OSU Updates

On Friday morning I attended the annual OSU breakfast where their staff provided updates to local counselors about the latest in admissions. With OSU being the school that Kilbourne students most frequently apply, I thought you might be interested in some of their latest statistics.

- The 2011 class has over 6850 students and approximately 52% were in the top 10% of their class. The average ACT of these students that will be attending is 28 and the average SAT is between 1240-1245 (out of 1600).

- For the students that they accepted, 56% were in the top 10%. The ACT Middle 50% was 26 to 31. (Remember, that means 25% of their acceptances scored less than a 26 on the ACT. Of course, that also means that 25% scored a 32 or higher.) The SAT Middle 50% was 1180 to 1340 (out of 1600).

- They stressed that most of the students they accepted had exceeded the minimum requirements in math (93% had 4 or more), science (83% had 4 or more), social studies (99% had 4 or more) and foreign language (90% had 3 or more years of the same language). The strength of curriculum is one of the primary areas that you can control and they look closely at that as a deciding factor when making their admissions decision because the research data has demonstrated that the more math, science and foreign language courses a student takes in high school the better they will do in college.

- As I mentioned at Wednesday's senior night meeting, the deadline for admissions is February 1st. If you want to be considered for scholarships, you must apply by December 1st. All of the materials must be RECEIVED at OSU before the deadline that you are trying to meet. That includes your transcript and your test scores. So, please remember that your transcript will need to be mailed several days prior to December 1st so that they have it in their office on time.

- Last year they received over 29,000 applications and each application is read by two independent readers. If they agree, the decision is final. If they don't agree then the application goes to a committee for a third review. Areas that they mentioned looking at as a part of their holistic application is grade point average, test scores, college prep curriculum, strength of schedule, additional courses in math, science and foreign language, rigor of courseowrk to include accelerated, honors and AP courses, grade trends, strength of senior schedule, extracurricular activities, leadership, work experiences, and other factors the student brings to the university. Decisions will take between 10 and 12 weeks on average with the first decisions being posted/ announced as of the end of November or beginning of December.

- The application fee has increased to $60.

- Admissions into the Honors and Scholars programs will be by application. Students must first complete their application to OSU and after receiving your OSU ID and Password then you can complete and submit the Honors and Scholars application online. The priority deadline is December 15th and the final deadline is February 15th. (If you want to be considered for an honors and scholars program scholarship then you must apply by the December 15th deadline. OSU prides itself on the Scholars Program which includes 14 programs of academic and professional pursuits including themed housing. These are not based upon a specific major, but rather an area of interest or passion. All main campus applicants (including those who may be commuter students) are eligible to apply to the scholars program if interested.

- OSU has just 1 essay question (and I love it this year!) Their question is, "What will you do in your 4 years of college that will surprise your family or friends?"

- Don't forget that the branch campuses are a very impressive alternative. If you attend a branch, your transcript still simply says OSU and once you complete at least 45 quarter hours with at least a 2.0 GPA at a regional campus then you are automatically accepted to transfer onto main campus.

- They also shared information about the Preferred Pathway Program or "P3 Scholars" which is a program that allows qualified students to apply to the program and then attend Columbus State for the first 2 years of college and then transfer to OSU to complete their degree. There is concurrent advising from both Columbus State and Ohio State to make sure the coursework is following a directed pathway to a bachelor's degree from OSU. If you are planning on starting at CSCC and plan on finishing at OSU, I strongly encourage you to check out this program.