<p>If I apply as an undecided major will that help my chances of being accepted, instead of lets say majoring in business? Also, If i get accepted into undecided major I can later on switch into Smeal correct?</p>
<p>Yes..........</p>
<p>Slugger - my son grappled with the idea of applying DUS or Smeal because it IS harder to get into Smeal, and he was very keen on PSU because of NROTC. So we researched the standards carefully and applied Smeal when we felt comfortable he would be accepted. </p>
<p>So you need to research the relative admissions standards and where you fit. If PSU-UP is a core pick for you, and you NEED to get in to keep your options open, you may wish to apply DUS and improve your chances. </p>
<p>Smeal is currently very popular (as with most universities) and has become very competitive. I was very impressed with the quality of kids I saw at the Smeal open houses and so forth. (It is not that I was unimpressed with the other students, but when they tell you Smeal is highly competitive in my view that was reflected in my brief overview of the students I saw and met.) </p>
<p>Make your decision soon and get the application in at earliest opportunity. Also, I called Admissions with some of these questions and they were very helpful. They would NOT give any chances, but were helpful nonetheless. </p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Yeah I am sending in my application tonight. I have like a 3.4 uw and 3.7 w( 10 AP's), and 28 on the ACTs. I think I will apply to DUS and then just apply into Smeal because I really want to go to PSU.</p>
<p>Just remember that you can switch into Smeal as long as you meet the entrance requirements. It is not guaranteed. And from the PSU site it says "Most DUS students are not eligible to apply for a major in the Smeal College of Business until their fourth semester."
I am not saying what you are doing is a bad idea, but just think you should know that it is not guaranteed and you likely will not be transferring into Smeal the first year you are there.</p>
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I was very impressed with the quality of kids I saw at the Smeal open houses and so forth. (It is not that I was unimpressed with the other students, but when they tell you Smeal is highly competitive in my view that was reflected in my brief overview of the students I saw and met.)
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<p>Maybe I missed something during my time there.</p>
<p>Mighty - My experience was not terribly extensive, but my comments arise from the types of questions and familiarity many of the kids had with what they wanted out of Smeal and their careers. I've been in finance for 25 years and it was pretty clear to me that some of these kids had done their homework and were at Smeal for specific career goals. </p>
<p>That might be bit different from a similar selection of DUS kids who don't yet know what they want to major in. (And that's not a criticism.)</p>
<p>MN - it's clear from previous posts that you were not impressed with the students at Smeal. Then again, you only had freshman year to go on. Things do get more serious as you get into junior and senior years and the less serious students are weeded out. From my perspective, if you work hard and take advantage of opportunities, Smeal is a great place to shine with prospective employers. High GPA, involvement in the Investment Club, honors classes, internships...all give you a needed edge in the market. It's the old question...is it better to shine in a good but not elite school like Penn State or do just OK at a place like Cornell? I suspect there's a different answer to that question depending on what type of student you are.
For smart kids who want to stay in the PA, NY, NJ region, Penn State Smeal seems to be a good choice. I know lots of successful alumni around here...and they love hiring more of their own!
Hope Michigan is making you happy. Watch out this weekend...</p>
<p>No, you better watch out this weekend! Michigan is PSU's first real test.</p>
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From my perspective, if you work hard and take advantage of opportunities, Smeal is a great place to shine with prospective employers.
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<p>That holds true no matter where you go though. You will obviously succeed if you make the most of your opportunities.</p>
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.is it better to shine in a good but not elite school like Penn State or do just OK at a place like Cornell?
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<p>I suppose that if you're the type of person that can make the best use of your opportunities at a place like PSU, then you can obviously do better than just OK at a place like Cornell. </p>
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That might be bit different from a similar selection of DUS kids who don't yet know what they want to major in. (And that's not a criticism.)
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<p>It's not just DUS kids though. I had a lot of people in my Business classes that had no idea what they wanted to do in Business, and some that didn't know why they were in Business. I'm not saying that PSU-Smeal is a bad school. In fact, the courses offered at Penn State (not just Smeal but at DUS as well) aren't that different to the ones offered at my school. The content is the same and grading policies aren't much different. The only major difference lies in the student body. If you're an above-average student its not hard to stand out in your class.</p>
<p>slugger25</p>
<p>My D is a junior at PSU. She applied DUS. When she was in her third semester she declared a major, speech therapy. It was no problem because speech therapy is not a controlled major. However many majors in Smeal are controlled such as finance. </p>
<p>A few of my daughters friends could not get into Smeal (their intended major) their junior year, because of these controls. Her one friend transferred into marketing as a major, it was the easiest one to get into. Smeal has become very competitive. Since you applied early, this is what I might do. If you get accepted say in November/December, call the school. And ask if there is any problem for you to switch into Smeal as you have just decided on a major. It doesn't hurt...</p>
<p>How did Smeal become so competitive to get into in one year? My stats weren't even amazing and they put me into the sapphire program.</p>
<p>MN - I certainly agree that you can make the most of your opportunities anywhere. But PSU gets lots of recruiters from big companies visiting. And they have lots of successful alumni in the area. So your chances of attracting their attention are pretty good if you're an excellent and involved student. I'm pretty sure that's not true everywhere.
This weekend will be close I think...it's actually very hard to call given that PSU has not been tested.
To the OP, yes, you can switch into Smeal. But some majors do have tough entrance requirements so beware. As I said before, the less serious students really do get weeded out by junior year. So work hard!</p>
<p>I'm pretty impressed with the Finance ranking. 15th?!</p>
<p>Mighty - Slugger asked a straightforward question and the thread is seeking to provide some guidance. Your comments are noted. WHy don't you take your discontent to another thread that's not trying to help out an honest question ? </p>
<p>PSU is in your rear view mirror. Move on.</p>
<p>I kid on my floor applied to Smeal, got rejected, then called the admissions office and switched his major to DUS and got accepted.</p>
<p>Smeal isn't THAT selective, but compared to all the others schools at PSU it is hard to get in to due to its popularity.</p>
<p>The majors within Smeal have different gpa requirements. I know a kid who was forced to declare himself "undecided" because he went that summer before freshman year, but he always wanted accounting. Well, after two years he tried to declare accounting as a major but was 0.1 short in the GPA. They absolutely refused to let him be an accounting major, although they let him have some other major within Smeal (maybe finance?). Anyway, they are very rigid in their requirements, so be careful.</p>
<p>Finance requires a 3.3 and all the other majors I believe require a 3.0, except for Economics.</p>
<p>I don't remember what the required gpa was, but they apparently did have a pretty rigid requirement. He may have selected economics rather than finance. I don't know what they care if more people pick accounting or finance or whatever. You would think they would provide what the market demands (oooooh, a business concept!)</p>