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Smeal College Entrance to Major (2026-27)

Entrance Requirements, Application Process, and Class Scheduling for students new to Penn State in summer 2026, fall 2026, or spring 2027.

Entrance-to-major requirements, the Major Assignment Process, and suggested academic plans for students entering Penn State in summer 2026, fall 2026, or spring 2027.

Entrance to Major (ETM) Deadline

The entrance-to-major deadline is Friday, February 25, 2028 at 11:59 p.m. (ET). This is the deadline by which all requirements must be met; coursework may be in progress at the time of application. The deadline is firm, regardless of a student’s credit window status.

Required Coursework

To enter a Smeal major, students must be enrolled as a pre-major in the Smeal College of Business. Smeal pre-major students enter the Smeal community through one of two pathways:

Smeal Direct: students admitted directly into Smeal from high school, starting at any residential Penn State campus. Pre-major code: BA_PMAJ
Smeal Second-Year Entry: students initially admitted to a different Penn State college or campus who are accepted into Smeal after their first academic year. Pre-major code: BA3_PMAJ

Entry into a Smeal major is based on completion of required coursework, credit requirements, the cumulative grade-point average (GPA), and the ETM deadline. All Smeal pre-major students must complete or be enrolled in the following courses by the entrance-to-major deadline:

English Composition: ENGL 15, ENGL 30, ESL 15, ENGL 137H or CAS 137H (C or better grade)
Microeconomics: ECON 102
Calculus: MATH 110 or MATH 140* (C or better grade)
Statistics: SCM 200 or STAT 200 (C or better grade)

*Students pursuing the Actuarial Science major take MATH 140 and MATH 141 to satisfy the calculus requirement.

The following required courses must be taken at Penn State with a grade of C or better. No exceptions will be made.

Financial and Managerial Accounting: ACCTG 211 or (ACCTG 201 & ACCTG 202)
Basic Management Concepts: MGMT 301
Principles of Marketing: MKTG 301
Corporation Finance: FIN 301

Smeal Direct Students

Smeal Direct students can enter their major of choice upon meeting course, credit requirements, and cumulative GPA requirements by the entrance-to-major deadline:

Credits: have earned a minimum of 36.0 but not more than 59.0 cumulative units (credits) at Penn State. These are listed in LionPath and on transcripts as “GPA Units” or “Units Towards GPA.” Advanced Placement (AP) credits, transfer credits, and other external credits do not count towards this total.
GPA: have the minimum cumulative GPA posted for the major of their choice. If required coursework is in progress at the time of application, students must also have the minimum cumulative GPA once those courses are complete.

GPA Requirements by Major

**GPA Requirements by Major**
Major	Cumulative GPA
Accounting — ACCTG_BS	3.10
Actuarial Science — ACTSC_BS	3.20
Business Analytics and Information Systems — MIS_BS	3.10
Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship — CIENT_BS	3.10
Finance — FIN_BS	3.50
Management — MGMT_BS	3.10
Marketing — MKTG_BS	3.10
Real Estate — REST_BS	3.10
Risk Management — RM_BS	3.10
Supply Chain and Information Systems — SCIS_BS	3.10

Applying for a Major

Smeal Direct students meeting their preferred major’s GPA threshold apply via LionPath’s Update Academics. Update Academics will be open for Smeal majors from Monday August 30, 2027 to Friday, February 25, 2028. Students must apply during this window.

Students will be placed in one of the following statuses:

Permanent Approval: Student has met all entrance criteria, including completion of all required courses, and is enrolled in their major.
Conditional or Conditional Approval: Student has met all entrance criteria and has at least one required course in progress. Students with conditional approval must complete all course requirements by the end of spring of their second year and maintain the appropriate GPA until requirements are complete.
Dean's Review: The college must review the request manually.
Denied: Student applied for a major but has not met one or more of the entrance requirements.

If You Don't Meet Your First-Choice Major's GPA Threshold

Smeal Direct students who meet course requirements but are below the cumulative GPA threshold for their preferred major are still guaranteed entry into a Smeal major if, by the entrance-to-major deadline, they:

Have a cumulative GPA of 2.60 or higher
Apply to change to pre-major code BA2_PMAJ (instructions will be posted once available)
Complete their ranking of Smeal major preferences (instructions will be posted once available)

Assignment to Smeal majors is in GPA order and dependent on space availability. Smeal Direct students are assigned to majors first, followed by Smeal Second-Year Entry students. See the Major Assignment Process (MAP) section for more details.

Smeal Second-Year Entry Students

Smeal Second-Year Entry students who meet course requirements are guaranteed entry into a Smeal major if they have a cumulative GPA of 2.60 or higher and submit their ranked Smeal major preferences by the entrance-to-major deadline. Assignment to Smeal majors is in GPA order and dependent on space availability. Smeal Direct students are assigned to majors first, followed by Smeal Second-Year Entry students. See the Major Assignment Process (MAP) section for more details.

Note: Regardless of cumulative GPA, Smeal Second-Year Entry students can only enter a Smeal major through the Major Assignment Process. They cannot use Update Academics in LionPath to request a major.

Smeal Pre-Major Codes Explained

Note: Regardless of pre-major code, all students entering Smeal majors must have the required ETM coursework complete or in-progress by the ETM deadline.

**Explanation of Pre-Major Codes**
Pre-Major Code	Explanation
BA_PMAJ	Smeal Direct students who have the required GPA for their intended major apply through Update Academics by the ETM deadline (the last Friday in February of their second year).
BA2_PMAJ	Smeal Direct students with a 2.60 to 3.09 cumulative GPA at the ETM deadline rank their major preferences instead of using Update Academics. Major placement occurs through the Major Assignment Process (MAP) in early March and is based on GPA, preferences, and available capacity.
BA3_PMAJ	Smeal Second Year Entry students with a 2.60 or higher cumulative GPA rank their major preferences by the deadline and are placed in majors through the Major Assignment Process (MAP) after Smeal Direct students. Major placement occurs in early March and is based on GPA, preferences, and available capacity.
BAALT_PMAJ	Students with BAALT_PMAJ have a designated pathway to major unique to them, which can be referenced in Starfish.

Major Assignment Process (MAP)

Requirements to Participate in MAP

Be enrolled as a pre-major in the Smeal College of Business as one of the following:

Smeal Direct student with a 2.60 to 3.09 cumulative GPA at the ETM deadline (BA2_PMAJ)
Smeal Second-Year Entry student with a 2.60 or higher cumulative GPA at the ETM deadline (BA3_PMAJ)

Have all course requirements complete or in progress at the entrance-to-major deadline.
Smeal Second-Year Entry students who rank Actuarial Science (ACTSC) among their major preferences must have a 3.20 or higher cumulative GPA.
Submit ranking of Smeal major preferences by the entrance-to-major deadline.

Note: While students are not required to rank all available majors, the following conditions apply:

Students who rank all available Smeal majors are guaranteed placement in a Smeal major.
Students who submit partial rankings (fewer than all available majors) are not guaranteed placement in a Smeal major if their preferred majors reach capacity.

Detailed instructions for submitting major preference rankings will be made available prior to the entrance-to-major deadline.

Process

The Major Assignment Process takes place during the first week of March of the student’s second year. Only majors with available capacity are included, and assignments are made in GPA order until capacity is reached. Smeal Direct students are assigned to majors first, followed by Smeal Second-Year Entry students.

Students will be notified of their major assignment by mid-March. The major assignment will either be permanent if all required coursework is complete or conditional if required coursework is still in progress. Students with conditional approval through the Major Assignment Process must complete required courses by the end of spring of their second year and maintain at least a 2.60 cumulative GPA (or 3.20 for Actuarial Science).

Suggested Academic Plans for Entrance to Major

Smeal Direct Students Beginning at University Park

First Semester (term)

First Year Seminar (1)
English Composition — ENGL 15, ENGL 30, ESL 15, ENGL 137H, or CAS 137H (3) ^{1, 2}
Calculus — MATH 110 or MATH 140 (4) ^{1, 2}
Microeconomics — ECON 102 (GS) (3) ²
World Language — Level One (4) ⁴

Second Semester (term)

Basic Management Concepts — MGMT 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Statistics - SCM 200 or STAT 200 (4) ^{1, 2}
World Language - Level Two (4) ⁴
General Education Natural Science (GN) (3)

Third Semester (term)

Principles of Marketing — MKTG 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Financial and Managerial Accounting — ACCTG 211 (4) ^{1, 2, 3}
General Education US Cultures (GA/GH/GS) (3)
World Language — Level Three (4) ⁴

Fourth Semester (term)

Corporation Finance — FIN 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Supply Chain Mgmt — SCM 301 (3) or Business Writing - ENGL 202D (3)
Speech - CAS 100, ENGL 138T, or CAS 138T (3) ¹
General Education International Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
MIS 250 (3) or General Education Natural Science (GN)(3)

¹ Course requires a grade of C or better
² Entrance-to-Major Course — complete or in-progress at entrance-to-major deadline
³ ACCTG 211 (or ACCTG 201 & ACCTG 202), FIN 301, MGMT 301, and MKTG 301 must be taken at Penn State. No exceptions will be made.
⁴ Attain 12th unit (credit) level proficiency in a world language (0-12 units). Actual units required vary based upon a student's present skill level in the language they choose.

Smeal Direct Students Beginning at a non-University Park Penn State Campus

First Semester (term)

First Year Seminar (1)
English Composition — ENGL 15, ENGL 30, ESL 15, ENGL 137H, or CAS 137H (3) ^{1, 2}
Calculus — MATH 110 or MATH 140 (4) ^{1, 2}
Microeconomics — ECON 102 (GS) (3) ²
World Language - Level One (4) ⁴

Second Semester (term)

Basic Management Concepts — MGMT 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Statistics — SCM 200 or STAT 200 (4) ^{1, 2}
World Language — Level Two (4) ⁴
ACCTG 201 — Financial Accounting (3) ^1,2,3,5

Third Semester (term)

Principles of Marketing — MKTG 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
ACCTG 202 — Managerial Accounting (4) ^{1, 2, 3, 5}
General Education US Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
World Language — Level Three (4) ⁴

Fourth Semester (term)

Corporation Finance — FIN 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Supply Chain Mgmt — SCM 301 (3) or Business Writing - ENGL 202D (3)
Speech - CAS 100, ENGL 138T, or CAS 138T (3) ¹
General Education International Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
General Education Natural Science (GN)(3)

Smeal Second-Year Entry Students

First and Second Semesters (terms) - Pre-Smeal year, before admission to Smeal

Students must have completed the following courses, earning a C or higher in each, by the end of spring of the first year:

ENGL 15 or ENGL 30 (or equivalent)
MATH 110, MATH 140, or MATH 141
ECON 102 or ECON 104

Suggested additional coursework by the end of spring of the first year:

First Year Seminar
ECON 102 (if not already completed)
SCM 200 or STAT 200
World Language – Levels 1 and 2

12th unit (credit) level proficiency in a world language (0-12 units) is a graduation requirement. Actual units required vary based upon a student's present skill level in the language they choose.

ACCTG 201 (for Commonwealth Campus students completing ACCTG 201 and ACCTG 202 as separate courses)

Smeal Second-Year Entry Students Beginning at University Park (Third and Fourth Semesters – After Admission to Smeal)

Third Semester (term)

Basic Management Concepts — MGMT 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Principles of Marketing — MKTG 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Financial and Managerial Accounting — ACCTG 211 (4) ^{1, 2, 3}
General Education US Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
World Language — Level Three (4) ⁴

Fourth Semester (term)

Corporation Finance — FIN 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Supply Chain Mgmt — SCM 301 (3) or Business Writing - ENGL 202D (3)
Speech - CAS 100, ENGL 138T, or CAS 138T (3) ¹
General Education International Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
MIS 250 (3) or General Education Natural Science (GN)(3)

Smeal Second-Year Entry Students Beginning at a Non-University Park Penn State Campus (Third and Fourth Semesters – After Admission to Smeal)

Third Semester (term)

Basic Management Concepts — MGMT 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Principles of Marketing — MKTG 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Managerial Accounting — ACCTG 202 (4) ^{1, 2, 3, 5}
General Education US Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
World Language — Level Three (4) ⁴

Fourth Semester (term)

Corporation Finance — FIN 301 (3) ^{1, 2, 3}
Supply Chain Mgmt — SCM 301 (3) or Business Writing - ENGL 202D (3)
Speech - CAS 100, ENGL 138T, or CAS 138T (3) ¹
General Education International Cultures (GA/GH/GS)(3)
MIS 250 (3) or General Education Natural Science (GN)(3)

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