<p>Oh. That’s great!!! I hope I do good!! I will begin this fall :)))))</p>
<p>Hey everybody, I got admitted to Penn State recently and I’ll be starting next fall. If anybody can help me, I have a bunch of questions. First of all, after I accept the offer of admission when do I have to take the placement tests? and after taking them when will the advising day be?</p>
<p>My second question is about housing, Can I complete and submit the housing application before taking the tests?, which halls do you recommend?, and can I apply for the special living options?
I’ll be majoring in Computer Engineering and I would prefer a calm environment with not a lot of noise.</p>
<p>I appreciate your help!</p>
<p>Do you know any students from the Altoona campus? Do you know if they like it there even though it’s not main? Do they come up a lot on the weekends and stuff? Getting denied from main hurts. lol.</p>
<p>While The Corner Room is great - very classic State College - I recommend the Deli. My sister goes to Penn State and every time I visit we HAVE to get the spinach-artichoke dip there!</p>
<p>The Deli is nice (try the potato soup!), but I HIGHLY recommend a visit to Spats Cafe on College Ave (try EVERYTHING!). Also enjoy the ice cream while in town - the Creamery on campus for your richer ice creams like Vanilla and Chocolate, Meyers Dairy down in Boalsburg for your fruitier ice creams (try the Lemon Custard. Trust me.).</p>
<p>
I had friends who went there, and gave it mixed reviews. It is a little too far away for most students to come down to State College on a regular basis, most only come down for special events and the like.</p>
<p>
As an engineering major I would recommend West Halls, but that is a long shot. If possible, try for Central, Polluck, or South Halls and try to avoid North or East - they usually try to cram freshmen into East Halls as much as possible, but they are a remote and somewhat dreary part of campus. You can absolutely request special living options as a freshman.</p>
<p>A few questions…</p>
<ol>
<li>Has housing been a problem for sophomores? Since Penn only guarantees housing for the first year, have sophomores ever been without a place to live the 2nd year?</li>
<li>If you’re not a jock, will you survive at Penn? My son loves football (as a spectator), but when it comes to participating, he is more into tennis, golf, and bowling. He is definitely not a jock, and is more on the quiet type…will he be able to find others like himself, or will he have a difficult time?</li>
<li>For those who have undeclared majors, how is the advisors?</li>
<li>If you have a difficult course, are there options for extra help/tutoring?</li>
<li>What 4-5 things would you recommend to any incoming freshman?</li>
<li>If you could change one thing at Penn, what would you change?</li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks for the info</p>
<p>1. Yes, but only a little - the university tries to find dorm space for all freshmen and sophomores (even though it is only guaranteed to freshmen), but a few sophomores still wind up in “temporary housing” (dorm lounges) that may in fact last the entire year.</p>
<p>2. Absolutely! With ~40,000 undergrads there are certainly a wide range of activities and athletic levels. I do not think I participated in any organized sports while at PSU and never lacked for people like myself. Penn State’s athletic reputation is built on the actual athletes, not the general student body!</p>
<p>3. So-so - your initial advisor will not be able to do much more than help you navigate the system, but department advisors will usually make time for you as well if you want to discuss their major. So go to your assigned advisor for paperwork issues, and department advisors to figure out which major you want and what courses to take to get there.</p>
<p>4. Yes. All professors and TA’s hold office hours where anyone struggling in the course can get help, plus there are a number of organizations on campus that offer free tutoring for common courses. If you are willing to pay, there are CERTAINLY paid tutors available - grad students know the material and always need more money.</p>
<p>5. a) Find a sport or a gym and attend regularly - the “Freshman 15” is a reality for too many people, and living healthy will let you study AND party better!</p>
<p>b) Remember that your primary goals in your first two years are GPA, GPA, and GPA - not football, not the opposite sex, not getting into that frat, not. A good GPA opens all kinds of doors and will benefit you directly or indirectly for your entire life.</p>
<p>c) Talk to people - your professors, your TA’s, your advisors, etc. It will help you to understand the material, improve your grades, and help you focus your academic efforts towards a job or grad school. This includes going to academic and advising hours. Find people in your classes (Especially the tough ones) who will study with you and cooperate (if allowed) on homeworks - discussion can help you understand the material in ways you may not get on your own.</p>
<p>d) Do the academics FIRST. It is far far better to go to the football game tired from a late night of homework than it is to get a C in the class because you didn’t start the homework until the night before. Starting early ensures that you have adequate time to complete the work, as well as good time to ask the professor or TA questions (as they are unlikely to respond to emails sent at 2am the day it is due). When I was a TA I heard far too many people complain that they lacked adequate time to do the work, immediately after mentioning how great the party/game/all-night online raid went.</p>
<p>e) Always, Always, ALWAYS keep an eye towards what you will do AFTER school. As great as it is to explore and pursue your dreams, eventually you have to graduate and get a job. If you want to be an engineer you can probably get a job with a 2.5+ GPA, but a philosopher probably needs a 3.8+ GPA and grad school to boot. Make sure that by the time you graduate you are competitive in a field that you enjoy enough to make a career. Barely graduating in a field you love or mastering a field you hate are equal wastes of college.</p>
<p>**6. **First of all, it is Penn State or PSU, never Penn (which refers to the University of Pennsylvania). Personally I would change the Board of Trustees, I have no specific compaints about the school from the perspective of a student.</p>
<p>I have heard that penn state has an amazing program for undecided students!!!</p>
<p>kblitz - we were very impressed with the DUS program for ‘undecideds’ like my D. It’s mainly what helped her make the decision to attend Penn State. Being from PA, and having numerous cousins who are alum in the family, she’s kind of ‘grown up’ PSU but was torn between UDel, JMU and PSU. It was during our second trip to campus on an accepted student day specifically for DUS that really sealed the deal for her - -and us. One of the factors she liked is that Penn State offered so much in the way of a program for undecided, rather than just "well you’ll take GenEd courses anyway, you’ll be fine, just take that time to think about what you want to do… " that we heard elsewhere. The advisors really work with you (again, it’s what you put into it as with anything) to connect you with professors in other areas, help you get into classes that may nudge you in the direction you think you want to go, while making sure you still have the credits you need. I was impressed with the high number of DUS students who indeed graduate in four years. My D is very excited to get started and in fact, will be heading up for the LEAP program instead of starting in fall - we heard so many great things about it, seemed like the right thing to do. Good luck to you !</p>
<p>PUPSMOM- I was actually responding to PortMom. I’m actually a communications major definitely attending PSU, but I’m also doing the LEAP program :)</p>
<p>Got into York campus.</p>
<p>It seems as if this campus has no on-campus accommodation. So, someone in charge sent me an email regarding off campus apartments. Any idea about this?
I mean I am an international student, and it seems a little bit hard to me. What if I won’t be able to find a room?
Which one costs more? Off campus or On campus?
Do you guys think that I will be able to transfer to somewhere that offers on campus accommodation?
Will I miss my current spot if I ask another campus to re-evaluate my application? Do I have to send another series of transcripts again?</p>
<p>I have sent some of my questions somewhere else in this forum. Hope you guys don’t mind since I need an answer in a short time.</p>
<p>Also, What are the placement tests? How hard are they? Is SAT knowledge enough to get a good grade in it?</p>
<p>Thank you very much!</p>
<p>
Then you are in trouble. Check with the campus, I am sure they have ways to help you out. Remember that in the worst case scenario, you have a crummy apartment for a year while you find something better - you will survive this.</p>
<p>
It depends on the level of accommodations you want. I have seen people get off-campus housing for a fraction of the cost of living on campus, and have also seen people spend far more.</p>
<p>
Not on that basis, no. Generally speaking, this sort of thing is not considered a valid reason for transfer as it is a problem for everyone and not just for you.</p>
<p>
No, but don’t hold your breath. Your transcripts are now part of PSU records, you will not need to resubmit them for any campus.</p>
<p>
Penn State offers a wide continuum of core courses, and the placement tests are used to determine where you can start within that continuum. As an example, in math you might need to start with trigonometry or you may already know a great deal of calculus - the tests help to find the right class based on that knowledge.</p>
<p>They are not incredibly hard, the idea is not to give you a grade. Don’t stress, and don’t waste time studying - if you do poorly, it really does mean you should take the more basic exams, and temporarily elevating your knowledge in these areas will only hurt you in the long run.</p>
<p>It covers a wider range of material than the SAT’s - calculus, for example - but again, as a placement test you are not really penalized for lacking knowledge in certain areas. You will not get a grade, just a set of classes where you should start. Depending on the major you are pursuing, this might mean extra classes, but you will still be able to complete the degree and should not be significantly delayed if you talk to your advisor and schedule appropriately.</p>
<p>Many people I know were accepted by 2+2 plan recently. Is there still any room in University Park campus, and when is the last decision date?
Thanks</p>
<p>Is there any hope for someone that just applied for the University Park campus? My grades are not spectacular and I don’t have a mile long list of EC’s. I have taken a lot of honors courses but no AP. </p>
<p>GPA: 3.1 Unweighted (My school doesn’t weigh)
ACT: 26 Composite
Rank: Top 25%</p>
<p>ECs:
Mock Trial - 2 Years
LEO Club (Community Service) - 2 Years
Student of the Term
Paintball - Played regionally and nationally in tournaments for the past 6 years.</p>
<p>I’ve gone through some personal troubles over the past couple of years which have affected my schoolwork but things have improved recently and my grades show it.</p>
<p>@bconnell, you have a great chance of getting in to the PSU system (since they are required to admit essentially everyone in some capacity), but it is unlikely with your numbers that you will start at UP unless you have some compelling reason, like already being a State College resident or having a spot on the football team.</p>
<p>Thanks for the response. I only applied to UP as I don’t have much interest in feeder campuses (did the same thing for Pitt). I’ve been having some second guesses about the schools I have gotten into thus far and wanted more options. Penn State seems like a great school but I just don’t want to pay OOS tuition for a secondary campus as I feel like being on the main campus is important for all it’s resources and just the experience in general.</p>
<p>The downside is I was going to apply back in September/October but put it off as I thought I’d be set with what I did apply to. My stats are higher than several kids from my school that got into PSU UP, but then again they most likely applied early.</p>
<p>3 Questions:
-Why does Penn State UP accept so many people when it’s considered on the top 50 schools in America and top 15 public schools in the nation…?
-I’ve been accepted to Smeal College of Business at UP and I was wondering if it’s competition to get into this program?
-When is a good time to pay my deposit for this school?</p>
<p>@bconnell - UP is pretty competitive, and while crossing off the branch campuses CAN improve your chances at UP, I do not think it will improve your chances enough. I am hoping that you have other good choices, as PSU OOS tuition is a bit much even for UP, and (as you noted) too much for most people at branch campuses.</p>
<p>That having been said, please remember that you will have the chance to transfer to UP (depending on your major, it may be required) later on. For most people, attending a branch campus had little impact on their studies.</p>
<p>
Because it is a big school. If you look at that list of schools, you will find a bunch of other schools of comparable size - remember that big schools have more resources, and that often lets them offer a better education.</p>
<p>
I believe that there is some level of competition to get into the college, but most of it depends on the major - some are extremely competitive, others take anyone interested.</p>
<p>
Now? You have to pay it before the first day of classes, but I am not sure if there is a specific deadline. Compared to the rest of the costs, the deposit is pretty small, so you might as well get it out of the way.</p>
<p>Why is your name Duke when you go to Penn State? Haha!</p>