Admissions

Undergraduates
To be considered for admission to Penn State, you must graduate from an accredited secondary school and have completed at least 15 units of preparatory work; four units of English, three units of math (may be satisfied with algebra, plane geometry, and trigonometry), 2 years of foreign language, three units of science and five units of other subjects. One unit generally represents a full year's work in an academic subject taken in grades 9 through 12. You will be evaluated on the basis of your high school records, SAT scores, class rank, and any honors or advanced courses you have taken. For more information on admissions, application, and campus visits, click on this link:

Undergraduate Admissions Office
The Pennsylvania State University
201 Shields Building
University Park, PA 16802
(814) 865-5471

Graduates
You may apply electronically or inquire about the Forest Resources and Wildlife and Fisheries Science graduate programs in the School of Forest Resources by contacting :

Dr. Wayne L. Myers, Assistant Director of Graduate Studies
School of Forest Resources
116 Forest Resources Building
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802
Phone: (814) 865-4427
E-mail: wlm@psu.edu

Minimum admission requirements for all graduate degrees in the School of Forest Resources are an undergraduate cumulative grade point average of 2.75 and junior-senior average of 3.0, based on a 4.0 scale. Because of the diversity of programs in the School, professional preparation may vary considerably. In general, the following are required:

Recipients of baccalaureate degrees from forest science, wildlife and fisheries science, wood products programs and other typical science programs normally will fulfill the course subject area requirements. Students with undergraduate degrees not in these disciplines are invited to apply, but may be admitted on a "provisional" status pending make-up of deficiencies. The faculty member who agrees to serve as adviser of a provisional student will stipulate conditions to be met for transfer from provisional status to a graduate degree program. Final decision on course deficiencies rests with the student's graduate committee. Provisional status will not be used for admitting students who have substandard grades to Ph.D. programs.

The best-qualified applicants are accepted within the limits of available openings in the School of Forest Resources graduate program. Exceptions to the admission criteria may be granted for applicants with special backgrounds, abilities, and interests. However, deficiencies must be fulfilled early in the program. Applicants with a large number of deficiencies may be advised to enroll in a second bachelor's program in Forest Science, Wildlife and Fisheries Science, or Wood Products. Admission to the Ph.D. program requires evidence of research ability; e.g., a master's degree thesis, paper, or equivalent publication and a grade point average of 3.3 or higher in a graduate degree program, exclusive of thesis and special problems. Baccalaureate degree students graduating from an honors program with a required thesis, or who have authored a refereed publication, may be considered for admittance without a master's degree.

The Assistant Director and the electronic process will supply all necessary application materials and relevant information. Applications should be submitted prior to January 31 for beginning a program in the summer or fall. Many assistantship decisions are made in mid-January; therefore, early application is encouraged and increases the chances of accessing special support funds.

How to Apply for Graduate Admission

This page last updated: July 17, 2008