Thank you! Did not see that! Yes she has extenuating circumstances so maybe that’s what they meant - we can try that first before doing a reconsideration? Thank you
1 Like
So he just got his decision back as altoona 2+2. Which major should he reapply with and should he use his sat?
Sounds like he should request a review due to extenuating circumstances. He has already applied to a less competitive college (Ag?) - I’m not sure there are options that will offer him a much better chance.
Honestly, the next thing he needs to think about is being successful at college. And I think Penn State’s GPA predictor would have him lower than you would like. If you think he is prepared to be successful as a freshman at UP, then reconsideration with asking for a minimization of freshman year grades and explanation how that happened and how he has changed is the way to go. Did he address freshman year grades in the optional essay?
Altoona - while not what he wanted - is a place he could be successful for 2 years. And it is one of the more vibrant campuses and close to UP.
I know this is not what you were hoping for.
1 Like
Question for College of Engineering is it better to submit a total SAT score of 1360 (680/680) or a 1340 (720 math/620 english). really wish Penn State would superscore!
Yesterday, the University of Georgia made public the results for their early action applications, 30,490 applications, 12,860 Georgia Applicants and 17,630 Out of the State Applicants. admitted 9,500 of the total admitted 41% are in State Students (5,350 accepted) and 23% out of the State (4,050 Admitted).
OVERALL ACADEMICS FROM EA POOL:
4.17-4.40 mid 50% Core GPA
1400-1500 mid 50% SAT
31-34 mid 50% ACT
UGA recalculates the Core GPA with weight given to AP & IB. Weighting is not given for honors courses.
“Hope we can see the results from Penn State, to understand the real acceptance rates”
1 Like
Should he try communications or a specific major within agriculture?
I’m afraid, alas, that 3.4, no APs/no DE, no test score is likely to be branch campus.
You can prepare either by choosing which branch campus (ie., if you’d absentmindedly checked DuBois but would actually consider Altoona, Harrisburg, or Behrend/Erie) or seeing if there’s a less competitive major at UP that could work if you check Summer (some are difficult but less requested - ie , you have Slavic ancestry, 4 years of Spanish because there’s what your HS offered and got As, you want to major in Russian with a Ukrainian minor and your statement made your interests clear - that makes sense and you have a shot. You have extensive ECs with little kids and request Elementary Ed - that makes sense. But requesting Russian or Elementary Ed out of nowhere wouldn’t work.)
I guess there’s this less-requested major
https://agsci.psu.edu/academics/undergraduate/majors/community-environment-and-development
But anything below 3.5 is tough (unlikely) for UP.
Elizabethtown College and Susquehanna University have solid Communication majors (Susquehanna even has Advertising, PR, Luxury/brand marketing …) and they admit students in the B+/A- range, with merit if their profile is strong.
I’m sorry, I thought that with his choice of college, Summer start, and Rigor he’d get in 
He can try another major within Agriculture and, as @lucy_van_pelt said, write an explanation highlighting upward trend (and rigor trend). Still with Summer start. Add SAT.
My sense is that Agricultural&Extension Ed, Agricultural Science, and Community/Environment/Development are the least competitive, with an expectation of a science background for AG science and an expectation of English/Social Science strength for the other 2.
My daughter was accepted at UP for Fall in Communications undecided on 11/20. And a friend of hers did as well. Another friend was accepted in Liberal Arts Comms last week.
2 Likes
@Shiloh16 I agree. Great answer all around… Altoona is definitely a good option, especially since 2 + 2 is available. They are close to main campus. My daughter is there, but with nursing there is not 2 + 2. She is happy there, now, and a lot of her friends are going to UP next year together (and a lot staying in Altoona). It’s a good way to build a good GPA with smaller classes to be admitted into the major choices for junior year and there are a lot of opportunities for leadership in clubs and good opportunities to join D3 sports for a couple of years if he played sports in high school.
I also think the reconsideration idea is a good one if they can consider without freshman year grades - and I think he should’ve submitted the 1210. I don’t know if you can ask now to have it considered or not but I think it would help.
If want to try Liberal Arts majors (I have no knowledge of these) but maybe something like Labor and Human Resources or Organizational Leadership, Anthropological Science, or in College of Health and Human Development - Recreation, Park and Tourism Management? I have no idea if any of them are easier to be admitted into than Ag or not.
Did he say he’d do summer? He could ask to be considered for summer. Good luck!
Would these be easier majors than the ones in communications or liberal arts?
How would i go about asking them to not include his freshman year grades?
AFAIK, yes.
Tourism&Rec is relatively easy too (easier than Comm/CLA) but it also has fewer positive professional outcomes, whereas the College of Ag is solid for post-graduation placement. In addition, AG tends to be smaller and more supportive.
That being said, he’ll have to continue with the good habits that made him get a 3.8 jr (and hopefully senior) year. UP requires a lot of autonomy, discipline, and self drive (ie., students must go to office hours with questions prepared about the lectures, readings, or problem sets - no one will make them think of it. Freshmen get invited to parties all the time and they must turn the invites down during the week. Etc.)
They wouldn’t just “remove” his freshman grades but they may review the transcripts again with an eye toward upward trend if he mentions it explicitly.
Congratulations to your daughter! Can you post her stats or those of some of her friends who were accepted?
1 Like
After seeing all the comments & suggestions on here I spoke to my son & he wants to change his 2nd campus from Abington to a better campus that has finance. Do we have to call admissions for this? Can we change it on the portal? I don’t want it to interfere w/ his upcoming decision this week. Suggestions please
You cannot change it on the portal, but you MIGHT be able to call them Monday and ask them to do it - worth a try. You can also definitely do that after he gets the decision.
3 Likes
Thank you he’s thinking Behrend. Great business school
2 Likes
My son made a change to his application by emailing admissions. They responded very quickly and the change was reflected in his application within 24 hours of his email.
2 Likes
What were their stats, if you know?
1 Like
Hi! Wanted opinions of my son’s chances for engineering UP. He applied early September - 1450 (750 math - 700 verbal) 4.4 weighted - thank you so much