Has anyone done an admitted student day yet? We are going next week. Any advice or tips? Thank you!
Yes.
Ask questions about housing as 3rd year students arenāt guaranteed housing (maybe?) and lots live off campus. That certainly has a different feel.
Inquire about how to register for classes. That is hard at PSU as so many students registering is difficult.
Other than that, make sure to plan a separate tour of intended college, building, etc.
And, if a parent (presume so based on name SkiMom2022), we as parents always try to do something fun like a nice dinner on campus, something, that tries to get the kiddo to understand that there good with this decision yes/noā¦ they can be there for four years.
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When does Penn state announce merit $ if any?
Automatic for Schreyer scholars so it would be today.
The others at UP (Provost, Millenium ā¦) have already been announced AFAIK?
Penn State is very stingy with both financial aid and merit aid, and both for instate and out of state applicants. Because itās not a truly āpublicā university (very little of its funding comes from the state and its status is āstate-relatedā, kinda like Cornellās contract collegesā¦) its price is high but at the same time is is the stateās flagship. 
Imho it should prioritize FA for instate applicants at least so that at least itās affordable for Pennsylvania residents who got in.
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Do you know when the School specific scholarships (ex. Engineering) will be announced?
Thank you for information!
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S25 unfortunately not invited to SHC ā¦ that will remove PSU from list as a SHC would have pulled it up into his top few to considerā¦ PSU has a lot of opportunity ā¦ and good luck to all SHC applicants!!!
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Daughter Schreyer waitlisted today. Committed to PSU already, but wondering if anyone has info about waitlist movement/stats for Schreyer.
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Son waitlisted too. Not sure how the waitlist moves.
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DC got in to SHC! To those who havenāt heard, they didnāt send an email, but DC knew to log in.
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@Edward_Murray @GHRPa25 The last few years there has been movement and kids from the waitlist have gotten in. I know some that were offered admissions at the end of April - even prior to decision deadline. It all depends on yield!
I will say - as a parent having kids both in SHC and not in SHC, honestly, SHC would not be a dealbreaker for me. My kids werenāt super involved with SHC activities and while the smaller class size was helpful for a few classes, by junior and senior year, they are already taking smaller classes. Not being a SHC student certainly didnāt hurt my āregularā PSU student as she was offered admission to every grad school she applied to and significant merit money to a few (and merit money from her #1 choice).
I know many non-SHC kids who are wildly successful and some SHC kids who are not. You get out of college what you put into it and while SHC helps āshrinkā the size of PSU, it is not the end-all.
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DC will be visiting their first choice school in a couple of weeks and they canāt really think about anywhere else until they know how that goes. We had a great visit to PSU recently and it is still on their list. Iām wondering how much weight DC should give to to the SHC acceptance. While itās not a deal breaker, would you say it moved the needle in the positive direction? Thanks!
My junior daughter is in SHC and itās been a fantastic experience for her. From the scholarship to dorms to great honors classes (she says theyāre always the best professors and usually easier) to getting a research position (paid) by the start of her sophomore year to early scheduling and a great advisor.
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My boss has two kiddos who both did SHCā¦ and I work with two folks that did SHC.
The two that work with me used SHC basically to be able to schedule classes first. Thatās about it.
Howeverā¦ if one goes to SHC and fully exploits all the help one gets, the dedicated advising, the doors that they donāt open but walk you right up toā¦ I will say THOSE students seem to have the world by the tail!!!
It was hard to watch my S23 turn down SHC (S25 didnāt get an SHC invite)ā¦ but if you have a go getterā¦ SHC should at least be in their top three to consider heavily.
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My kiddo didnāt get into SHC. Bummed for her because she really wanted this. Do they ever accept sophomores or second semester freshman?
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Yes, after freshman year if they have the gpa they can apply. Itās MUCH easier after freshman year. The Schreyer scholarship doesnāt come with that but there are research and travel grants available.
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My son got into SHC . He was eagerly waiting for it and now it is in serious consideration. Heās accepted to physics major. Housing, internship and honorās thesis are his main consideration for SHC. Heās super excited!
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I donāt often respond but read a lot of posts. I wanted to respond to your question because I have a second year student at PSU. The admitted student day is a great way to get to know the school specific to your studentās intended major. My son is in the Business school and learning about the program and offerings helped us understand the opportunities PSU can offer students.
I also adivise that if you see folks from the Parents Program, go up to them and ask questions about their experience with PSU. Their perspective can be very insightful. (The Parents Program are parent volunteers available during events such as admitted students day; youāll find them in the green shirts usually). Youāll find them in the Hub. And if you are unsure where a location on campus is-ask someone from the Parentās Program! They can direct you for sure!
And if you need coffee on campus, go to Berkey Cremery-they have very good coffee (and fantastic ice cream too!)
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Gee my daughter was the exact opposite:
Applied to Smeal and was accepted but had to do 2+2 in Altoona. Coming from OOS that was a non starter ao she did reconsideration and got UP fall when she changed to DUS.
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Fair point on the coffeeā¦ and the ice cream too ā¦ I forgot the ice cream b/c we live next to a place that makes a āmilk runā once a week to pickup 5 gallon tubs of our favorite PSU ice cream. 
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