<p>With 8 more days remaining, I don't have much time to decide. Accepted to both with no merit aid which means cost of attendance is exactly the same. My intended major is engineering or business(currently undecided). Rural, urban, big, small doesn't really matter to me. I can adapt with anything. I was checking the rankings and stuff, PSU is ranked higher overall at #46 and University of Pittsburgh at #58.</p>
<p>One thing I noticed (ironic and quite disturbing) is that University of Pittsburgh's 25th percentile is like Penn State's 50th percentile for SAT. 1780 average SAT vs 1880 average SAT ? 1780 average SAT is really bad, this means almost everyone gets accepted there. You could also say PSU is for Pitt rejects ?</p>
<p>I heard that for Business and engineering PSU is better and it also has more reputation than University of Pittsburgh overall. The question I have is how does it compare to Pitt ? Should I really go with Pitt just because its more selective ?</p>
<p>Congratulations on the acceptances. I don’t know any specifics on either school’s business and engineering programs, but I wanted to comment on the rankings ans SAT scores. One thing I’ve learned is unless your going to one of the top 15-20 schools, the rankings are really insignificant. To me it makes more sense to put the school in tiers or peer groups and based on the numbers you mentioned I’d consider peers. Being that close together in ranking I’d recommend you look at each school’s program (which your doing), location (where would you rather live-city or PS is pretty much its own town), atmosphere/social (sports school, frat school, etc.) and cost, which you’ve also done. As for those scores, just make sure you’re comparing apples to apples. Penn State has several satellite campuses and many students whose stats aren’t strong enough for the main campus are redirected to other campuses. They are considered Penn State students too and many eventually transfer to the main campus. Do those ranges reflect all campuses or just the main campus. Pittsburgh does the same thing, but on a much smaller scale. They only have a few satellite campuses. I also know plenty of kids who easily got into Pittsburgh, but not Penn State’s main campus. Finally nothing replaces a visit, so if you’ve had a chance where did you feel happiest or where you belonged? Personally I loved Pittsburgh. They had sports, research, a hospital on campus, new dorms. I haven’t visited Penn State’s main campus-my niece was diverted to a satellite which she didn’t like. Good luck to you. What an exciting decision!</p>
<p>If you’re thinking business or engineering my suggestion is Pitt will be better than Penn State. In terms of Engineering, we have a LOT of association or “professional” professors who work in industry during the day and then come teach at night- so they’re bringing a lot of practical experience (and networking) with them. Plus we have a really good co-op program (work every other semester in industry) which has extremely good placement for students. A lot of the students even work in Pittsburgh and continue to take night classes so that they don’t get too far behind. </p>
<p>The research opportunities are also really good for engineers- a lot of the professors are willing to take students on in their labs if you want to get some experience for either snagging a co-op/internship or going on to grad school.</p>
<p>In terms of business- we have a lot of places in the area that students can work at (PNC comes to mind, I’m sure there’s more) and get some experience from. It helps being in a more urban atmosphere because you get a lot of businesses, industry, etc. that you don’t get in a small college town.</p>
<p>In terms of practicality- it is easier to travel to Pitt rather than Penn State (bus, train, fly, etc.)</p>
<p>Penn State has 19 4-year branch campus not including a large on-line school they brand their “World Campus”. Pitt has four regional campuses, one of which is only a two-year associates degree-only school with a few hundred students. 50% of PSU undergrads are at University Park (main). 75% of Pitt students are at the main campus. </p>
<p>To answer the question, the admissions numbers provided for PSU and Pitt are for their main campuses admission only and only for first-year freshman admissions (not transfers). Both schools consider all students, regardless of location, as students of their universities, and the diplomas do not denote the particular campus. This also goes for 4,600 hundred students at PSU’s on-line school for which there is no real equivalent at Pitt, and for which there are essentially minimal (GED only) admissions requirements.</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://admissions.psu.edu/pennstate/campuses/2plus2/]60%[/url”>2+2 Plan - Undergraduate Admissions]60%[/url</a>] of PSU students start off their first two years at a branch and then transfer into the main campus which means most at main did start there. No numbers are available but most Pitt regional campus students do not transfer into the main campus as the three four-year Pitt regionals are structured more as independent schools with a greater breadth of degree programs than many of the Penn State branches.</p>
<p>Combined university admissions numbers are not published by either school. However, I do have comparative university-wide admission numbers for PSU and Pitt for the Fall 2009 academic year (note this does not include PSU’s on-line “world campus” that does not require standardized tests, etc).</p>
<p>System-wide Fall 2009
Pitt (5 campuses, main plus 4 regionals) and PSU (20 campuses, main plus 19 branches)</p>
<p>Enrolled freshman:
Pitt: 5,501
PSU: 15,494</p>
<p>% of applicants admitted:
Pitt: 67.0%
PSU: 72.3%</p>
<p>I’d say that PSU is better for engineering. I have friends that wanted to go into engineering, and it was a no-brainer for them. Also, I do agree that PSU had more of a reputation than Pitt (just my opinion, though).</p>
<p>I know you said that the campus doesn’t really matter, but it never hurts to visit. Penn State Main is pretty selective, I believe. Like someone else mentioned, it’s a town on it’s own. Pretty much have to take a bus to class if you live in an apartment far enough away (huge campus). Pitt’s campus is pretty nice. A lot different, though, with it being in Oakland. Obviously more of a city vibe. Something to think about even though you said that you could adjust to anything.</p>
<p>could we get an update on your decision and whether or not you made the right choice? I am now in the same boat you were in and I’ve narrowed my selection to either pitt or penn state, also for engineering, but I just can’t decide</p>
<p>Engineering. Look at the specific program you are interested in and those rankings. Eons ago I went to Purdue for an engr program ranked in top 5. Best move ever… Prestigious program in a state school. Our other flagship university, Indiana U, was known for business. </p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State for any Medical or Health oriented discipline.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., I would opt for Penn State over Pitt … other than for BioMed Engg.</p>
<p>Though I am from PA, my D2 has decided to opt for studying ChemE elsewhere. Her current shortlisted ones : GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…will decide based on the outcome at UCB.</p>
<p>@neilson18, here are some links with rankings/info for you to decide:</p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State in most of the Medical or Health related disciplines and the Pitt Medical school is highly ranked and internationally recognized.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., my preference would be for Penn State over Pitt… other than for BioMed Engg. My D2 plans to study ChemE starting Fall 2014 and though we are from PA, she has opted not to study in-state. Her current shortlisted ones include GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…with the outcome at UCB being awaited. She will be a 3rd generation engineer in our family, with both my dad and I being Mechanical engineers !</p>
<p>@neilson18, the following links provide some rankings/info that can help you to decide:</p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State in most of the Medical or Health related disciplines and the Pitt Medical school is highly ranked and internationally recognized.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., my preference would be for Penn State over Pitt… other than for BioMed Engg. My D2 plans to study ChemE starting Fall 2014 and though we are from PA, she has opted not to study in-state. Her current shortlisted ones include GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…with the outcome at UCB being awaited. She will be a 3rd generation engineer in our family, with both my dad and I being Mechanical engineers !</p>
<p>@neilson18, the following links provide some rankings/info that can help you to decide:</p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State in most of the Medical or Health related disciplines and the Pitt Medical school is highly ranked and internationally recognized.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., my preference would be for Penn State over Pitt… other than for BioMed Engg. My D2 plans to study ChemE starting Fall 2014 and though we are from PA, she has opted not to study in-state. Her current shortlisted ones include GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…with the outcome at UCB being awaited. She will be a 3rd generation engineer in our family, with both my dad and I being Mechanical engineers !</p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State in most of the Medical or Health related disciplines and the Pitt Medical school is highly ranked and internationally recognized.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., my preference would be for Penn State over Pitt… other than for BioMed Engg. My D2 plans to study ChemE starting Fall 2014 and though we are from PA, she has opted not to study in-state. Her current shortlisted ones include GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…with the outcome at UCB being awaited. She will be a 3rd generation engineer in our family, with both my dad and I being Mechanical engineers !</p>
<p>@neilson18, the following links provide some rankings/info that can help you to decide:</p>
<p>My D1 attends Pitt Med school. Pitt is superior to Penn State in most of the Medical or Health related disciplines and the Pitt Medical school is highly ranked and internationally recognized.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to Engg., my preference would be for Penn State over Pitt… other than for BioMed Engg. My D2 plans to study ChemE starting Fall 2014 and though we are from PA, she has opted not to study in-state. Her current shortlisted ones include GTech, UMinn, Wisc-Mad and Purdue…with the outcome at UCB being awaited. She will be a 3rd generation engineer in our family, with both my dad and I being Mechanical engineers !</p>
<p>@neilson18, the following links provide some rankings/info that can help you to decide:</p>