A recent study found a gap in what high school teachers are teaching college-bound students and what professors think first-year students should know.

The study, conducted by ACT, a nonprofit organization that conducts education research, found that professors want incoming students to have focused, in-depth knowledge of a few things, while high schools teach students a broader overview.

Ed Colby, ACT spokesman, said the gap exists because high school teachers feel as though they have so much information to teach based on curriculum guidelines.

When prospective students apply to Penn State, there are specific guidelines they must meet to be accepted.

Anne Rohrbach, director of admission services and evaluation for undergraduate admissions, said on the whole, students have the ability to be successful at Penn State based on admissions requirements. Rohrbach said the school has a high retention rate, showing that Penn State is "admitting the right students."

To be considered for admission, high school students must have four units of English, three units of science, three units of math and three units of social studies, arts, or humanities, Rohrbach said.

She added that although two units of the same foreign language is "strongly recommended," students without it will still be admitted, just with a "deficiency."

Rohrbach also said different majors require different courses from potential students. For example, lab science classes are not required, but physics and chemistry are recommended for science-related majors. Also, she said higher math courses, including trigonometry, are recommend for incoming engineering, business, information sciences and technology or science majors.

Marcia Kramer, associate principal for curriculum development at State College Area High School, said the school tries to prepare its students well for college.

Kramer said she thinks her graduates are "exceptionally well prepared for college, especially in math and science." She added that she has heard a lot of positive feedback from parents.

Colby said almost two-thirds of college administrators who participated in the study said they think first-year students are poorly prepared for college. This is in contrast to the majority of high school teachers reporting that they think their graduates are well prepared for college.

ACT sent out more than 35,000 surveys to high school and college instructors, and about 6,500 were returned. Colby added that ACT thinks the survey results are reflective of national trends.