Penn State: An inviting home for many

As a high school student, one of the most frequently asked question is “where do you plan to go to college?” This type of question usually becomes frequently asked during the student’s sophomore year of high school, and then more and more until the decision is finally made around the end of the second semester senior year. The college bound high school student is constantly thinking about the myriad of differing characteristics original to each individual college: campus, social life, academics, expert’s reviews, sports, and community.

I remember going to family get-togethers and having to answer this same question six or seven times in the matter of an hour. It was annoying indeed, but I realize now how important the decision was and I understand why everyone would persist with their questions. Penn State was always high on my list because I was pretty convinced that it was a great school, especially for first year college students. Now that I am here at Penn State, I am truly convinced that this is a highly suitable school for all first year students.

Arguably, one of the first judgments one will have about a college or institution is the campus itself. Penn State, which may seem overwhelmingly large, but it has a relatively simple campus that is easy to navigate and discover. Because Penn State’s campus is set on a grid like system, many of the streets run parallel to each other, which make exploring even easier. In addition to the campus being easy to navigate through, Penn State is beautiful, especially in the fall. The autumn colors up here in “Happy Valley” appear to be one of a kind because they are so vivid. There are gigantic old trees scattered all over campus that seem to hold years of tradition within their branches. The landscape, hardscape, and the buildings are well maintained. Penn State is surrounded by what seems to be endless acres of farmland, the sky is blue, and the air is clean. The campus itself is also very clean and it promotes a feeling of order and organization essential for a place of education. The clean environment and image of Penn State definitely appeals to the incoming freshman as does the simplicity of the campus layout.

The social atmosphere here at Penn State has proven a good fit for the entirety of the student body. Penn State is nationally recognized for impressing organizations such as the fundraiser THON, the school of agriculture, the unbelievable amount of available activities, clubs, sports, and Greek life. Many first year students may worry about what they will do and where they will fit in. These fears are more than comforted when the student arrives and discovers there are almost too many choices of what to do on their free time. Because of the quantity and diversity of the clubs and organizations available to freshman, making friends proves to be extremely simple.

Another important deciding factor the incoming freshman is faced with is the quality of the city or town the university is surrounded by. Penn State University was founded in 1855 as an agricultural school. In the beginning, there was nothing but farmland. Slowly a small town has evolved around the college:

In most cases, America’s universities are founded in an already existing city or town. This could cause problems if the surrounding city is unappealing to the student. In Penn State’s case, the school was founded first and the town of State College grew as a result of the school. This has lead to a town which is customized for the students attending the university. Over the years, the small town of State College has slowly grown with the school to fit the student’s needs and interests. The first year student is blessed with a warm feeling because virtually anything they need or want is close by and in a small proximity. If Penn State was built in a city such as Philadelphia, the case would be much different. The surroundings would be defined by the large population of the city and would not be ideal for the student attending the university.

In downtown State College, everything necessary is there. Conveniently located minutes of the campus, there are bars, clubs, grocery stores, clothing stores, hardware stores, cell phone stores, ice cream shops, and even movie theaters. On top of this, the bus systems are running long hours and prove to be reliable, easy, and time efficient transportation. These are all attributes that make the freshman year go smooth and easy.

Although some may say that schools which are located in the cities may offer students more things to do for entertainment, however, the social scene in State College is tailored for the college student, on the contrary, in large cities the social life is differentiated to fit the general population. Students at Penn State are able to party in a safe and fun environment that may seem perfect at times.

Academically, Penn State has made astonishing strides to acclimate the freshman into scholastically rich environment. Before attending a school, one most definitely wonder how enriching and valuable the classes and curriculums are. The problem is there is not one completely reliable way of knowing this. Many college decisions depend on whether the classes are beneficial for the individual’s well-being and future.

Freshman at Penn State are met with classes which may far exceed there expectations. Because of the vast amount and variety of offered courses, the freshman is able to select courses which make up a schedule that is challenging, interesting, enjoyable, and manageable. Because there schedules are able to balanced in this way, the first year student becomes adapt in a rather short amount of time. Many times, the first year student is uncertain about their major. Because Penn State offers over one hundred and sixty five majors, it is a marvelous school for exploring interests and options as an underclassman.

Another popular fear among many incoming freshman is the actual size of the classes. Although there are a few auditorium based classes, featuring a large lecture classroom atmosphere, first year students benefit from surprisingly small classes when considering the overall population. According to Penn State undergraduate admissions facts, roughly eighty-five percent of first years courses offered have fewer than fifty students’ enrollment. The larger courses offered frequently include a lab component in which students are broken into smaller groups and meet once a week to learn material in a smaller and more intimate setting. The mature academics of Penn State are highly accomplished, and over the years have evolved into a truly excellent program for incoming freshmen.

Technology is strategically incorporated into the curriculums in order to promote success, but at the same time making the students strive for excellence in academic endeavors. For example, many of the language courses offer an online complement to the course study. This gives an extra reference or tool to further guarantee understanding and comprehension. There are interactive power point presentations, listening exercises for pronunciation, and even online videos downloadable by mainstream technology, and all of it is available via the World Wide Web.

The football games are an ideal example of the sense of contagious pride, which is passed down to each freshman class in the early fall. Football games are held at Beaver Stadium, which is

After a win, the campus as a whole is thoroughly proud and ecstatic. This feeling of ecstasy is sure to guarantee the first year student that he/she made the right decision in attending Penn State. Because, attitudes are more positive, proud, and pleasurable when the home team is winning then when they are loosing, I recognize one may argue a loosing football season may negatively impact the first year experience. This could be true, but since there are so many successful sport teams at Penn State, the winnings of the other teams should cause the student to forget the more disappointing moments in the realm of athletics.

Because I attend Penn State, one would think my emotion and pride may cause a biased argument. I argue my opinions show many parallels to those of the experts in the field of college reviewing. The Princeton Review gave Penn State an “academic rating” of seventy five on a scale from sixty to ninety-nine. The rating measures how hard the student must work to succeed and the overall quality of the classes. This “middle of the road” approach to academics serves to prepare the individual for increasingly difficult courses in the future and at the same time, not overwhelming the student with stress.

In the area of school pride and sports, Penn State is widely known for a school that is made up of a student body that has always been supportive of the teams. The Princeton Review has Penn State ranked forth on the list of schools where students “pack the stadiums” (The Best 361 College Rankings). Also, CampusDirt.com, a survey complier agency, has Penn State ranked thirtieth in excellence of athletics.

The social life is also nationally recognized for its superiority. Penn State is well known for THON, the largest student run fundraiser in the United States. THON raises uncanny amounts of money for kids with cancer and definitely has a real impact in the US. Penn State is also ranked third in the top ten schools that have “a club for everyone” (CampusDirt.com).

The last and maybe most remarkable characteristic of Penn State is the sense of community. Penn State has approximately 35,000 undergraduates. This can be an intimidating number and may seem like too many. However, once the student is on the campus, the feeling is surprisingly contradicting. This is because the Penn State community is tightly knit. The general attitude is energetic, jovial, friendly, and polite. You can definitely expect the person ahead of you to hold the door for you to get in from the cold. The majority of the population at Penn State love meeting new people and developing meaningful relationships, so it is very easy to make friends.

I recognize that it would be wrong to judge other universities on how suitable they are for first year students, simply because I am only a first year student at Penn State. I can however provide strong evidence and witness that powerfully suggests Penn State being a superb school for incoming freshmen and I also truely believe the rest of the class of 2009 would agree.