The Pennsylvania State University – Penn State

I was able to tour Penn State University campus before my brother’s college basketball game. It’s a beautiful campus. We didn’t have a problem navigating around. The Nittany Lion Shrine is a great place to take photos. I definitely enjoyed my short visit in State College, PA.

We are!!!
There is a huge problem with this University, you pay parking permit and they anyways dispose of the place, they do not care if you paid or not for parking.

Beautiful campus, amazing history!

Gorgeous campus, very large, great mix of old and new! Proud that one of my girls is here and receiving and excellent education.

I have mixed feelings about this university during my first year there. Coming from Seattle, WA, a very liberal metro-​region of the pacific northwest, I did not know what I was in for at Penn State… and I guess central PA in general. I came here to get away from the west coast for a bit and to just experience east coast lifestyle — well, this place is certainly not the right place! Anyway, more about the school itself…
I was accepted directly into the school of Communication and I felt my classes were a little lackluster, as far as developing and fostering education. I did study, and it was not too difficult to get a high GPA. Of course, I’m sure this depends entirely on the programs too. I was just disappointed to hear how great the school of Comm is, only to find out how undeveloped it actually is.
The campus is just GORGEOUS. I love the aesthetics of the school. It’s also a very big school, so just prepare to ride the crowded CATABUS all the time, which I loathed.
My biggest gripe of PSU was the majority of the students there. Now, let me make this clear… I said majority*, not all, so don’t get offended by this, as this is an honest recounting of my experience there. I felt a lot of the students lacked ambition and motivation, except for a nice group of people I met early on during the semester. Not only that, but a lot of students are ignorant and downright rude. I can feel for all the minority members who attend PSU because of how predominantly white the school is. If you’re white and you don’t think there’s a lack of diversity, then ask yourself this: How would you feel if you were the only white person in the room? Sure, you can blame it on the geographic location and try to justify it, but PSU really needs to work on its student diversity.
Along the lines of this, I faced a lot of discrimination when I was there… a lot of racism toward Asian Americans and International students. Many of the students I had to deal with generalized all Asians into one group. Well, no wonder they do that. The school is so white that any minority members feel so disenfranchised and discriminated against. My black friends even noted the lack of diversity, which resulted in them sticking together because they had no one else who understood them. I overheard my white neighbors, PSU students, making fun of me once as I stepped into my room, making racial slurs. Not okay. I get that Seattle may not be the perfect place in the world, but people there are less ignorant about social and ethnic issues. These people… act like they’ve never seen the world beyond central PA. Perhaps they’ve never…
I was also walking along the street one evening and I heard drunk guys picking on this gay couple. Uhh… not cool. Not cool at all. I’m not going to go in-​depth because the crap they yelled at them were just vulgar and completely unacceptable. This also happened around a busy portion of the street, and people LAUGHED. How is this okay??? Apart from this, everyone stared at me as if I were from planet Mars, especially when I decided to break the hideous trend of PSU t-​shirt, sweats or b-​ball shorts with some sandals. No one wants to stand out there, and if they do, they will get ostracized. I’m so glad to have met so many of my good friends there, who helped me get by through the year. I wont even bother bringing in the football scandal issue much, but it only reinforces my argument that a lot of the students here tend to conform to the mass.
I’m officially back on the west coast and I couldn’t be happier. Penn State opened my eyes, my experience teaching me how oblivious, ignorant and cruel rurals of PA’ers can get. I feel PSU has potential, but party stigma that’s literally engraved into 90% of the students there weigh it down. I’m not sure if I would recommend PSU to a high school student, unless she/​he is white.
I know for a fact I’m not alone on this. Many of the PSU students feel this way,

State College. Never in my life would I have thought that I would end up in the middle of Pennsylvania, far far away from my beloved California, and still far far away from my haven in Manhattan. Nonetheless, I made the conscious decision to come here to get my MBA. Upon flying into State College, my initial thoughts were, «Where the hell am I, and why are there so many trees/​fields?» I was definitely not in the city or beach anymore.
The first thing that I saw when I came to campus was Beaver Stadium. This thing literally took my breath away with his gigantic size. It really looked to me like the Roman Colosseum. THIS is what I’m talking about. Back where I got my undergraduate degree, we did not have a sports team, so I just didn’t have that school spirit. By coming here, I know that would drastically change.
As far as the campus itself, this place is huge. I was curious one day, so I decided to run around the whole campus. It was a nice 4.75 miles of good old PSU. So what makes this place nice? Well first of all, there is this huge alumni network that you might have heard of. With the sheer amount of Penn State graduates across the country, you’ll have a hard time to find a company in which there are no PSU graduates working there.
For you athletic types, you have multiple gyms on campus: Natatorium, White Building, Inter-​mural Building, Recreation Hall. Each of these gyms are big enough to get your workout at, and have tons of facilities such as weight rooms, racquetball/​tennis courts, basketball courts, diving/​swimming pools, and of course a track. Say you want to watch a basketball game? Then you have the pleasure of going to the Bryce Jordan Center to do so. If you like to just hang out, then you have the student center, HUB, where you can hang out with all your friends, grab some food, and take a trip to the bookstore.
What I found, that was one of the coolest things here, was Berkey Creamery. Penn State has its own creamery where you can get milkshakes, and ice cream! There are amazing flavors ranging from WPSU Coffee Break, to Peachy Paterno. Prices range around $ 4 so it won’t break your piggy bank either.
Penn State really is a huge university. If you’re coming here as an undergrad, then you have a plethora of courses to choose from. Whether you want to learn how to scuba dive, or quantum physics, Penn State pretty much has it all. Each of the individual majors provide tons of opportunities to get internships, network with top firms such as Goldman Sachs, and get a decent education in the process.
So what are some of the downsides? Well, you’re in the middle of nowhere. Literally the middle of nowhere. You’re a 3 hour drive from Pittsburg/​Philadelphia, and about a 4 hour drive to Manhattan. Good luck finding your favorite stores or things to do, because over in State College, your choices of food/​drinks/​stores is extremely limited. To get to major cities, there are a bunch of bus services such as Megabus, so if you don’t have a car, you won’t die here.
All in all, PSU is just a huge national university. The school is consistently ranked in the top 50 national universities for your undergraduate program, and has a top 10 supply chain management MBA program as well. It’s a great place for kids to get the full college experience. You live in a college town, have division-​1 sports, a student body of 45,000 students, and the option to take any class you can possibly want. As long as you can get around the fact that you’re away from ALL major cities, you’ll find a way to survive, and in the process, have a great experience.

Come on! I gotta love it. It’s my Alma Mater. Wish I was young enough to go back and do it again. Great Times and Great Memories! Lots to do, Lots to see, and Lots to eat!

My Alma Mater. I will love you to death. So many memories and great friends. Not to mention I did 3 full summer internships through this school and 1 full year of OPT after graduation as an International student. So much opportunities, so many clubs/​organizations/​activities to choose from, love the football culture, love the diversity, love the small college-​town setting, and just love the whole peaceful yet crazy at times vibe. I miss you a lot Penn State and you carry a special place in my heart forever. I’ll try to visit you soon!

What else is there to say? Best university ever… one major gripe though, they had the gall to send a letter asking for money from me on my b-​day, great timing PSU!!!

I have attended several dinners and a few lectures at the Conference Center, so I thought it was time for a review.
The conference center is spacious for a large group and there always seems to be ample parking. You can also access the conference center by taking the Red Link bus from campus.
They are well equipped for modern day presentations with computers, software and the hardware necessary to put them on.

Bro, the only thing better than downing a 30-​pack of Natty at 3pm while you pregame with your other bros and random slampieces is doing it at Penn State University. Now, we’re all very aware that bros are both the smartest people in the universe AND the richest people in the universe, so it’s unnecessary for us to pay tuition, unless you count «paying tuition» as «betting $ 3,000 of your dad’s money on the Nittany Lions kicking the piss out of Ohio State this weekend». Sure, your token «whipping boy» bro is probably studying and getting good grades, but he’s also DD’ing when you and the boys are working on local cougars at the watering holes.
The best thing about Penn State is that people label it as «bro heaven». And they say that like it’s a bad thing? Bro heaven is an understatement for this oasis. Get your favorite slampieces and hop on a one-​way ticket to the pound town express, because We Are Penn State, and we’re the best brollege in the world.

I graduated from Penn State in 2000 and I still bleed blue and white. Penn State is an amazing school. The campus is beautiful with great a loving students and teachers. A very very big school but the family feeling does not make you feel like you are surrounded by thousand and thousands of students. I am still involved in the alumni association here in LA. I have been all over the world and I have always ran into someone that have graduated from PSU whether I am in Japan or Puerto Rico. The education and life experience I received at PSU is like no other.
WE ARE… PENN STATE!

What a different world. I spent two years at Penn State. Having lived in Hawaii for the first 18 years of my life, life in State College was a change. First the switch from city to a rural locale. And the fact that things on the East Coast move more quickly. Something that did not sit well with me from day one.
There are a lot of great programs here, but it seemed like I needed to make a decision on a major when I really had no idea what I wanted at age 18 with little real world experience to go on. For example there was a lot of prerequisites to get into the business program. I was handicapped from the start as I only was able to register when I showed up on campus. The freshmen who attended the summer orientation had a head start on enrolling in classes which I did not like.
The classes I did take were challenging and the professors teaching were top notch. However the class sizes made them kind of impersonal and I felt like I did not get the attention I needed. It seemed too much like sink or swim.
The campus is great. Very collegial and great facilities especially the union building and library (Paterno/​Pattee). The sport complexes are obviously good as well. Plus there are many student activities to participate in if you want to be active.
Being introverted with social anxiety, the environment here was not the best for me. The fact that Penn State is essentially a college town, there was no place nearby to escape from the pressures of college life. I am a city kid, so it just did not work.
There was also some concerns I had with the university’s handling of several incidents related to minority students that I did not like. Hopefully this has changed in the 8 years since I last attended.
I think Penn State is a good school, but it is not a fit for everyone. In hindsight, I do not feel that I was equipped then for a school like this. However I think that the life I have lived since then makes me feel like giving it a go again. I think this has to do with identity in particular, something that was not developed at the time I was there.

Finally! After all those years of hearing my parents speak of Penn State! we get to go visit on a family reunion.
The campus is large and attractive. We got an easy place to park, but that’s my Seattle parking karma (I am a parking witch) so I carry this practice.
I was very pleased and grateful when we went yo the Alumni Association the staff was appreciative of my Mom’s visit and stories.
We spent time looking over old annuals and found other pictures of relatives. I am born in PA, here, actually, State College, transplanted to Wa at an early age.
AAAHH Penn State! I grew up with my parents cheering and yelling for their fantastic football team!

Dear Penn State,
I attended classes on your campus in U. Park. I skipped class. I even missed a final once. But I did it with finesse, and somehow I made it out in 4 years (OK, OK, with ONE summer session), and with a decent GPA.
You taught me that it’s never too snowy to go out to bars or parties, but it CAN be too snowy to make it to class.
You taught me to survive a riot, AND a wicked dose of pepper spray. I learned how to avoid skeevy guys at parties by artfully dancing away from them.
I went to your crappy movie theatre, and your crappy mall, but I didn’t care that they both sucked. Your countless positive features made up for it.
I will forever miss getting lunch at Irving’s (everything bagel toasted with hummus, red onion, alfalfa sprouts and tomato!!), and lattes at Websters… and shopping at Abercrombie and working out at Body Works and drinking at Café… I love you PSU. Too bad you’re in the middle of nowhere or I’d come back all the time. xoxo –dana

I like to come here once a year to watch Penn State Nittany Lions kick their opposing team’s butt.
Coming from New York the drive is nice. Lots of cows and open areas. But I tell ya you will know once you are in the PSU area. There will be students all over the place.
Take a walk down East College as there are plenty of restaurants and lounges. Pretty nice for a college town.
WE ARE… PENN STATE!!!

This review is actually for the Creamery as I have never in fact, attended Penn State.
However, my uncle teaches there and my cousins attended, and I have, on multiple occasions visited the campus. I’d been on the campus back in the day, as in the early 90s before The Creamery was in its fancy pants new venue.
This campus is gorgeous, and if I were inclined to live on the East Coast, and get what I’ve been told is a very good education, this would be my place. By the way, I have quite an array of Penn State clothing, and other Nittny Lion parafinalia. So, I’m kind of an honorary Penn State perma-​student. I’m talkin, hoodies, sweat pants, shorts, pens, sutffed animals… You name it, I may have, at one time, owned it with the Penn State paw and name on it. It’s probably as close to following a college as I’m going to get ;)
Anyway, So, if you find yourself on campus and don’t stop at The Creamery, you are insane. I said before Coldstone has the best ice cream, clearly, that is only true in California. Having been to the Creamery many times, I can attest to how fresh, delicious, amazing, wonderful, and just plain good it is. They now have a HUGE selection of products at their mammoth new location, so apparently it’s the go-​to place on campus?
Also, the chapel is beautiful. My cousin got married in it last September and the whole thing was just perfect. The weather was nice, everywhere was green and lush, it was gorgeous. Check that out while you’re there as well ;)
And, you should probably take your picture with the statue of the lion…

I know you can get a good education there — or at any of their branch campuses — trust me.
Students are generally sociable. For sure, they throw the best parties around. Arts Fest is good (minus the riots) and there’s always fun folks trying to get you to support the cause du jour (I’m sure some folks have seen the volatile preacher roaming around Willard years ago — is he still there?). Visit the Creamery, sit on the Lion, don’t go to Walmart.
The food selection has gotten better over the years and I believe that it will only GET better — all they need there now is a Russian and a Burmese restaurant… any takers?