilities of X (Math, ex-girlfriends, pirates). I then concluded that X was my birth-mother, whom I’ve never met. I then explored that concept and how my life has been shaped because of my adoption.
Location/Person:
State or Country: Missouri
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: African American
Gender: Male
Other Factors:
-All State Varsity Track and Field Hurdler
-Varsity Swimming and Diving, Senior Captain
-National Leadership Academy
-Multilingual (Spanish, French, Dutch)
-Design and Graphics Editor for Yearbook
-One of the Founding members for the school Equity Team
Got my decision back in late October, but just decided to post.
Accepted to University Park
I go to a progressive prep school in NYC, so no GPAs. 10 honors credits (no APs either). 17 As, 4 A-s
SAT: 2350 (C: 800, M: 780, W: 770)
SAT IIs- Math II: 760, Chem: 770
EC: Editor on Newspaper, VP of MUN club at my school, Treasurer of Animal Cruelty Prevention Club, 5 hrs of ballet/ week
3/3 years of honor roll, National Merit Semi Finalist, Child Mind Institute Rising Scientist Award recipient
Essay was very average, but I’m pretty sure Penn State doesn’t even read them unless you’re wait listed.
Congratulations to everyone else accepted and good luck to everyone who’s still waiting to hear!
@tleonard630 when did your status change?
Did anybody get a status change yet?
Nope. Just checked again. Picture, status, everything the same.
@leyland ahh this wait is killing me. I just want to know already, I applied on September 1…
After 12 noon maybe? (Basing that possibility on last year…). Hang in there!
Maybe today? Tommorrow? D applied mid September for Eberly/Biochem. 3.9 GPA (W)/2000 SAT.
I know that admissions says they update once a day - evening or overnight, but looking at last year’s posts, the updates came at all times of the day.
Good luck everyone!
According to my daughter’s counselor who is aware of PSU’s admission process, PSU will accept the students with the best stats in the beginning stages, however, they have to be diverse therefore they become skeptical about accepting students with all the same stats. Just because you have high SAT scores and multiple EC’s does not guarantee you a spot if that selection criteria is filled. This is why some student receive their acceptance letters a month after applying, while other have to wait 3 and 4 months.
If your child is mediocre (meaning mediocre from the group of kids in their category), that does not mean they will not be accepted. That just means PSU is sorting through the batch of mediocre students to see what students are best of that batch. This is why students with lower SAT’s and little EC’s will sometimes be accepted over a student who is well rounded.
They have spots that needs to be filled and the students are put into different categories, and they choose the best of each. I hope that makes sense.
@PSU_MOM priority applicants will hear by the end of the month. It’s all just a waiting game now, the very top applicants most likely heard.
PSU-Mom, when you say “they have to be diverse”, do you mean by major, ethnicity, scores…? What are the selection criteria’s they’re referring to?
@pinkmd, yes diverse meaning scores, rank, ethnicity, race, etc. all of that plays a factor in their decision. As I mentioned, when the applications come in PSU places them into different categories depending on rank, SAT scores, major, and school of choice.
PSU will then accept the top students from each category, and wait until end of January to accept the students if certain spots are not filled. I hope that makes sense.
Students who were at the bottom of these categories have already received rejection letters.
Thanks PSU_MOM, that makes sense. I haven’t seen many DUS acceptance or rejections. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, lol. I’m really nervous. We’re also out of state. The admissions people say that doesn’t play into it at all, but from the blogs I read, it seems that most people think it does.
The process looks very different to me than it did two years ago when my son apllied. That year, kids in his school heard back in a constant stream beginning early to mid November, continuing through mid to late January. This year with my daughter’s class, very few kids have been accepted. About 50 kids have applied to UPark, and only about 4-5 have been accepted. Our acceptance rate is historically btw 55-65%, so there should still be many acceptances that have not been sent for our school.
@pinkmd we are DUS here too and I have been watching and I’ve seen only one DUS acceptance posted here. But keep in mind, the CC community represents a small percentage of actual applicants so I’m sure there are more people out there that have heard that don’t post.
We are all almost there!