University of Minnesota - Twin Cities PSEO Program 2013-2014 ...

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities PSEO Program
2014-2015 Application Instructions
Advanced High School Student Services
107 Armory, 15 Church St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
612-626-1666, ccepseoa@umn.edu
http://www.cce.umn.edu/pseo
Deadlines
We only accept applications once per year. You may defer your admission to Spring semester, but you must apply for Fall
semester. The annual application postmark deadline is April 1 for both the Fall and Spring semesters of the next academic
year. Decision letters will be mailed by May 30, and admitted students will be required to attend an online orientation
session at the beginning of June, meet with an adviser to register in person in June or July, and attend an on-campus
orientation in August.
We strongly recommend that you mail your application materials no later than 10 business days before the deadline, and
that you mail your application materials yourself; entrusting them to someone else may delay your application. We will
contact you via email if your application is incomplete and received prior to March 25th. (We will not notify you if the
online application form is the only material we have received.) Materials postmarked after the deadline will be considered
late. Due to the number of last minute application submissions, we cannot check applications for completeness after
March 25th.
We also encourage you to call the PSEO Office to check on the status of your application well in advance of the postmark
deadline. Applications must be complete by the postmark deadline or they will be considered “late.” Late applications
may be considered on a space-available basis, and we will not review any application postmarked after May 1. We do not
make exceptions to this late policy.
Application Materials Checklist
The first six items are required of all applicants. Read all of the instructions for online forms, essay topics, and
requirements for the additional materials. Please submit all of your materials (except the online application form)
together in one large envelope to avoid a delay in processing.
FF
The online application form.
FF
A complete, official high school transcript including 9th grade in a sealed envelope from the high school with the rest
of your materials. Your transcript should be in an envelope you include in the larger envelope. Note: If your school
uses Docufide or another transcript processing service, you must select the Advanced High School Student Services
option.
FF
A PSEO Balance Sheet from your high school counselor listing all remaining coursework required for high school
graduation.
FF
A Post-Secondary Notice of Student Registration form (PSEO Form) signed by you, your parent or guardian if you are
under 18, and your high school counselor. (Do not send any application materials to the Roseville address listed on the
PSEO form.)
FF
An essay; topics are listed later in these instructions.
FF
A personal statement; guidelines are listed later in these instructions.
Additional materials that may be required (please read the instructions carefully):
FF
A photocopy of any college entrance exams you have taken, if applicable (ACT, SAT, PSAT, and/or PLAN). These
college entrance exams are required of certain applicants.
FF
A transcript of any college coursework you have completed or have in progress outside the University of Minnesota-
Twin Cities.
FF
MELAB or TOEFL scores.
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Submitting Your Application
Mail your completed application materials to the following address. We do not accept faxed applications or pieces of
applications.
Admission Committee -- PSEO Program
University of Minnesota
107 Armory
15 Church Street SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Application Form (Required of All Applicants)
1. Online application form: http://www1.cce.umn.edu/extranetScripts/PSEO-Application-Form.asp​. You will receive
an email message if your application form has been submitted correctly. This is NOT confirmation that your whole
application is complete. You must still submit the remaining materials separately. Sending a copy of your application
form with the remainder of your materials is also a good idea.
2. We will not notify you of incomplete applications if the online application form is the only piece we have received by
March 25th.
3. Part-time or Full-time status: Part-time status is 1-11 credits, supplemented by high school classes; full-time status
is 12-16 credits, with no classes at high school. Most academic college courses are 3 or 4 credits; students with a
FT registration generally take 3 to 4 courses. You may request either PT or FT, but the final decision is made by the
Admissions Committee based on the strength of your overall application, and the admission decision is not affected
by your choice.
4. Access to your file: Carefully discuss access to your file with your parents. According to federal privacy laws, the
PSEO Office cannot disclose any information about your college work to anyone not listed under file access or
without your written consent. Your information, including your admission status and grades, will NOT be shared
with anyone aside from your high school, including parents and guardians, unless you grant access on the application
form. If you want the PSEO Office to disclose your information to someone other than yourself (e.g., your parents),
you MUST grant them access to your file. Please note: Our office will not release grade information or application
decisions over the phone or via e-mail to anyone, including students.
5. By submitting the online application form, you agree that the information contained within this application is true
to the best of your knowledge, and understand that misrepresentation or fraudulent information may be grounds for
denial of admission or dismissal from the PSEO Program. In addition, you acknowledge that you (the student) are
solely responsible for ensuring that this application is complete and is postmarked by the April 1 deadline, even if you
entrust someone else, including representatives of your high school, to submit all or part of this application.
Balance Sheet (Required of All Applicants)
1. A balance sheet is filled out by your high school counselor and lists all coursework remaining for your high school
graduation assuming successful completion of your current courses.
2. Please download the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities PSEO Balance Sheet from our website for your counselor:
http://cce.umn.edu/documents/DCP/PSEO-Balance-Sheet.pdf
Post-Secondary Notice of Student Registration (Required of All Applicants)
1. The Post-Secondary Notice of Student Registration (also called “PSEO Form”) must be signed by you, your parent or
guardian if you are under 18 years of age, and your high school counselor. You and your high school must complete
sections 1 & 2 before you submit your materials.
2. Your high school counselor should have copies of this form and you can also download it from our website: http://
www.cce.umn.edu/documents/DCP/PSEO-Notice-of-Reg-Form.pdf
3. Do not send application materials to the Roseville address listed on this form.
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Official High School Transcript (Required of All Applicants)
1. An official transcript bears a stamp and/or signature, and, if issued to the student, is in a separate, sealed envelope
with the school’s letterhead and/or signature from the high school registrar. If your counselor hands you a
transcript that is not in a separate, sealed envelope, request a new transcript.
2. If your school uses Docufide or another transcript processing service, you must select the “University of Minnesota-
Advanced High School Student Services” option, and transcripts must be sent via postal mail. The PSEO Office
cannot access transcripts sent electronically to the University of Minnesota Office of Admissions.
3. A complete transcript contains all coursework starting from 9th grade through your current registration. The
Admissions Committee will consider all coursework, even classes in progress, and may require an updated transcript
upon completion of in-progress courses.
4. Home School transcripts should include a narrative of the material a student has covered and a listing of courses s/he
has taken, if appropriate.
5. We do not accept faxed transcripts.
Essay & Personal Statement (Required of All Applicants)
The essay and personal statement should demonstrate your writing skills and your ability to organize thoughts coherently.
Essay
• Choose one of the following topics:
1. If you were a super hero, what would your super power be, why, and for what purposes would you use it
2. Pick the international or domestic travel destination you believe best defines you and explain why you believe this
locale to be an accurate description of your persona.
3. Describe an event (preferably within the last 3-4 years) that changed you or your life in some significant or
fundamental way. In what positive and/or negative ways did this event change you Were all the changes it
effected in you expected, or did some surprise you Feel free to draw on personal or academic experiences to
elaborate.
• Include your name and which topic you are answering at the top of the page.
• The essay must be typewritten or computer generated and be around 500 words in length. Use black ink, 12-point
font, double-spacing, and 1” margins.
• Edit your essay carefully; it could mean the difference between full-time or part-time registration, and may even
prevent you from being admitted to the program.
Personal Statement
• In about 250-500 words, please explain why you would like to participate in the PSEO Program at the University
of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Discuss your academic goals and what you hope to gain from your participation in the
program. If you know some classes you would like to take, feel free to list them as well.
• Follow the same format guidelines that are required for the essay.
Additional Information (Optional)
Include an additional statement if there is anything you would like us to know about you or your academic record that you
have not had the opportunity to describe elsewhere in this application.
Transcripts from Other College Coursework
1. Required of students who have taken or are taking other college courses, even if those courses are still in progress
and grades have not been completed. Notation on the student’s high school transcript is not sufficient to fulfill this
requirement.
2. Unofficial versions of these transcripts are acceptable.
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College Entrance Exam Scores*
1. Required of students who have been home-schooled for the past year or longer and of students whose transcript is
narrative rather than graded. Submission of these scores is optional for all other students.
2. Exams may include ACT, SAT, PLAN, or PSAT. Photocopies are acceptable.
3. Do not have a testing service send a copy directly to the University of Minnesota because they will be sent to the
Office of Admissions rather than our office. The PSEO Office will not receive scores sent to Admissions.
* You may also choose to include results from Advanced Placement exams. While these results do not factor into
admissions decisions, they are used for appropriate placement for students who are admitted to the program.
MELAB, TOEFL, SAT, or ACT Scores
1. Required of nonnative English speakers who have been in the country for fewer than five years.
2. The minimum score for the Internet-based TOEFL is 79, and the minimum score for the MELAB is 80.
3. Scores of at least 18 on the Reading and English portions of the ACT or scores greater than 420 on the SAT Verbal
section are acceptable replacements for the MELAB or TOEFL.
4. PSEO does not cover the costs of these tests.
5. Do not have a testing service send a copy directly to the University of Minnesota because they will be sent to the
Office of Admissions rather than our office. The PSEO Office will not receive scores sent to Admissions. Photocopies
are acceptable.
6. Check with your high school about testing options first, but more information about both exams can be found online:
MELAB: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/eli/testing/melab
TOEFL: http://www.ets.org
Confirmation of Receipt of Application
1. If the only piece of your application that we have received is the online application form, we will not send you
incomplete notification until at least one additional piece has been received.
2. For written verification that your application has been received and is complete, you must submit a self-addressed,
stamped envelope with your application materials.
3. To receive e-mail confirmation of our receipt of your mailed application, send an e-mail message to
ccepseoa@umn.edu that includes your first and last names and states that you wish to receive confirmation via e-mail.
Keep in mind that we will not discuss admission decisions via e-mail or phone.
4. We cannot verify that your application is complete after March 25th due to the large number of last minute
submissions.
Common Submission Errors
We strongly encourage you to submit your application at least 2 weeks in advance of the postmark deadline. The PSEO
Office is not responsible for late applications due to submission errors.
1. Do not wait until the last minute to submit your materials. We will not make exceptions for late applications if you
submit materials after March 25th.
2. We will not make exceptions for late applications due to high school, counselor, parent, or any other person’s error.
3. Reconfirm the address before sending your materials. We cannot accept late materials (even if they were originally
mailed on time) that were sent to the Minnesota Department of Education in Roseville, the UMTC Office of
Admissions, or any other wrong address.
4. Verify your postage.
Rev. 01/2014
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