Yes they are. Another observation is you are pretty ignorant, actually, very ignorant.
OT:appealing admission to University Park
- Thread starter katchthis
- Start date
Contact the Admissions Office, University Park. Ask to speak to the Director. Is senior looking at a degree in Computer Science and/or Information Sciences & Technology. There is a difference.
Do your research by finding which courses in Computer Science, Math, etc. are offered at Harrisburg versus Main Campus. Your pleading will involve proving that Harrisburg will hamper progress in senior's major because the Harrisburg will force senior to overload with course work in senior's major once they get to Main Campus in Junior year. Might be a good idea for you & senior to have a sit-down with Guidance Counselor at senior's school.
Be nice. Will get more with sugar than vinegar!
Some good info in the thread.
To the OP, there are a lot of variables not covered in the info you provided. These include: 1) when did the individual submit the application, 2) what major did they apply for, 3) did they apply for just Fall 2016 or either Fall or Summer 2016, 4) etc.
Answers to those could help us a bit, but in the end none of us can resolve the situation.
My suggestions:
1. contact Admissions. Discuss what options are available to the applicant with them. If you don't care for the options provided, ask to speak to a supervisor. You basically want to learn what you can do to get the kid into Main in 2016. The 3 best options are likely to be some combination of: 1) going LEAP and starting in June, 2) applying to a different college within PSU, 3) applying as DUS (PSU's terminology for undecided)
2. Some have suggested contacting the College of Engineering. You could try, but they have more applicants than they can accept. As such, I don't think you'll get a lot of assistance from them, in that they have, by now, filled the majority of their slots, so they're not looking to find room for somebody else.
You want to do this ASAP, though as Oracle indicated unless you start the conversation today, it's not going to happen until early next year. Be very polite, and you're likely to find people that are willing to help you. The bottom line is that you're looking for any different approach that can get the kid into Main, so understand that you'll need to be a little flexible, and the student will have to be willing to take a path that's a little different than what they planned. The folks at Admissions are very helpful, though they're also use to a lot of calls complaining about not getting into Main. If you're polite, and keep stressing that you're seeking a solution (and don't allow them to end the call before discussing possible solutions with you), you'll probably get what you are seeking for this student. If you find you are dealing with a person in Admissions that just doesn't seem to be working with you, either ask for a supervisor or take any opportunity to end the call and just call back again (hopefully getting a different advisor) and start the process over again.
Good luck, and keep us posted
To the OP, there are a lot of variables not covered in the info you provided. These include: 1) when did the individual submit the application, 2) what major did they apply for, 3) did they apply for just Fall 2016 or either Fall or Summer 2016, 4) etc.
Answers to those could help us a bit, but in the end none of us can resolve the situation.
My suggestions:
1. contact Admissions. Discuss what options are available to the applicant with them. If you don't care for the options provided, ask to speak to a supervisor. You basically want to learn what you can do to get the kid into Main in 2016. The 3 best options are likely to be some combination of: 1) going LEAP and starting in June, 2) applying to a different college within PSU, 3) applying as DUS (PSU's terminology for undecided)
2. Some have suggested contacting the College of Engineering. You could try, but they have more applicants than they can accept. As such, I don't think you'll get a lot of assistance from them, in that they have, by now, filled the majority of their slots, so they're not looking to find room for somebody else.
You want to do this ASAP, though as Oracle indicated unless you start the conversation today, it's not going to happen until early next year. Be very polite, and you're likely to find people that are willing to help you. The bottom line is that you're looking for any different approach that can get the kid into Main, so understand that you'll need to be a little flexible, and the student will have to be willing to take a path that's a little different than what they planned. The folks at Admissions are very helpful, though they're also use to a lot of calls complaining about not getting into Main. If you're polite, and keep stressing that you're seeking a solution (and don't allow them to end the call before discussing possible solutions with you), you'll probably get what you are seeking for this student. If you find you are dealing with a person in Admissions that just doesn't seem to be working with you, either ask for a supervisor or take any opportunity to end the call and just call back again (hopefully getting a different advisor) and start the process over again.
Good luck, and keep us posted
Please understand that I'm not being rude.....but that is not a feasible option for this situation and one that should be discarded for anyone.
It can lead to federal financial aid issues, and if courses are under departmental control, the student is going to be barred for entering anyway.
Furthermore, with such a tightly controlled major with stringent/strict entry requirements, there are a ton of things to go wrong.
Tom gave some great advice here in this thread. College of Engineering contacts aren't the right place to start. Admissions, then DUS is the way to go.
Also, some of what's been posted in here with "I can't see why....hasn't been accepted when I know <insert name/situation> got accepted..." isn't particularly helpful.
Admissions into PSU-UP as a true freshman is a bit of a crapshoot. What's been said about certain areas carrying more weight is true. What the university is doing is trying to ensure that UP, and its limited spots (as well as housing) for all majors, has diversity in not only race/gender, but where the students come from. This isn't a big mystery, and certainly NOT something that you need to grab a pitchfork and call your legislators about.
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Here is more information:
http://summersession.psu.edu/leap/
LEAP is a fantastic experience. It gives participants experience at PSU-UP before "everyone" arrives. Getting around, getting to class, and doing well can be daunting, and it provides students with smaller classes and the chance to make friends early.
I know you generally get farther with LEAP than STEP.
I'm sure you mean well, but the advice you offered is questionable in this situation.
Schreyer applications have a recommended due date of Nov. 30th. Applicants do have a final deadline of Jan. 15th, but anyone that applies after Nov. 30th is way behind in the process.
In addition, while the criteria for Schreyer are separate from those of general admittance to Main, you're advocating that this individual, who wasn't accepted to Main, try a different major, EE, which is in itself very, very competitive, and also apply to Schreyer.
Anything is possible, so it's not as though what you advocated couldn't work. It's just that your suggestion is to try an approach that is significantly more difficult than what the applicant already tried, which was unsuccessful.
My grades were not that good. I wrote a letter and begged to be admitted. They offered me a 4 year degree if my GPA was at least 3.4 after two years.
It worked for me, although that was 1991.
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You'll have issues with your completion percentage after a period of time.
You can't enroll in one major and take another's classes and stay eligible for federal aid after a period of time....especially if you get a D in any requirement.
http://studentaid.psu.edu/eligibility/satisfactory-academic-progress
One of my twins was wait listed or denied (can't recall). We called admissions for an explanation, and he was admitted the very next day. He is doing well in University Park. Has a 3.5 GPA as a sophomore. Bottom line is it wouldn't hurt to inquire.
There's no need to be defensive and fly off the handle. We are just trying to help someone get into PSU.
The EE and CMPSC majors aren't as similar as you'd think. At many schools they are. PSU is not one of them.
At work I see people trying to do things like you originally mentioned all day. It is a waste of time, convoluted, and causes many headaches for the student....one of which is related to federal student aid.
Because of where I work and what I do....I can't really be much closer to this type of situation, and I'm sorry you feel the need to degrade me after I nicely tried to say that your idea isn't feasible or advisable under any circumstance. It's not....so let's just move on.
Curious.... What's the problem with starting at the Harrisburg campus?
If I had a kid who wanted to go to PSU - especially for a relatively difficult major like engineering - I would encourage them to start at a branch campus for multiple reasons.
Not sure if it's changed, but I was not just engineering, but ELECTRICAL engineering from day 1 at PSU in 1992.
Kids these days with their perfect SAT scores, and their enormous sense of entitlement. Sheesh. (sarcasm! hold your fire!) 
Congrats on your child's success and I wish him/her the best, I am struggling to instill in my eldest son the level of discipline required to achieve that level of academic performance. Turns out it's hard to give what you don't possess yourself...
Congrats on your child's success and I wish him/her the best, I am struggling to instill in my eldest son the level of discipline required to achieve that level of academic performance. Turns out it's hard to give what you don't possess yourself...
My niece used that strategy and will be on main campus this summer for elementary Ed. The major might have something to do with it as well.
This happens a lot at UVA if you live in Northern Virginia where the students have high scores.
