It is not a transfer. Transfer is if you are coming from a different university.
Read upthread. No one is “IN” their major until ETM (entrance to major) requirements are completed. google “Penn State Finance ETM” and you will get an advising page.
Finance has a high GPA requirement - 3.5. He will have to be ready to hit the ground - some of the ETM’s can be challenging (micro Econ, and Calc depending on his HS background).
I don’t think so, although we don’t really know. Econ (Liberal Arts) has been considered to be 5th most difficult college (Nursing, Smeal, Engineering, DUS, LA).
But every year is different and without seeing the applicant pool, I don’t know.
You can always ask - you won’t lose the original offer.
I think the difference is the terminology. You are asking for reconsideration … making a change to her major/term … an appeal is to ask for the original major/term/etc. but there are circumstances or an error on the original application.
After thinking about it for a couple weeks while visiting family over the holidays, D25 did indeed decide to shut down her other applications. Deposit has been sent, and we’re all very excited as she is now committed PSU 2029!
GL to everyone still going through the process. It has some serious ups and downs, but all of the kids will end up somewhere they will love.
Penn State definitely does things a lot differently - a lot to navigate and think about. So evaluating if he asks for DUS or Econ (LA). Is it pretty easy to change to DUS from LA so he can potentially get to Smeal. Lastly - is there a world language requirement for PS Students?
There is a world language requirement for Smeal. It is not an ETM - only a graduation requirement, so if language is not a student’s strong suit, there is the option to wait until AFTER they are in the major to take it. (The language classes are 4 credits, so a not great grade is hard on a gpa).
Hi I know it’s been asked before but can you eventually pivot into Smeal from LA? Also, my daughter got a note saying that she has not completed all of the required coursework for her intended major (Smeal). No other college has indicated this and she’s applied business to all of them. Would LA or DUS be better to select and then try Smeal once admitted? Thank you.
The requirements for Smeal are in the link below (category 1):
Yes there’s a language requirement for LA or Smeal - if he has level 3 in high school he would take College Language 002 then 003; if he has Level 4 in HS, he would take College Language 003. He’s free to take higher levels for his Humanities requirement, too.
Students applying to Engineering, IST, Eberly, EMS, or Smeal need to be enrolled in precalculus or calculus (or have completed it before senior year). If she applies to Liberal Arts she needs to have completed Algebra2 and Geometry, no precalculus required.
It’s easy to switch but only worth it if s/he only had As and Bs in his first semester courses: English 15 or 30H, Calculus 110 (unless it’s waived for his AP score, in that case he’d take Calculus for business 2, Math 111), Macroeconomics (Econ 104), Foreign Language, and a freshman seminar.
This ^ is the same basic program regardless of DUS or Economics or Smeal.
S/He can apply to Economics, follow the program above, at the end of the semester ask to switch to DUS pre Smeal if he has As/Bs in that program, stay in DUS pre Smeal and keep his grades up. 
You can’t “switch to Smeal” before being in DUS/Pre Smeal (Premajor).
I didn’t see a language requirement for Economics BS, just BA. Is that correct?
Question. Is the 55% acceptance rate for PSU across all campuses?
Correct - although it’s a usual choice for the Humanities requirement because it overlaps with Smeal or other majors’ requirements, including for the post 003 3 credits of intercultural knowledge&skills (for example 210: Spanish for intercultural communication, pre-req 003).
It’s a Smeal graduation requirement though not an ETM.
Did you get any update on this?
I’m not an expert. I’m just another parent. However, my interpretation of this is that reconsideration is the next step. At that point if you still don’t get what you want, you can appeal. When we called and asked about this, the person in admissions we spoke to said cases of appeal usually involve extenuating circumstances. The example she gave was medical need.
nah it changed back to under review
My 2 cents as another non-expert. I believe you may “appeal” even the original decision due to extenuating circumstances. This is in case you may not want to change your originally requested major/campus but still want your application adjudicated with additional context.
“Reconsideration” request is more like you are now requesting your application to be adjudicated against an alternate major/campus. Except for UP where you can only request one reconsideration at most, for other campuses you may request it multiple times.
These are two distinct processes and don’t depend on each other.
That sucks. Hope you hear soon, and positive news.
Hi! New to PSU process. My daughter got 2+2 but wants UP start, she’s looking for roots for 4 years and the full blown experience and opportunities at UP being OOS. She applied undecided but really wants to major in Special Ed. While doing the reconsideration, which do you think would yield better chance - going for Special Ed major or just standard education? Thank you so much in advance from an overwhelmed mom with a kid that only dreams of PSU!
If she really wants to major in Special Ed then she should apply for Special Ed. However they’ll look at her ECs to see if there is anything indicating she’s truly interested helping in children (coaching, tutoring, babysitting…)
If they are granted summer at UP, do they fill out the FAFSA for this current school year?