Buy our guides
Read our blog
Login Register

Penn State
- Inside Scoop

RT
Currently attending or alumni?
Review this school!
Are you interested
in this school?
Yes, let this school know
Maybe, bookmark for later
No, get better matches
Saving your decision
Yes
Maybe
No

Your information has been sent to this school through our partnership with .

This school has been saved to your schools list.

This school has been removed from your recommended schools list.

For your next recommendation, check out .

Jump to a section:

Report Card
Quick Stats
Student Reviews
Facts
Take A SurveyWrite A ReviewUpload A PhotoLink Up A VideoWrite The Guide
Penn State - Inside Scoop - College ProwlerCollege Prowler0.00

Inside Scoop

Quick Stats

School Slang
  • BJC: The Bryce Jordan Center, home of PSU basketball and numerous shows and events.
  • The Fish Tank: The large aquarium and popular meeting place in the HUB.
  • Grilled Stickies: Delicious cinnamon rolls from The Diner on College Avenue.
  • The HUB: The Hetzel Union Building, the student center on campus.
  • JoePa: Joe Paterno, the famous Nittany Lion football coach.
  • The Mall: The strip of land that extends from the library to College Avenue.
  • Pattee/Paterno: The library
  • ResCom: Residential Computing, the people you want to know if you have any computer problems, in student labs or with your personal computer.
Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School
  • Get football tickets. You will be sorry if you don’t.
  • Having a car certainly is not necessary, but it does help in finding a job, grocery shopping and getaway trips.
  • There is always a construction project somewhere on campus.
  • Tuition will rise every single year.
Tips to Succeed
  • Always stay a step ahead when planning future housing.
  • Expand your circle of friends.
  • Penn State gives you 16 late-drop credits. Do not be afraid to use them.
  • Read The Daily Collegian for Penn State news.
  • Study from day one, not the day before the test.
See how you stack up against students who were accepted to this school . . .And calculate your chances!Register to get started

Penn State Student ReviewsWhat's This?

Sort by:

Loading...

Inside Scoop at Penn State

kmk5553

'14

Elementary Education

4.6
A

Extra Extra, Read All About It

News travels VERY fast at Penn State. Between twiter, facebook, and the web in general information can easily be transmitted from one student to another. Also, the school's newspaper The Daily Collegian is very popular for students to read.

Jan 12, 2012

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Inside Scoop at Penn State

kzm5204

'15

Marketing

4.6
A

Business School Offers Exclusive Networking

Penn State's Smeal College of Business has a program called the Sapphire Leadership Program, which allows top students to associate with business executives and professionals to begin networking for internships, co-ops, and careers beginning at the start of their freshman year, allowing students to have an edge up when applying for jobs after college.

Aug 29, 2011

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Inside Scoop at Penn State

vac5093

'11

Education

4.2
A-

Campus Life: Clubs

Penn State has every club imaginable so if you want to make friends: get involved! You can even form your own club, just find a group with similar interests. I recommend doing Blue Band! Not only do you get to go to all the football games for free but you get to move in early, go on trips, get class credit, and meet a ton of awesome people.

Jul 25, 2011

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate
Page 1 of 11

Facts

Traditions
  • : The Mifflin Streak—every year, the students of Mifflin Hall streak across campus. No one quite knows why, but it is a long-standing tradition.
  • : Not knowing the words to the Alma Mater is probably the greatest Penn State tradition. Students typically know the general tune, but sing “I don’t know the words to this song” instead of any actual lyrics.
  • Guarding the Lion Shrine : During homecoming of 1966, Syracuse fans doused the Nittany Lion statue with orange paint. Every year since then, The Lion Ambassadors have been responsible for an overnight security session around the statue leading up to the game.
  • : Every year, PSU’s Interfraternity Council sponsors THON, a 48-hour dance marathon that raises money benefiting the Four Diamonds Fund at Penn State Children’s Hospital.THON is the largest student-run philanthropy in the world.
Urban Legends
  • “Nittany” is named for Native American Princess Nita-nee, a former inhabitant of the region. Historically, Princess Nita-nee never existed; however, the name is derived from a Native American term meaning “single mountain.”
  • If you get hit by a CATA bus, you have earned free tuition. No one really knows how this one started, but please do not throw yourself in front of a Blue Loop.
  • Mrs. Atherton, the wife of former PSU President Atherton (1882–1906), haunts Old Botany, so she can watch over her husband’s grave. (Ghost hunting, anyone?)
  • Sororities aren’t allowed houses because, under State College law, a house with 16 or more women living together is considered a brothel. This is also false: sorority houses did exist on campus until the 1950s, when sororities relocated to newly-available residence hall housing. State College zoning law makes no distinction between fraternity and sorority houses.
  • The ghost of an actress who died in Schwab Auditorium still haunts it. Whether this is true or not, some backstage areas of Schwab are definitely creepy!
  • The sun-dial on the Old Main Lawn marks the geographic center of Pennsylvania. (False—and who comes up with this stuff, anyway?) The sun dial was a gift from the class of 1915, and holds no more significance than historic value.

Buy The Guidebook

Buy a hard copy of "Penn State 2012: Off The Record"

Read more about the book . . .Add to Cart

Buy the eBook:

AmazonBarnes & NobleGoogleSmashwordsDownload the FREE Printable Summary (PDF)

Most Recent Student Author

College Prowler guides are in the hands of students throughout the entire process. Because you can't make student-written guides without the students, we have students at each campus who write, edit, and survey their peers for every guide that we publish. Thanks to our most recent student author at PSU

Name: James Bunting

Hometown: Whitehall, PA

Major: Journalism

see all student author bios > Become a student author to help update the guide for this school

Find a college

Find a major

Scholarships

Reviews

Company

Buy College Prowler school guides in our bookstore Get the real scoop on what it's like on campus and see what school is the place for you!

How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. Please note that the information presented on this site is updated periodically, but may not be the
most recent information available for a particular school. For additional information we encourage you to visit school websites or contact the schools directly.