I love PSU Harrisburg. It is where I attended first. It’s not too far from UP as well…
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Harrisburg would be better for Poli Sci. The campus is actually not in Harrisburg proper (which, for a state capital, is pretty disappointing and feels more like a county seat to me). It’s about 2 hours drive to PSU Main by car and there are frequent buses but you have to go over a mountain, very picturesque in Winter but not an easy drive. The campus is close to Hershey (chocolate theme park) and it’s rather residential though, indeed, small.
I’ll keep my fingers crossed for Poli Sci (or other similar major in cla) UP Summer. 
If he’s SURE he wants to attend UP he could apply to Susquehanna, Muhlenberg, or Dickinson then transfer for Sophomore year rather than spend 2 years at a branch campus (you can’t get to Main Campus before your 2 years are up at the branch, save specific, major-related exceptions, but you CAN transfer after 1 year at another college.)
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It’s not a huge campus, but I liked it. My daughter goes to Altoona and we looked at Harrisburg for my son as his second choice campus since it is closer than Altoona to us. The dorms are nice and set together in a nice community. There are also off-campus apartments that seem like they’re on campus since they are just the other side of the parking lot. It is a flat campus/easy to walk.
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Do you think transfer admission is easier than regular?
According to this, you need to complete at least 4 semesters of full time college coursework after high school graduation to transfer to UP - not sure if that is true or not. Transfer Eligibility Information | Undergraduate Admissions | Penn State
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Going from branch to UP is not a transfer - as long as you take the classes and get the grades required for your major, you just transition to UP automatically after your 4th semester.
So, that’s longer but easier.
However, there’s no way a solid application from a good college such as the ones I mentioned would be denied (ie., his main weakness is early grades; later grades indicate ability to succeed but they might have a doubt? - proof he can get As and Bs at a college they know is good, would be all they need.)
So, the difficulty is that if the grades aren’t there 1st semester… or if he doesn’t complete the actual transfer application early in 2nd semester … There’s nothing automatic happening.
Thank you.
Darn, they changed it for UP (and UP only) - because it was clearly a nice loophole so OOS students could escape going to a branch campus first. It makes sense for Penn State though, no choice if you want UP. 
The only way now is either apply during your first semester (you’re considered a 1st year student and have no college grades yet) or wait till Spring Sophomore year.
I’m sorry for my mistake. I didn’t think to check if they’d closed the loophole but of course with the PASSHE becoming almost tuition free and branch campus closing/restructuring, it’s only rational for them to do everything they can to get students to attend one of the 20 branch campuses.
Thank you @Nursingmom27.
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I’m probably getting off topic here, but looking at the different majors and where you “start & finish” - it looks like some degrees are only offered at CC’s? Example: Public Policy (Start at any Commonwealth Campus and Finish: Harrisburg)
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Yes - some of the “true” 4-year colleges (Behrend, Harrisburg, Altoona, to a certain extent Abington but it’s a suitcase/commuter campus) have unique offerings, generally specialized declensions of a broader degree, although typically at UP you can tailor your degree with a broad choice of options, add certificates, etc.
Another example is Behrend that offers Software Engineering which UP doesn’t.
To people just popping here for reconsideration or preparing for the January round of decisions:
I’m not a member of Penn State Admissions. I try my best to help with PSU questions, but it’s not perfect so please feel free to share information.
I can especially help if you were assigned a branch campus and would like to see if UP is possible, if you’re looking for a major similar to the one you wanted and want to be reconsidered for UP+something less competitive, or want to know what courses to schedule so you can easily pivot to your desired major.
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Do you have any sense of what percent of kids that try for reconsideration get it? Also my son thought it said after he resubmitted that it will be his last chance. After that you can’t try for UP again. You only can to switch to another branch. Makes sense I guess. He has 4.03 weighted and 1310 SAT and is trying now for Psych AB (he took AP Psych and Positive Psych in HS) and open to summer start. Graduating from a very competitive top HS if that matters
Unfortunately I don’t. You can maximize odds of course but basically if you’re close it’s worth it, and the further away from 3.5 with good rigor, the less likely and the more flexible you must be to have a shot.
For psych, in addition to social science courses with As, some criteria would be whether he took AP stats and got an A or 4-5 on the test (or Elementary Stats), AP Bio or advanced biology as well as chemistry at any level. How did he do in these classes? Did he take at least through Level 3 in a world language?
What did he score on his AP psych test? That and the other psych classes indicate interest in the subject matter.
What’s his unweighted GPA? Only asking because depending on the way the HS weighs 4.03 can be anything from 3.03 to 3.93 unweighted (it’ll be recalculated so that everyone’s rigor and everyone’s grades end up the same, so that a kid with 3.03 is not confused for a kid with 3.93, etc.)
Summer start definitely helps. He can see if they offer English&Stats in the summer, 2 classes that prepare for what comes next, and this way he’d have Psych 100, World Language, and 2 Gen Ed courses in the Fall.
My daughter is in the exact same predicament as described right above. Just as described her HS prep is around Psych. What major in your opinion would be close to psych for reconsideration ? We’re trying to get out of summer and start Fall UP. She has Summer UP right now and it’s just too expensive to start summer. Her GPA is close to 3.7 unweighted. She has lots of AP classes, Honors, 3 DE, including AP Psych, Psych 2 and a 3 on AP test, OOS. Thank you!
Summer is indeed very expensive. If it’s not a possible pivot, then HHD has a couple suitable majors, including HDFS: Human Development and Family Studies.
In order to pivot from HDFS to Psych after her first semester, she would need to take:
English 15 or 30
Psych 100
HDFS 129, 129S or 101N
(World Language or science gen ed)
Depending on Math background: Stats 100 (to be taken before Stats 200/Psych200 in the Spring) or Stats 200/Psych 200 directly.
Her adviser would be in HHD and thus only list HDFS 129/110 + English 15/30 so she’d have to remember the classes above if she wants to be on track for the premajor reqs in CLA/Psych. Switching is not restricted as long as she has A/Bs (…C…) in her classes, she would meet with her adviser in the Fall, say she wants to switch to DUS, and from DUS she can pivot to any major.
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We have a Junior in High School in PA looking to pursue a career in Speech Pathology and hoping to start her undergrad at UP in 2026 in HHD/CSD. We watch this thread pretty religiously (among a handful of others), and I have to say, @MYOS1634 may be the best forum Moderator on the site! Your attention to detail and willingness to support so many requests with thoughtful and detailed feedback has been tremendous. When this admissions cycle slows down a bit, I will likely reach out with a few questions based on our student’s profile and desires about how to best setup her Senior year schedule.
This forum is very luck to have you on board!
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a friend’s daughter got 2+2 for nursing but would prefer up. what options would be available for her?
Thank you 
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There is no 2+2 for nursing. You have to stay at the campus where you start for 4 years. If she wants to go to UP more than she wants nursing, she can ask for reconsideration for another, less competitive major.
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@marnee_r
@kidzncatz is correct. If she was offered Altoona for nursing, she was evaluated for UP for nursing first. (btw, many love Altoona if she would consider it?)
If she is dead set on UP, then she will need to change her major. But she cannot move into nursing at UP. It is only direct entry. There are some majors that lend themselves to the 1 year intensive nursing-only program after undergrad, but I don’t know those. And it requires extra schooling.
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It means she’s been admitted to Nursing at Altoona for all 4 years. It’s different from 2+2 and is actually pretty selective so congratulations 
to her! Many students really like the set up, even prefer it to UP because they don’t have to spend junior year elsewhere - so perhaps if she visits she’ll like it better?
Another option is to apply to Human Development&Family Studies (Health concentration) at UP, complete lots of volunteering experiences, then complete a 16 months (a summer+1 full year) program for college graduates. There is no guarantee she’ll be admitted so she will really need to keep her grades up and find involvement opportunities so she has the best possible application. It also means paying for the program on top of college.