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Penn State Harrisburg

Middletown, PA

Penn State Harrisburg is a campus of Pennsylvania State University, located in Middletown, Pennsylvania. Established in 1966, the campus offers a wide range of academic programs and degrees across various disciplines. With its commitment to research, teaching, and community engagement, Penn State Harrisburg provides a vibrant and enriching environment for students.

The campus boasts state-of-the-art facilities and resources, including modern classrooms, laboratories, and research centers. Penn State Harrisburg offers over 60 undergraduate programs, including business, engineering, humanities, and social sciences, to cater to the diverse interests of its students. In addition to undergraduate studies, the campus also offers graduate programs in fields such as business administration, public affairs, and engineering, providing opportunities for further specialization and career advancement.

Aside from academic excellence, Penn State Harrisburg has a strong focus on community engagement and service. The campus encourages students to participate in service-learning programs and community-based research projects, fostering a sense of social responsibility and civic engagement. Moreover, Penn State Harrisburg offers numerous extracurricular activities, including sports, clubs, and organizations, allowing students to get involved and make the most of their college experience. Overall, Penn State Harrisburg provides a dynamic and diverse educational experience within a supportive and inclusive community.

Located in Middletown, PA, Penn State Harrisburg is a public comprehensive higher education institution. This academic institution uses a semester-based calendar. It has an acceptance rate of 95%. The freshman retention rate at Penn State Harrisburg is 80.3% and the six-year graduation rate is 70%.

Read more about what you can expect if you get into Penn State Harrisburg.

Quick Facts

4,063

Total Number of Undergraduate Students

95%

Acceptance Rate

14:1

Student to Faculty Ratio

70%

Graduation Rate

Admissions

In order to improve your chances of getting admitted, you need to know as much as possible about the university's criteria for admission. Here are the most essential facts you have to know about admission policy and requirements at Penn State Harrisburg.

According to the most recent information reported, this institution uses standardized test scores for admission and it admitted 9,483 in 2023. Looking at entrance difficulty level for all or most incoming freshmen, based on data self-reported by the institution this school is very difficult to get into. With a rich history of academic excellence, it offers an unparalleled educational experience.

Test Scores

28% of first-time, first-year degree-seeking students submitted their SAT scores for admission, and 2% submitted ACT scores, out of the total number of those who submitted test scores. 9.67% of the freshmen submitted SAT composite scores between 1,400 and 1,600, 47.43% between 1,200 and 1,399, 35.65% between 1,000 and 1,199, and 7.25% between 800 and 999. The percent of freshman students who submitted ACT Composite scores in the range between 30-36 was 16.67, 66.67 between 24-29, 12.5 in the range between 18-23, and 4.17 between 12-17.

The average ACT score for all the admitted students in 2023 was 25 and the average GPA was 3.27. Therefore, the chances are that you'll need a GPA higher than the average for acceptance, and the same goes for your ACT score.

The SAT Critical Reading average score was 565 for the newly enrolled students, while the average SAT Math score was 510.

Average Test Scores

Retention Rate

The percentage of first-year students at a college or university who stay on for their second year is known as the freshman retention rate. This piece of data is important as it can reveal to the prospective students how many freshmen liked the school enough to return to it as sophomores.

The freshman retention rate for Penn State Harrisburg was 80.3% in 2023, a reflection of the high standards and excellent educational experience at this school.

The graduation rate is another indicator to take into account. It provides valuable insight into the percentage of students who complete their studies within a designated timeframe. The six-year completion rate at this institution is 70%, which is considered an above-average graduation rate.

Student Body

Making the choice of which school is the optimal match for you is not simple. You can get a better insight into a school's culture and life by learning more about its student body.

Main Student Body

The overall number of students enrolled at Penn State Harrisburg in 2023 was 4,572.

The school reported an out-of-state student body portion of 36% for that year. The total number of undergraduate students enrolled at the school was 4,063, 631 of which were international students. The number of transfer students at this school was 238.

Student Population Gender Ratio

The student body is coeducational, with 2,419 male and 1,550 female full-time students in 2023. This school had 96 full-time graduate male and 109 full-time graduate female students at this school.

Student Population Diversity

Higer Education is committed to focusing on the diversity of its student population and improving students' sense of inclusion and belonging. Diversity promotes critical thinking, challenges preconceived notions, and encourages intellectual growth, so it helps students develop empathy and a broader understanding of the world. Learn more about all the ethnic communities you might encounter at this institution.

This school had 539 Asian students and 386 Afro-American students in 2023. 354 undergraduates at this school identified as Hispanic/Latino and 143 as multirace. The school also had 1 student who declared as Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and 5 American Indian or Alaska Native students. There were also 73 students whose ethnicity is unknown.

Cost

Before sending an application to any college or university, the financial component should be taken into consideration. The most recent data reported regarding the expenses for attending this school are detailed below.

Tuition and Fees

If you were wondering how much the tuition cost for Penn State Harrisburg is, here are some recent data that will come in handy.

If you are an area resident, your tuition was $15,388. For students who don't live in the state in which the university is located, the tuition was $25,854 in 2023. For international students, tuition fees at this school amounted to $25,854, as well. Fees per academic year required of full-time students totaled $516 in 2023.

Tuition Fees Total
Out-of-State $25,854 $516 $26,370
In-State $15,388 $516 $15,904

Books and Supplies

When you try to estimate the cost of attendance for a college or university, you need to think about the cost of books and supplies you're going to need. Most students have to pay about $1,840 for books and supplies during their time at Penn State Harrisburg.

Boarding

The cost of dorm rooms and meals in the school's cafeteria is for sure something to take into consideration. What do colleges and universities typically charge for accommodation and meals?

At Penn State Harrisburg, the 2023 annual cost of room and board (on campus) was $15,434. If you only needed a dormitory room, it cost $10,226 for the 2023 academic year. The estimated expense of room-only (on campus) for commuters not living at home was $7,374.

Tuition $ 15,388
Room and Board $ 15,434
Book and Supplies $ 1,840
Total Expense $ 32,662

Financial Aid

Getting some financial help in forms of grants, loans, scholarships or work-study programs can be vital for completing your studies. Check out some recent data to get the information about need-based and non-need-based aid students could get at Penn State Harrisburg.

The most recent records show that 565 freshmen received some sort of financial help. Students of this school received an average of $66,219 in financial help.

Need-based

Need-based aid is financial aid that a student can receive if they are determened to have financial need and meet other eligibility criteria.

There were 1,173 students who acquired need-based financial aid of any kind. Need-based college-administered scholarship and grant aid at Penn State Harrisburg isn't available to international students. The total number of students (including freshmen) who were determined to have financial need was estimated to be 2,188. The amount of federal need-based scholarships/grants awarded to the students at this institution reached $6,369,338, and state $3,255,529. The students of Penn State Harrisburg received the -institutional need-based aid in the amount of $7,084,727, and external in the amount of $115,194,978.

$3,956

Average Amount of Aid Received

Non-Need Based

Non-need-based financial aid is any type of financial aid provided to a student who does not meet the criteria for need-based aid. Most students get non-need-based financial aid as Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, Graduate PLUS Loans, Parent PLUS Loans, and the TEACH Grant.

Institutional non-need-based scholarships or grants were given to 1,581 students overall (including freshmen) at Penn State Harrisburg in 2023. Institutional help in the form of non-need-based scholarships or grants was given to 422 full-time freshmen. Federal non-need-based scholarships and grants totaled $6,369,338 for students at this institution, while state aid came to $7,316. The total amount of institutional scholarships and awards that were not based on financial need was $1,808,935. This includes endowment, alumni, other institutional awards, and also external funds awarded by the institution, but doesn't include athletic aid and tuition waivers. The amount the students of this school received from external sources (e.g. Kiwanis, National Merit) was $3,118,877 USD.

Majors

Faculty

14:1

Student to Faculty Ratio

The student-to-faculty ratio can tell you a lot about the teaching resources a school provides for its students.

In 2023, this ratio at Penn State Harrisburg was 14:1. That means that there were 14 times more students than teachers at this school. This school has recently reported to have 413 faculty members. Out of that number, there were 236 men and 180 women.

Student Population Diversity Graph

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100
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100

Campus Life

Not everything at Penn State Harrisburg is about learning and grades: campus life is an essential part of your educational experience. Check out some details about social life at Penn State Harrisburg.

Student Organizations

Participating in different student organizations can make your educational experience more interesting and fulfilling.

For students with a talent for acting, there is a drama club. For individuals with an interest in media and communication, Penn State Harrisburg publishes its own newspaper and has its own radio station.

Student Services

At Penn State Harrisburg, there are many amenities required for a pleasant and safe life on campus.

24/7 emergency phone and alarm devices are available. The dormitory entrances are electronically operated. There is a security patrol that operates 24 hours a day. The transport/escort service operates during late hours.

All in all, campus life at Penn State Harrisburg is rich and vibrant and provides all you need for a comfortable stay.

Career Services

Having career services at a college or university can mean a great deal for your career planning, so find out what you can expect at Penn State Harrisburg.

Career Counselling

At Penn State Harrisburg, there is both group career counseling for all students and individual career counseling for all students. There are a library and job fairs. There is campus employer recruitment for all the students. Individual job placement is available to all students at this school.

FAQ

Penn State Harrisburg is located in Middletown, PA.

Penn State Harrisburg doesn't offer need-based college-administered scholarship and grant aid to international students.

This school uses standardized test scores for admission.

The most recent reported acceptance rate for Penn State Harrisburg is 95%.

The most recent data indicate that the freshman retention rate for Penn State Harrisburg is 80.3%.

Contact Information

Penn State Harrisburg,

777 West Harrisburg Pike

Middletown, PA

17057

717 948-6000

School Website

Data Source: IPEDS and Peterson's Databases © 2023 Peterson's LLC All rights reserved. Portions of this content were co-written with OpenAI's GPT-3.5 model.

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