Is Penn State considered a safety school?

College Search & Lists
1

<p>I’ve always thought of Penn State as a top-notch school, but on here I always see people referring to it as a safety… what’s that all about?</p>

2

<p>PSU isn’t a safety for very many applicants, especially out-of-state prospects.</p>

<p>I think PSU is a credit to the Big Ten.</p>

<p>We might let in more undergrads than the Ivies, but we sometimes kick their tail in graduate programs.</p>

3

<p>Some of those folks may be wrong and get rejected. However, some may be instate and maybe their stats are high enough that they are reasonably assured that they will get in.</p>

<p>That said, anyone who has financial need or expecting merit should never consider PSU as a safety because it gives lousy aid to both instate and OOS, so it is often not affordable. </p>

4

<p>A safety has to be absolutely affordable, and PSU is one of the least affordable colleges instate and OOS.</p>

<p>It gets a lot of grief on CC because a lot of people would like the opportunity to go to PSU, but it’s not so much better than Pitt or UMD or OSU (if it’s better at all) that you want to dump an extra 5-10K per year on it. It’s 45K/yr and there’s no merit or grant money for OOS students. And it surely isn’t Michigan or the top UCs for undergrads.</p>

5

<p>Although Penn State is not an Ivy League school, it has the most highly recruited Business school in the entire nation. The other colleges and majors are very highly ranked as well. Penn State is definitely not a safety school unless you are applying to Michigan or Northwestern or North Carolina. Not to mention Penn State has the largest alumni association in the country. So graduating from Penn State might be the best opportunity you can get. </p>

6

<p>I’ve seen a few posters refer to PSU as a safety. But I don’t think it was insult at all. Those posters had top scores/grades, and for them it probably is a safety. I think an in-state applicant who has a 2200 and a 3.9 and who can afford the tuition justifiably can call PSU a safety.</p>

<p>It’s all perspective. A safety for one person is a reach for another. It’s not a reflection on the school’s worth at all.</p>

7

<p>If you can afford it, depending on your stats, Penn State can be a safety because they have rolling admissions and pretty predictable admissions. </p>

<p>The school (meaning the faculty) is top notch. The students, less so, but since it’s a huge school, there is a large population of high achievers. For them it’s a great school. </p>

<p>For those that rock and roll all night and party every day, well, I guess for them it’s a great school too. Playboy has excluded them from their national ranking of party schools because they only rank amateurs and have designated Penn State party goers as professionals. </p>

8

<p>Any big state school is going to have lots of parties. That doesn’t mean the academics aren’t also good. </p>

<p>(If you’re really a professional, you can do both – very well. LOL)</p>

9

<p>PSU (like Pitt and Temple) are state-aided, not state-supported (I think it gets 2% of its budget funded by PA). In that sense, it’s closer to the contract colleges at Cornell than a true public. Ergo the high in-state tuition rates. PA <em>does</em> have a more heavily-public-funds-supported system, but evidently many folks think the PASSHE schools are beneath them (or don’t consider them for other reasons).</p>

<p>So there are cheap in-state options for PA residents, but I never see schools like Slippery Rock being discussed on CC.</p>

10

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[Citation Needed]</p>

<p>Penn State has a fairly accurate admissions bubble chart, which is why it’s a safety for many people (and was for me)–especially if you apply early/don’t wait until mid January.</p>

<p><a href=“http://admissions.psu.edu/info/counselors/bubble_chart06.pdf”>http://admissions.psu.edu/info/counselors/bubble_chart06.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

11

<p>WSJ had a study that named PSU most recruited school by business firms for all jobs. </p>

<p><a href=“Best Colleges & Universities - Ranked by Job Recruiters - WSJ”>http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704554104575435563989873060&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

12

<p>For some students with certain gpa and test scores, PSU can be a good safety school if they apply early. If they get accepted early, (and the chances of acceptance are much better early in the process), it can then be the bird in hand and then the student can “buy some lottery tickets” since an excellent choice is already there.</p>

13

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<p>Strange to see only one member of the M7 on there (and ranked near the bottom).</p>

14

<p>There you go. They have their own niche and it is often outside 98% of US businesses.(at UG level).</p>

15

<p>@Vctory: Why would you expect M7 schools? These are businesses of all types recruiting undergrads. Most M7 MBA students target banking or consulting, and there are only a handful of those companies. If you ranked by which schools have the most students going in to MBB consulting and BB banks, the list would look quite different.</p>

<p>I’m not surprised that more recruiters come to PSU than any other. It’s a giant campus.</p>

16

<p>“Is it a safety?” Is a poor choice of question.
Most schools, besides the very top tier, will be safeties for SOME KIDS. What a safety is for you is completely determined by your stats. If you have stats in their range, it is a target for you; if you have stats well above their range, it is a safety for you; and if you have stats below their range, it is a reach for you.
Top-notch is relative. You should choose a school where YOU fit best and YOU will succeed. Penn state is not a highly selective institution, but that doesnt make it bad.
Also, you may be confusing Penn State with UPenn, which is an Ivy League school.</p>