So happy to have stumbled upon this thread. Daughter is very interested in Penn State from virtual tours taken.
Stats:
GPA: 3.67 UW/ 4.17 W
Took 1 AP (out of two possible this year, none offered prior to junior year), planning on taking 3 APs next year. All other classes but two were honors.
SAT: 1470 (720 RW, 750 M)
ECs: 4 year varsity athlete, also competes year round in her sport. League all star awards, over 150 hours community service, part-time job school year (after school program) and summer (camp counselor), peer mentor.
OOS (MA)
Would apply for DUS as she is totally undecided between Education, Health Policy and Admin, or Liberal Arts (pyschology, criminology).
Planning to attend Spend a Summer Day next month. Any advice to help us get the most out of that visit? The description of it isnāt all that elucidatingā¦
My recommendation would be to check Fall AND Summer, explain in her statement how sheās undecided between Education, HPA, and Liberal Arts (do not mention which majors) and why - courses, ECs, personal experiences, that make her interested in these professional fields. Definitely submit the test scores.
General advice: be careful in the way you input the SRAR. HS classes taken in MS ācountā. Any non regular class needs to be indicated. Itās worth it for parents to review because itās tedious and non-detzil oriented kids could skip something that would penalize them.
What academic areas of interest did she check?
Did she check interest in Schreyer?
Iām not 100% sure what areas of interest she checked.. She did check interest in Schreyers, and wanted to attend the information session in April, but we couldnāt make it work schedule wise. Right now, Iām not really sure I want her to apply for Schreyers because she intends to continue her sport in college (cheerleading, which, while she is high level is not an NCAA sport and therefore is not recruitable in the normal sense - ie, sheāll need to get into any school without that as anything other than a regular EC ) and I think it might be too big a time commitment starting out. Iād rather she get her legs under her first and then decide later.
Is it problematic to be so undecided? Would it make more sense to narrow it down a little more first?
No, itās perfectly fine to be undecided - college is to explore, think, grow and as a result most students actually change their minds between senior year in HS and Sophomore year. DUS students are just more clear-eyed about it - know that you know nothing type of philosophy that allows people to learn more
DUS is āpivot to anythingā: she can take intro classes for everything sheās interested in - and these classes would be gen eds for the other majors so no time is lost.
Schreyer isnāt a time commitment - it offers more support for each studentās project through a personal adviser, smaller/more interactive classes, but students can really ādoseā how many Honors classes they take. The minimum is 2 each semester freshman year (137-138, which knocks out 2 gen eds and typically includes a field trip +2 others), though some students take more. Sure, you canāt hide in the back of the lecture hall in a discussion class but itās also more stimulating and in the end itās not harder. In fact, Honors students tend to have higher grades in their honors courses because they suit their learning style best.
She would have a general tour (you can choose guided or self guided : try guided then add whatever you wish youād seen - I doubt youāll visit the Arboretum for instanceā¦ though this might appeal to adults more than to students!) and you will meet with Department representatives. There may be student representatives. Hopefully you will eat at a dining hall or in the HUB and they should include some dorms so that students have a better idea of what lifeās like on a huge campus like Penn Stateās.
Are you sure the cheerleading coach canāt do anything for her application? Even club sport leaders sometimes give Admissions an indication for the handful of students they āsupportā (Iām not sure so best to check). That being said, sheās unlikely to need that.
I guess our strategy should be apply direct to Smeal with summer start and if not admitted, change to DUS for reconsideration. Does that decision come immediate, or it goes back to the queue? I am hoping she gets admitted to Smeal so that she can apply to sapphire program or Schreyer program. I heard there is a Nittany lions fund program [PSIA - Nittany Lion Fund] where u can apply to get in for future in finance. Is it open to only Smeal or also open to DUS kids?
OHHHHH, ok. Thatās incredibly helpful, thank you. I do think she would be better off in smaller discussion classes rather than huge lectures - in fact, I have been saying that she would be more suited to a SLAC than a large university, but she wants a bigger school and SLACs tend to not have cheerleading teams, which is non-negotiable for her.
Iāll encourage her in her desire to apply at Schreyers then (which, letās be real, Iām pretty sure she would have done what she wanted regardless of what I tell her because while she may be undecided on her major, once she decides she wants to do something sheās all in and nothing will stop her). Will there be information on that at Spend a Summer Day, or should we look for specific information or visit opportunities for Schreyers?
All students can participate in PSIA. They have to attend all meetings, and during the first meeting choose their sector carefully (itās best to think about it before the first meeting and know a bit about 2-3 already; being thoughtful means not rushing to the one everyone seems attracted to!)
Visiting HS students can contact them and if someoneās available theyāll talk with the student (who should come prepared, with a couple questions).
Students working on the Nittany Lion Fund come from the PSIA - itās selective.
As far as the cheer coach goes, sheās planning to fill out the form they have for ārecruitingā now that she has all her stats available (just got the SAT score this morning), and then contact them directly to see if there is any way to meet with someone while we are there this summer. Sheās also planning to attend any clinics that they offer in the summer or early fall, schedule permitting.
This is all really helpful information and I appreciate your responses.
Sounds like a good quality to have - to consider carefully then go all-in!
If she checked Schreyer her schedule will have a session about it, if not she could contact Admissions and see if they can add it (itās early enough that should be feasible).
Btw, parents whose child will āspend a summer dayā, Iām sure other families would love reading your reports - the good the bad the funny the surprising& unexpected..
Sometimes things go badly: itās hot, it rains, the tour guide is clearly dead on their feet, etc. Sometimes things are serendipitous. Sometimes all goes well and the student realizes itās not the school for them - and thatās hugely important too since it helps them figure out what they want, donāt want, donāt mindā¦
Was wondering about the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences? My son is 3.51 and 3.59W. He has taken some honors courses and is slated to take AP CS and AP Chem next year. Plus AP Gov. and Business Calc. He hasnāt decided about taking the SAT again. So, as of now he is TO. We are in state and he is open to Summer. Wasnāt sure if he is close? I know other colleges are easier admits and he will check the Summer box. He has taken physics and a few āengineeringā courses too.
If he only checks Summer, will he have to do Summer at a branch?
Penn State sent an email to inform prospective students that they are curtailing the DUS route to Smeal for those entering Summer or Fall 2026. It will no longer be guaranteed based on GPA but will be limited and competitive.
Highlights from the email:
" * If you are admitted to Smeal and maintain appropriate academic progress in your first year, including GPA and coursework requirements, you are guaranteed entry to your first-choice major in your second year."
" * You can start your Penn State journey in any major, or with DUS, and youāll have a limited opportunity to apply for entry to a Smeal major at the end of your first year. Admission to a Smeal major will be highly competitive and subject to space availability."
Thanks. Thatās HUGE.
Currently, most Smeal students started as DUS.
I imagine they decided to go ādirect admit or bustā, like so many other business schools - for instance they may have lost applicants to Kelley at IU (which is ALSO changing itās criteria for admission so Penn Stateās move is well-timed) and itāll allow for better management (you canāt know how many DUS students are aiming for Smeal). https://undergrad.smeal.psu.edu/smeal-direct-faq
When we went to info session in fall 2025, they told us there are about 800 first years enrolled as pre-Smeal. I dont know if that included commonwealth starts or not. If it is correct that about an equal number enter Smeal from DUS, then they will drastically increase acceptances to pre- Smeal i guess.
EMS is a college where they really want to see the math SAT score, basically a 600+ would make a big difference - applying TO makes admission that much more unlikely.
If your child thinks thereās a chance he could hit 600 he could try taking the August SAT focusing on Math only. (Reviewing Algebra1&2 through Khan Academy).
The fact heās taken Physics and is taking Calculus (though really he should take honors calculus not business calc if he worries about AP Calc) will be in his favor.
Fewer students apply to EMS (they donāt know it exists and donāt bother searching the PSU website) and itās got great supports so itās a really good choice.
He wouldnāt be competitive for meteorology though.
Checking Summer means theyāll evaluate his application for the Summer only, which makes the decision typically faster.
(Emphasis on ātypicallyā : if this year is like the previous ones, applications arenāt processed in the order they arrived and decisions come out at any point. If it is complete by Nov1, meanings SRAR/STAR is entered by Oct 15 and SAT score has arrived before Nov1, they will provide a decision by December 24, which may mean Nov 18 or Dec 19 orā¦ sometimes not. Itās incredibly frustrating for parents and sometimes kids, so brace yourself. Anyway, applicants for just Summer not Fall&Summer or just a branch not UP are each in a category of their own and thus processed faster ā if nothing changes in the PSU process.)
Itās also easier to get in for Summer in the EA round.
LEAP (the special summer session for freshmen) is at UP. Students then proceed to Fall at UP. LEAP is great but is expensive - students donāt regret doing it (and more often regret not doing Leap) but itās main downside is that you need to budget for it. Itās not wasted since the classes count for graduation but itās still a lot of money (Summer 2026 would be FA from the 2025-2026 round if I understand correctly so it wouldnāt take away from the 2026-2027 FA - as things stand now, the bill that cuts federal loans and grants is about to be voted in Congress so things may change).
If he doesnāt get in, thereās a secondary process called āreconsiderationā. While waiting for the decision, itās good to look at other majors, in other UP colleges, that could be of interest.
In PA, Drexel, Duquesne, UScranton, Slippery Rock, Millersville, Commonwealth (Bloomsburg) are all solid targets.
A safety: Elizabethtown Engineering is ABET accredited + they have various science majors and itās a supportive program
More (vastly) intend to go to Smeal from DUS but of course no visibility on 1st year numbers. Some are weeded out, some change their minds but no one knows how many DUS students will end up getting the grades they need for the Smeal majors of their dreams.
About 2,000 students graduate from Smeal about 25% of them in Finance (thatās a lot, so they had to change the GPA a few times, itās been as high as 3.7). Accounting and Supply Chain do very well, too, professionally; Accounting can lead to similar professional opportunities as Finance but requires 150 credits. Marketing really requires statistics, data science, or something similar (IST?)
So Iām guessing they will drastically increase the numbers admitted directly to Smeal then will complement with rising DUS or something else who want majors that still have space (aka, not Finance). Could go from 800/1300 to 1600/400 or something.
We did an official Smeal Tour in Early June. The admissions representative said that they are going to be greatly narrowing the window to get into Smeal through other majors or DUS and increasing the number of applicants that are admitted to Smeal Directly. This was in direct response to someone asking if DUS is still a viable alternative if you arenāt admitted as a pre-Smeal initially. Essentially they are closing the door to come in through other avenues with a few possible exceptions. She said if you want to go to Smeal, apply to Smeal directly. What do you know about this?
- know that you know nothing type of philosophy that allows people to learn more 
- students donāt regret doing it (and more often regret not doing Leap) but itās main downside is that you need to budget for it. Itās not wasted since the classes count for graduation but itās still a lot of money (Summer 2026 would be FA from the 2025-2026 round if I understand correctly so it wouldnāt take away from the 2026-2027 FA - as things stand now, the bill that cuts federal loans and grants is about to be voted in Congress so things may change).