Careful about Penn State --
I was talking the other day to an internal medicine resident who graduated from Pritzker, but did her first two years at Penn State. She says there aren't enough spots for third year students to do their clerkships in Hershey, so some had to go as far as Columbus, Ohio to get their clerkships done. This meant to most people living for weeks out of a car (or a hotel if you want to spend the money) and being estranged from friends because it's definitely too far to drive every day. So, don't worry so much about the hold thing -- many med schools are judged not on their first two years, but on the third and fourth year clerkships, and it doesn't sound like Penn State excels in that area.