Introduction
Pennsylvania State University is a university that is sometimes confused with the Ivy League school University of Pennsylvania. However, the two schools are very different—Pennsylvania State University was founded in 1885, with a mission that includes teaching as well as research and public service (Psu.edu). Although Pennsylvania State University—also called Penn State at times—has a number of campuses across the state, the flagship campus—that is, the main campus—is known as University Park Campus (Psu.edu). This campus is in the center of Pennsylvania, far from the major cities of Pittsburg and Philadelphia, making it a campus that is quite self-contained (Psu.edu).
There are a number of things that make Penn State an important college in the sea of many important colleges on the American East coast. Overall, Pennsylvania State University is ranked number 17 overall in undergraduate and graduate programs within the country, making it one of the best schools to attend (Psu.edu). This may be because the campus exists in many different locations and serves many different specialized needs, based on the different academic programs that are offered on each specific campus (Psu.edu). There are many different things that should affect the choice of campus that a student to be makes, and the campus at University Park is a campus that offers students a variety of different benefits (Psu.edu). The overall goal of this discussion will be to look at the benefits of the University Park campus and determine why students choose this particular campus, especially if they have the opportunity to go to other schools or other campuses (Psu.edu). This report will also examine the importance of sports on the Penn State University Park campus, and determine how important those sports are to university culture.
This project will focus only on the University Park campus because it is the University Park campus that is really the heart and soul of Pennsylvania State University. It is the campus where many of the undergraduates study, and it is the main campus of the university as a whole. It is important to think of this campus like the hub from which all the other independent campuses extend—the University Park campus is lively, active, and a great place to study (Psu.edu). The overall goal of this discussion will be to look at the benefits of the University Park campus and determine why students choose this particular campus, especially if they have the opportunity to go to other schools or other campuses (Psu.edu). This report will also examine the importance of sports on the Penn State University Park campus, and determine how important those sports are to university culture.
The overall objectives for this study are to determine what the campus environment is like and how the students perceive this campus environment. Of course, all students will have a different and unique experience on the University Park campus, which is why the research that will be done will focus on a number of different student groups and getting information from members of these different and disparate groups to determine what the overall sense of the campus. The general trends that are teased out of this information will then be collected into information that can then be presented as information regarding student feelings about the campus. This can be used by the administration to make changes, or to help the administration tell prospective students more aptly what life is like on the University Park campus for undergraduates, graduates, and post-graduates (Psu.edu).
Discussion
The picture painted by the school administration of Pennsylvania State University’s University Park campus is one that is quite rosy—as would be expected, of course, because the administration wants to encourage students to become students at the Pennsylvania State University University Park campus. Pennsylvania State University staffers write that the University Park campus—commonly known as “Happy Valley”—is a very exciting place to go to school (Psu.edu). The school also has more than 950 clubs and organizations available on campus (Psu.edu). The school is very active in the local community, participating in many local events and coloring every part of the culture in the town. In addition, the school is host to a number of sororities and fraternities, making it an excellent place to grow a new social life. The sports life at the University Park campus is very oriented towards undergraduate life—the sports scene on the Penn State University Park campus is particularly important, and it is the root of much of the school spirit that the administration encourages in the student body.
Although Penn State’s sports reputation has been tarnished in recent years because of a sex scandal that swept through the football program, the sports culture at Penn State’s University Park campus continues to be very strong. The child abuse sex scandal, which came to the public attention in 2012, was very difficult for the Penn State campus (Psu.edu). The campus roundly denounced any involvement in the scandal, and stated that they did not support the actions of Sandusky or any of the individuals that helped him cover up his crimes (Psu.edu). However, it is notably important that the athletic program at Penn State remains very strong to this day, and is a park of university culture that cannot be removed from University Park campus. This is probably why the sexual abuse went unreported for so long—the environment on the campus encouraged participation in the sports culture (Psu.edu).
Despite the problems that the campus has faced in recent years, there are a lot of students that have nothing but positive things to say about their experience. Indeed, the academics at Penn State are ranked very high—overall, the school is 17th in undergraduate academic programs for schools around the United States (COLLEGEdata). This is not insignificant, because many schools that have such large sports programs are not necessarily as focused on academics—at Penn State’s University Park campus, there is a good mix between academics and sports in the culture, giving students an option to choose what they focus on (COLLEGEdata). This also indicates that the school is willing to spend plenty of money on things other than athletics, which is excellent for a large school like Pennsylvania State University (Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com).
There can be no doubt that there are many benefits to the University Park campus, but there are some things that students seem to dislike, as well—as with many campuses, the food is not highly lauded by the student body. In addition, the campus is quite far from most of the major cities in Pennsylvania, making it hard for older students to escape the cloistered atmosphere of the campus (Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com). Finally, for students that are uninterested in sports and the accompanying lifestyle, the emphasis that the school places on sports can be quite overwhelming at times (Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com). It can also be extremely hard to escape the campus, because of the isolated nature of the campus itself.
Evaluation
The University Park campus is an excellent place for an undergraduate to do his or her undergraduate studies, because it offers a wide range of experiences that the student can choose from based on his or her personal interests. Because college is supposed to be a time for students to experience a number of new and different things, attending school on a campus like University Park can be extremely beneficial for the student who is looking to have a wide array of different opportunities during his or her undergraduate career (Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com).
Conclusions
Despite the many different problems that were associated with the athletic program, the campus at University Park is a safe, open campus that is quite diverse. Although it is located quite far from most of the major cities in the region, it continues to be one of the most well loved and well-regarded campuses in the region. Pennsylvania State University is a leader in both academics and athletics, meaning that students from all over the world want to enroll in the various programs that are offered by the university. The student experience, as a result, is quite unique, and cannot be replicated in any other institution.
References
COLLEGEdata,. 'Penn State University Park Tuition, Costs And Financial Aid'. N.p., 2015. Web. 19 June 2015.
Colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com,. 'Pennsylvania State University--University Park'. N.p., 2015. Web. 19 June 2015.
Psu.edu,. 'PSU Homepage'. N.p., 2015. Web. 19 June 2015.
