Hello everyone!
Due to tuition and cost of living, I am almost 99% sure that I am going to go to Penn State's Post-Bac program. I was wondering if anyone has gone through this program and if they have any comments, advice, etc. for me. I am EXTREMELY nervous and if anyone thinks it's not a great program, I will need to look into UPENN more seriously instead. Thanks so much!! Good luck to all!

Hello everyone!
Due to tuition and cost of living, I am almost 99% sure that I am going to go to Penn State's Post-Bac program. I was wondering if anyone has gone through this program and if they have any comments, advice, etc. for me. I am EXTREMELY nervous and if anyone thinks it's not a great program, I will need to look into UPENN more seriously instead. Thanks so much!! Good luck to all!


I actually am just finishing up the post-bac program at Penn State. I took my MCATs a few weeks ago and am getting ready to apply to med school. All-in-all, I thought the program went really well. It is a little less structured than some of the other post-bac programs I've heard of, but I liked that. They accepted me on a provisional status since my GPA was below a 3.0, and I ended up getting a 4.0 in the program so my chances are looking pretty good for med schools. The program has a very solid acceptance rate into med school and all of my friends who finished before me haven't had a problem getting in. Plus, if you're a PA resident, the Penn State's program is definitely the most cost effective way to go. I highly recommend it.

Thank you for the response! You have definitely helped alleviate some of my fears. Did you live off campus?

I actually am just finishing up the post-bac program at Penn State. I took my MCATs a few weeks ago and am getting ready to apply to med school. All-in-all, I thought the program went really well. It is a little less structured than some of the other post-bac programs I've heard of, but I liked that. They accepted me on a provisional status since my GPA was below a 3.0, and I ended up getting a 4.0 in the program so my chances are looking pretty good for med schools. The program has a very solid acceptance rate into med school and all of my friends who finished before me haven't had a problem getting in. Plus, if you're a PA resident, the Penn State's program is definitely the most cost effective way to go. I highly recommend it.

Thank you for the response! You have definitely helped alleviate some of my fears. Did you live off campus?

you'd most likely live off campus in an apartment along beaver ave. dorms are rare if not non-existant for post-bacs (they have enough undergrads to deal with.)

You could live in UT and party with me! I am not a postbacc but and looking somewhere else outside of PSU..mainly because state college is having it's fill, but also because I really dont' want to take math140 and 141 since I already have a calculus class that'll count everywhere else.....that and as an out of stater it is a small fortune for me to be there anyway. But the others were right..if you are an instater the program seems solid...it is just the regular classes from what I've seen ...so you should always be weary of the chinese guy with a thick accent for calc, or the TA in labs that really doesn't care too much or cares TOO much and grades ridiculously hard. (That one happened to me freshman year...he actually graded puncuation/grammar ..I kid you not)

You could live in UT and party with me! I am not a postbacc but and looking somewhere else outside of PSU..mainly because state college is having it's fill, but also because I really dont' want to take math140 and 141 since I already have a calculus class that'll count everywhere else.....that and as an out of stater it is a small fortune for me to be there anyway. But the others were right..if you are an instater the program seems solid...it is just the regular classes from what I've seen ...so you should always be weary of the chinese guy with a thick accent for calc, or the TA in labs that really doesn't care too much or cares TOO much and grades ridiculously hard. (That one happened to me freshman year...he actually graded puncuation/grammar ..I kid you not)

I'm actually living downtown, a few blocks from campus. It's a little more expensive but I liked being in the thick of things. It was also nice being able to walk to my classes in under 10 min... A lot of people live a little bit out and seem to get along just fine though.

Yea. I lived in nittany apartments for two years which is nice but expensive. I like the combo I get with University Terrace is still relativley close..walking distance, but I still get a single room and what not for the price that my friends in places like Beaver Terrace and all those places on Beaver Ave. are paying,whom have to share a room with a bunch of other guys. Plus the parking is extremeley reasonable by me and there is a bus stop right outside my door...if I really am THAT lazy which since all of my classes are in IST/Sparks/Willard I pretty much am.....hooray for being an IST/German major....at least we have a pretty building with lots of expensive stuff I never get to use.

Thanks for all of the responses! How did you like Dr. Rodriguez? Was there a lot of support from advisors, etc. throughout the program? Or was it more of a sink or swim situation?

Yea. I lived in nittany apartments for two years which is nice but expensive. I like the combo I get with University Terrace is still relativley close..walking distance, but I still get a single room and what not for the price that my friends in places like Beaver Terrace and all those places on Beaver Ave. are paying,whom have to share a room with a bunch of other guys. Plus the parking is extremeley reasonable by me and there is a bus stop right outside my door...if I really am THAT lazy which since all of my classes are in IST/Sparks/Willard I pretty much am.....hooray for being an IST/German major....at least we have a pretty building with lots of expensive stuff I never get to use.