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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?

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Inside Scoop at Penn State

luvyalions33

Public Relations '12

4.6
A

Fantastic Career Network, Student Organizations, THON, Huge Alumni Network

My one piece of advice for incoming students to Penn State is GET INVOLVED! There are over 900 student organizations at Penn State. There is something for everyone. Students at Penn State epitomize the phrase "Work hard, Play hard." Most Penn Staters are very ambitious and have high career aspirations. The career services at Penn State both university wide and within individual colleges does a fantastic job of finding internships and full-time positions for students. Penn State is also home to the largest student-philanthropy in the world: THON. In 2012, Penn State students raised over $10.6 million for pediatric cancer....what other school does that? Answer: NONE.

May 15, 2012

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Inside Scoop at Penn State

12criordan

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology '16

5.0
A+

Students

Not once have a met a student that does not want to talk to you. Everyone at PSU is friendly and wants to help you. When I visited there my first time, I got lost and asked a group of upperclassmen for help. Rather than ignore me, they helped me find the building I was looking for and showed me nothing but respect.

May 07, 2012

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Inside Scoop at Penn State

cmp0521

Physician Assistant '12

5.0
A+

Penn State University: Research

I was able to join a research lab as a freshmen and just submitted my thesis a few weeks ago (I received grants to fund a study that I designed). Almost every week when I read the New York Times Science Section I read about research done by a professor at Penn State.

Apr 24, 2012

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Page 1 of 13
User rating for Penn State - Inside Scoop is 4.6 out of 5 based on 38 user reviews.

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.

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Name
James Bunting
Hometown
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Major
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College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. The statistics on our site are from the National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS database.
We update this information twice annually, most recently in May 2012, but it 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.