When to apply?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Penn State
1

<p>Hello, I hope your summer is going well. I just had some questions about applying to Penn State - University Park. PSU is my number one choice for college and I want to know when is the best possible time for me to apply to position myself for the best chance of admission. I know that PSU accepts their applicants on a rolling admissions basis so applying earlier is better. My problem is that I do not think I have the credentials to get in if I apply right away. On collegeboard.com and on their website they explain that the middle 50% for SAT scores and GPA are as follows:</p>

<p>SAT Critical Reading: 530 - 630
SAT Math: 560 - 670
Penn State University Park GPA (Weighted, but based on a 4.0 scale): 3.57-3.97</p>

<p>My GPA is a 3.65 so it is in the lower end for the average accepted applicant, but I will be graduating with 8 AP's. My math score is a 690 which is well above the average, but my CR score is a 550. I think if I retake the SAT I can pull the CR score above a 600.</p>

<p>I know PSU doesn't really look at the application very closely, it's really just a numbers game, but my GPA had a huge upward trend.</p>

<p>Freshman: 3.400
Sophmore: 3.577
Junior: 3.952</p>

<p>So, I don't know if I should wait until after I retake my SAT to apply, or apply immediately (the application comes out Aug. 1st) Any help would be much appreciated.</p>

<p>P.S I AM a PA resident</p>

2

<p>Are you applying to the college of engineering or business or something else? I would suggest to apply by early to mid October.</p>

3

<p>You have an excellent chance. Apply as early as possible and answer "yes" that you would consider a summer session start. Good luck!</p>

4

<p>I just looked at the PSU website and it turns out that for the class of '09 the Writing portion which I got a 500 on :[. And ideally I would like to major in ChemE, but if I don't get accepted into the E program then I would just go the the general school of studies and later transfer into it ASAP.</p>