I think it is more common with larger schools with many applications.
But your example is exactly why a 3.7 > 4.0 depending on the school. (3.7 weighted all A’s > 4.0 all A’s no college prep classes). Also important to take GPA’s reported on SM and posting boards with a grain of salt.
Just as a point of reference - they only ask for submission of transcripts for kids that enroll. So it reduces the amount of paper being received. And then they do a check against what you entered into the SRAR.
S24 sent text from school this morning - accepted to UP !!
OOS
4.0 W / 3.75 UW
1400
15 AP/Honors
DUS
interesting… no Smeal acceptances? OOS DS24 is DUS applicant.
I am freaking out waiting for smeal to respond.
Haven’t seen any Smeal or engineering decisions in a while.
Starting to second guess myself. Probably should have advised my son to apply DUS instead of Smeal.
Smeal acceptances are extremely competitive. We attended one of the “Spend a Summer Day” Open Houses in July and spoke to Smeal representatives. They indicated the best way to gain access to Smeal is to apply DUS and then apply to the business school during sophomore year. We also attended a session with DUS. DUS advisors will work with the student to ensure they are on track to apply to their intended major. Of course it is then up to the student to maintain the required GPA for their major.
That’s where I’m at with my engineering son. Just want an answer so I can ask to reconsider to dus before break, if needed.
I think you would need to wait at this point for a decision then send in fir reconsideration if it’s unfavorable. We have really one one week left so to hear. They said everyone will get a decision by dec24
Yah, I meant I just want the decision… so if it’s unfavorable I can get the the ball rolling on dus sooner than later.
I totally agree
Totally agree! Has anyone asked admissions if they know when Smeal will release decisions?
RE: applying to SMEAL and then switching to DUS…we did it… b/c we had to… DS24 Math topped out with Stats, not CALC…so about 3 weeks ago we received and email stating not eligible for Smeal…son was heartbroken…first denial thing, but… via email with the admissions folks, was able to switch him to DUS…and that’s what reflects on his portal now.
Wait so it was a flat out rejection or given a commonwealth campus?
What kind of stats Smeal is looking for ?
When you say not Calc what is minimum requirements ?
Agree - I think I should have had my daughter apply DUS instead of Smeal too, especially since PSU doesn’t superscore the SAT. She has a 1450 Superscore but only a 1400 from one sitting. Lots of rigor with 8 APs and the rest honors and a good GPA 3.95 UW, 4.38 W, but not sure it’s enough for Smeal.
Lots of big schools are like this. The alternative is to give a hard date sometime in February or March after they’ve gotten through the 100,000+ applicants. No one would like that either.
Penn State has a very simple…apply by this date, hear by this date. If you don’t want the drips and drabs - then just check on Dec 24. They don’t email students, but they do send hard copy packets in the mail which arrive just a day or two after the portal
I think calculus BC is a requirement for smeal. Our guidance counselor mentioned this to me
The guidance counselors at each school are required to provide Penn State with a profile that lists the highest grade a student can get, how many APs are offered, the weights applied and the grading scale. This is how Penn State knows that a 4.0 at one school is not the same as a 4.0 at a different school and they admit accordingly.
I totally agree. If my son is denied I’ll ask to reconsider for DUS. Ironically, I began my college life as DUS at Penn State many, many, years ago. I then applied and was accepted after sophomore year into Smeal and I want to believe I turned out just fine. I had a great DUS advisor.