What’s going on with Chancellor’s? Anyone have an update? Nothing on this thread for a while. Just curious
I applied 12/10 and still have not received a decision. Commited to OSU almost a month ago so doesn’t really matter but it’s still ridiculous. Just withdrew app
That’s pretty unbelievable. Good luck, Buckeye!
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That’s so crazy!
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Hi. Is anyone familiar with placement tests/criteria for incoming first-years? I’ve been reading the Pitt website but I’m finding different info in different places. Here are my questions:
- Does everyone have to take a math assessment? When is this given? (Can they take it online at home, or is it given at Pitt before classes start?)
- Do they take a language placement test? When/how is this given? I read somewhere that if your student has taken 4 years of lang in HS and received a B or higher they are exempt from the lang requirement (in Dietrich). Does this sound right?
- I also read that if student scored 660 or above on SAT in reading/writing, that they will be exempt from the Writing Comp requirement. Another webpage said 560 or higher. Which is correct? And if a student applied test optional, what criteria will they use?
First, this probably changes from year to year. That said here is my experience with two kids who attended Pitt.
- The math test is on line and at some point they give you the link to it. I don’t know if it’s required but both my kids took it.
- Yes you can get out of the language requirement as you say. They also have placement tests if you wish to continue in a language that you have already taken. Again, these are online.
- My daughter had a 750 English SAT and two 4s on English APs and she did not place out of the freshman English comp requirement. She did get course credit for the APs. There is a more remedial English writing class that I think kids with low SATs are required to take which is probably what the info you are seeing with the 560 is referring to. I’m not sure what the 660 refers to unless they’ve changed things. And I have no idea what they do with test optional since that didn’t exist when my kids applied.
Thanks so much! Sounds like English comp is required of everyone, then.
Yes unless you have Ap or dual enrollment credits. Pitt is very generous with accepting dual enrollment credits. My daughter was able to use her English ones to get out of the basic English comp class. She also used calc, sociology, and the bio lab portion of the bio credit, even though she still took the bio 1 lecture. I mention all this because we had no idea they would accept so many credits. No where on their website could we find that information.
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The gen ed requirements and exemptions are here:
The AP/IB credits are here:
https://admissions.pitt.edu/first-year-student/ap-ib-credit/
- Not sure on the math assessment, sorry. Daughter is taking BC now and plans to be done after that.
- Language is basically 3 years in high school with a B or better to meet the req. If you want to take higher-level courses at Pitt, they offer online placement exams. French also has an unofficial 10-minute quiz on the department home page to give students a rough idea of where they will probably land.
- The writing comp requirement is 660+ AND a 5 on AP Lit or a 5 on AP Lang. Not sure on TO. I assume the requirement is not waived if there is no 660+.
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The one question I do have is how AP Bio relates to the lab sequences at Pitt. The AP credit guide I posted above says they get credits for the bio lecture classes (0150, 0160) but there is no mention of the accompanying bio labs (0050, 0060). So if they score a 5, they get out of the Bio 1 and Bio 2 lectures (3 credits each) but have to go back and take the Bio 1 and Bio 2 labs (1 credit each) while also taking biochemistry? Not sure if any current students/parents have experience with this. I know there are a lot of pre-meds in the thread.
As a pre-med the only AP credit my son used was his 5 for Calc BC.
He has heard some med schools do not accept AP credits for their pre-med requirements so he didn’t use other AP credits from the sciences.
FYI, the 1 credit Bio labs are a lot of work so I imagine that AP credit swap would not include the labs but I don’t know for sure.
He did get the language requirement waived for 4 years of high school Latin.
I think his comp was waived but he took a 4 credit first-year seminar, whatever that is.
My kid was not pre-med, though I would not recommend using AP credit to get out of Bio, for reasons others have mentioned.
Like caz0743, my kid didn’t have to take comp with 5s in AP Language and Lit, though she did take a first year seminar - I think these are small classes with specialized interesting topics.
Kid did get quite a bit of AP credit, such that she entered with sophomore standing. There were some oddities, like accepting AP Physics C Mechanics but not Electricity and Magnetism, so she had to take the second physics course (required for one of her majors - math). She did not receive lab credit from AP Bio or Physics C, though she did not need any labs.
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D22 submitted band audition yesterday and has already heard that she’s been accepted to the marching band. Nice that it’s a quick turnaround to hear back! Hoping Sutherland and the Honors LLC works out as well. Any idea when the students will hear about housing placement and LLC acceptances?
Happy Monday to you all!
Oh, yes, and we locked in for our football season tickets as well! 
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That’s great about band, Winky! We are also hoping Sutherland works out, and wondering when we will hear something. My D applied for a Philly-area alumni chapter scholarship, so waiting on that bit of news, too.
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That’s great! Good luck. My D18 applied to a local alumni group for a scholarship her year and got it. We thought it was for $2,000, but it was $2,000 every year!!!
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ISEF 2022 Finalists??
Any Class of 2026 commits ISEF Finalists in Atlanta in 2 weeks? D22 is looking to connect with other Young Pitt Scientists.
See you in Atlanta!!
That’s reasonable advice for pre-meds. I can appreciate that students don’t want to hurt their chances for medical school. That said, there are a lot of science majors at Pitt who do not plan on attending medical school. For them, scoring a 5 on AP Bio (which exempts a student from Bio 2 / 0160 at Pitt ) but then taking Bio 1 / 0150 is largely a waste of time and money and not in the spirit of intellectual curiosity or of challenging oneself at college. For good students who work hard, As are attainable without retaking classes two levels beneath them.
Here’s an interesting example to consider… my S19 could have used his AP chem credits to skip Chem. Instead he enrolled in Honors Chem 1/2 with labs and these classes alone have been some of his favorite classes at Pitt. Not only did he end up minoring in Chemistry but he’s been very close to this professor and he’s now one of his go-to recommenders. My son says what he learned in high school was not nearly the depth of what he learned in UHC Chem 1/2 and that these classes set him up to excel in all Chem classes at Pitt, including Org Chem1/2, Chem Bio etc. He is so glad he didn’t use the AP credits and this is coming from the HS Valedictorian currently maintaining a 4.0 at Pitt.
If a student is just bringing over AP credits to count as a gen ed requirement then this might be a good idea, however if they are majoring in a science it may not be.
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My D got out of the Eng Comp requirement because of both her verbal SAT score and getting a 5 on the AP Lang test. She did not take the AP Lit test because even if she got a 5 she would have to take Lit.
Her roommate went to an IB high school and got out of Lit because of her IB test score but had to take Comp. So it looks like you definitely have to take one or the other.
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