Do we do the reconsideration in the Portal or do we just email Admissions the reconsideration request? I believe the reconsideration in the portal requires us to submit a second campus but it doesn’t make sense for us to accept a 2+2 since we are OOS. She already has UPitt acceptance and a few other schools. Waiting to hear back from our instate university which will only be in January. Penn UP was her number 1 and that’s why we would like to do a reconsideration.
If it’s by email, is there a reconsideration form we need to attach? Or do we just write them an email.
Thank you! I was asked to email the reconsideration so I was looking for some guidance on that. My daughter will submit it in the portal and also email them I guess.
There are many reasons to prefer MIT/GT/SHC, but grades wouldn’t be one of them.
MIT has a policy whereby students are simply graded Pass/no record first semester, and A-B-C/no record second semester. Because all students are powerhouses and have been used to being easily on top, it decreases stress when they encounter the pace&intensity of MIT, making grades secondary to learning, but it also means high GPAs at graduation are likely.
Georgia Tech has the same type of students but grades are lower, to the point they had to add +.5 to approved courses for Zell Miller scholarships so these top students taking difficult majors would stop losing their scholarships unless they switched majors.
Schreyer scholars tend to be kids with Ivy aspirations who didn’t get in or did but couldn’t afford to go. However there’s no competition within Schreyer (honors seminars aren’t graded on a curve).
To get into Engineering majors you need a 2.6-3.1, that tells you how hard the grading is. Schreyer students need to maintain a 3.4 though and they have their own sections (for instance, Calc can be taken as 140E with engineering students or in its small H version which is proof-based).
So, reasons to pick one over the other would not be how likely a student is to have a certain GPA, but rather what kind of environment they do best in.
Nutrition is probably less selective than Food science but the professional outcomes wouldn’t be nearly as good and Food Science may not be as competitive since not as many students know about it in HS.
HHD has other biology-related majors, BBH for instance.
If you don’t care about the second campus just check a throw-away one. They will review for Fall UP ->Summer UP->branch so if she gets 2+2 again it will be because she didn’t get in for Fall or Summer
For reconsideration she needs to find a less competitive major and/or check Summer (only if she’s willing to start in July).
Thanks for all the help and information - I always have a question, among all the good engineering programs, especially ME as it’s more traditional, GT, PSU SHC, Cal, UM, Purdue, A&M, what are the differences, in terms of courses, directions, job placement, etc., what would you think if you need to choose one over others (other than the cost)? Didn’t include MIT, Stanford, CMU as both the cost and easiness to get in.
My son is still waiting, with his AIME, PhO, 1590 SAT, NMSF, I think he will get a few from schools listed above. However we are not so sure how to make the final decision when the time comes.
For the record, never said PSU guarantees 4.0. Just FYI I made up an example of going to MIT - possibly the best engineering school - and compared to to any other non-MIT school. Also never stated nor suggested SHC is guaranteed grades. FYI only. Never suggested.
Fair points… merely an example trying to suggest picking a top 50 vs top 10 vs top 1… comes down to whatever is the best fit. I knew it was a risky example to give… I will just say as a parent, I am enamored with any HC and think when weighing pros/cons of even elite schools… it makes for a tough personal decision. That would have been a cleaner response to the question I gather.
No worries - I have similar thoughts about the fish/pond dilemma. For my older son I preferred/kinda asked him being in the big pond but for the younger, I feel there’s nothing wrong being the big fish.
From only going through it ONCE with our older son… and now again in process for second son… I fretted over it but at least for our sample of one… the decision was simple.
Once the acceptances come in… and then visited say the top 2/3/4 on his list now with a more trained eye as an accepted student… he just “knew” which one was the right fit.
As a parent, my response was as long as your passionate and going to give you’re all… then with a list like you proposed… it doesn’t really matter b/c your child will likely succeed if they’re committed in college as they were in HS.
Okay, so the admissions office got back to my child regarding his reconsideration based on his degree (BA vs BS) and they said that they needed to either pick a different academic college and a different campus or starting term.
I really want to discourage from starting in the summer, but has anyone had any luck asking to change to either DUS OR summer, but not both? (Like 1st choice would be DUS, 2nd would be summer start?) He can’t do it through the portal since he’s already done that once, he has to send an email.
Did he talk to a person manning the phones in Admissions or to his Regional rep? Did they pull up your son’s file?
(Asking this because it sounds like a generic answer. Typically different major, not different colleges unless there was a mismatch. Also due to the many DE credits I assume he’s on his path to a specific type of major already).
Trying to understand the reasoning… Was he applying to Engineering?
The BA vs BS would let me think not.
Can you list the major he applied for, majors he’s considering, and the AP/DE courses he’s already taken?
Typically, he would check a less competitive major in line with his academic strengths and/or check Summer. Whether both need to be checked depend on how on the bubble he is - I would say “definitely check both” if 3.4 and under, “not necessary to check both” if 3.6.
Then either check Altoona/Behrend/Harrisburg if you’re instate or interested, or a throw-away branch campus if you won’t take the 2+2 (not taking 2+2 is the most logical choice if you’re OOS since there are likely equally good instate choices for less money! But even instate students could choose something else, they could get into West Chester or another PASSHE and attend for very low tuition, or get scholarships at one of the many private universities in state from Dickinson and Lafayette to Susquehanna and Elizabethtown to Duquesne and Chatham.)
He will be considered for his new major at UP for Fall if you checked Fall, then for Summer at UP if you checked Summer, and if neither works then you’ll be offered a branch campus (which they know virtually all OOS applicants turn down).
Because SHC is such a topnotch Honors College, the advantage is that he can be small fish (well… typical fish) in the SHC pond and big fish in the larger pond.
It doesn’t mean it’ll be easy outside of SHC, in fact a study showed Honors students do better in Honors seminars because they fit their way of thinking better (if they hate multiple choice tests and would rather write a research paper type of thing - harder task but more stimulating and better suited to their learning style.) But they’ll have different opportunities to shine.
It does mean SHC students have some leeway to balance their schedules - there’s always a fun, easy class to take.
I knew it was a risky example to give… I will just say as a parent, I am enamored with any HC and think when weighing pros/cons of even elite schools… it makes for a tough personal decision. That would have been a cleaner response to the question I gather.