<p>Just because it has been going on for many years, doesn’t mean it has been going on EVERY year. Yes, a school with an enrollment of say 2000 kids is maybe able to alleviate housing shortages, because they waitlist kids for that very reason. Penn State is too big to predict numbers to an exact amount.</p>
<p>Again , applications are not down because of this, in fact they are WAY up, and their freshman retention is very high for a public university, so most people are happy campers in Happy Valley.</p>
<p>For this school year, the room and board rate per semester for a regular double is $2215, for the supplemental its $1595. So, the students placed there get a substantial reduction. Maybe what they should do is offer a waitlist FOR supplemental housing as there are probably many students for whom the $1240 yearly reduction in cost would be something that they would actually choose for financial reasons. </p>
<p>And as a public university, I would hope that Penn State IS doing things for economic reasons to help keep tuition and room and board costs down for all. If ‘cramming’ people into rooms isn’t scaring people away, why risk leaving rooms empty? Its like pure economics with break even point. Yes, if half the on campus student body had to live 6 to a room, that would definately turn some people off, and make PSU not an attractive option,and appkications and student quality may suffer. But better to have a small percentage in lounges than have rooms empty. It unfortunately for some is the financially prudent thing to do.</p>
<p>Just went back and looked at earlier posts. I was at the University of Illinois in the seventies and we also had people living in supplemental housing (floor lounges) at the beginning of the school year. As the university identified students who had not shown up for the start of the school year, or didn’t make it through the early months, students were moved into those rooms in regular housing. Had there not been some students in supplemental for the first few months, the university would have had rooms sitting empty for the majority of the year and would not have enrolled a full freshman class. The consequences of this to the university would have been greater than the impact on the students who lived in supplemental. (And, as at PSU, many were sorry when they had to leave their rather commodious temporary digs.) </p>
<p>It is just in the last few years that PSU has had serious problems with overenrollment. In 2006 a record number of freshman enrolled; the following year they cut the freshman class size by over 1000. Numbers have fluctuated since then, but they have been trying to manage class size by instituting a waitlist. They have also offered to buy out the housing contracts of local students when housing is very tight.</p>
<p>“I was at the University of Illinois in the seventies and we also had people living in supplemental housing (floor lounges) at the beginning of the school year.”
^^^
30+ years later does the University of Illinois still have people living in floor lounges? </p>
<p>“It is just in the last few years that PSU has had serious problems with overenrollment.”
^^^
Didn’t one of the posters say that her father had this same problem in the early 70s?</p>
<p>“And as a public university, I would hope that Penn State IS doing things for economic reasons to help keep tuition and room and board costs down for all. If ‘cramming’ people into rooms isn’t scaring people away, why risk leaving rooms empty? Its like pure economics with break even point.”
^^^^
What economic measures would you consider too drastic to keep tuition, room & board costs down for all? How about students living in tents? As long as enrollment was up and it saved money for PSU would it be acceptable? I believe we have already heard from a young lady that claims she would live in a tent if PSU would admit her.</p>
<p>Somehow I think the litmus test of how well a university is taking care of it’s students shouldn’t be whether 17 & 18 year olds are still wiling to go to a school with the #1 party rating regardless of dorm issues. Of course others might feel differently…</p>
<p>My, my aglages, you are certainly bothered by this to the point that your arguments are starting to sound rather foolish. If you find it that offensive, don’t apply. If you have already applied and get accepted, don’t go. Simple.</p>
<p>For all other prospective students out there, here’s a warning. If you get accepted at Penn State University Park, and drag your feet and send in your housing deposit (which is by the way 2/3 refundable, unlike many schools) at the last minute, there is a chance that you MAY get assigned to temporary,supplemental housing in a (albeit large) room with up to 5 other people for a period of weeks to perhaps months. You will be charged a substantially lower fee for this room arrangement. Also, some of you may have the study lounge on your floor taken up by supplemental housing and you may be inconvenienced to have to go to another floor in your dorm (ALL dorms have open lounges) if you want another place to study. Penn State does this in order to try to accomodate as many students as possible who desire to attend Penn State, and to maximize use of their facilities, and be fiscally responsible to keep costs down for all. If you find this possible arrangement (that affects a very small percentage of students)completely unacceptable, then save yourself the time,expense and effort to apply. Everyone has now been warned :-)</p>
<p>And a search reveals that yes, the University of Illinois STILL does have people living in lounges 30 years later.</p>
<p>And, if you do a search on “temporary” or “supplemental” housing you will see that many of the large publics commit this offense of cramming kids into makeshift rooms, tripling kids in small doubles, puttings kids on another campus that requires a shuttle bus, putting kids in hotels miles away (Rutgers haha),etc</p>
<p>Btw, the Princeton Review has a category “Dorms like Palaces”. Obviously Penn State does not rank #1 in that!.</p>
<p>aglages, please if you don’t like what you hear about these housing issues at Penn State then don’t apply. It is an awesome school with top-notch academic programs, extracurriculars for every interest, and an enjoyable nightlife downtown. It most definitely is attracting students for things other than the #1 party school rank. It has some issues with housing but that can be easily avoided by submitting your house contract prior to the April deadline (like March). </p>
<p>Right now my dorm is a suite style room, 4 people w/ our own bathroom. Plenty of freshmen leaving up here as well, so Penn State does have some nice housing. Maybe even palace like?</p>
<p>I don’t care about Penn State being the #1 party school. It’s the education that I want in a big, exciting atmosphere. And if I can be in a lounge with a bunch of kids-and get a discount on housing to boot-that’s ok with me. There are worse things…</p>
<p>“aglages, please if you don’t like what you hear about these housing issues at Penn State then don’t apply.”</p>
<p>“Penn State is not going to lose sleep if they lose a few incoming freshmen because they have ****ed off their parents over the housing situation.”
^^^^
Who cares what PSU loses sleep over? I thought parents had no “say”? Seems they actually do…including yours.
Of course some parents (and their children) may just be a little more discerning than others.</p>
<p>aglages, I’m sure you could find some parents who agree with you (though I’ve never seen a rant like yours in five years on this board). Other parents understand that supplemental can be a way to manage housing that keeps costs low for everyone. For our family, the PSU program my son was interested is one of the top in the country; after visiting other schools he knew this was where he wanted to be. The small chance that he might have to live in supplemental housing for a fraction of his time here was not even a consideration when he looked at everything else the university had to offer. But every family has to set its own priorities.</p>
<p>“But every family has to set its own priorities.”
^^^^
Exactly right. As I said…
“…some parents (and their children) may just be a little more discerning than others.”</p>
<p>“and some parents are more concerned about the quality of the program than the size of the dorm room.”
^^^^
And discerning students (and their parents) can find both if they are unwilling to settle for less.</p>
<p>unfortunately that is not always the case. my older son’s freshman room was only big enough for a set of bunk beds, one desk and one dresser; he and his roomie took turns having a desk in the common room. i guess he wasn’t discerning enough; he was at harvard.</p>
<p>Aglages, congratulations on your daughter getting into Pitt-----</p>
<p>from Pitt Board post by aglages–</p>
<p>“OK…it is confirmed. She has been accepted into the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Yayyyyyy!!! She and my wife (Pitt nursing alum) are thrilled. Thanks everyone for the reassurances and you were correct.”</p>
<p>However, it turns out Pitt also sometimes puts students in lounges due to overenrollment—</p>
<p>another post from the Pitt board by MTnest-</p>
<p>"Considering they were over-enrolled by 400 students this year, Pitt needs more dorms (especially since they guarantee housing for three years) since they had freshmen living in lounges. "</p>
<p>Will you be so ‘discerning’ as to not ‘allow’ your child to go to there and put up with the ‘nightmarish’ (your words on Pitt board) situation.???</p>
<p>“Will you be so ‘discerning’ as to not ‘allow’ your child to go to there and put up with the nightmarish’ (your words on Pitt board) situation.???”
^^^^
My daughter has been accepted into Pitt and five other colleges so far. She is waiting on one other (not PSU). In January we will consider each and decide which is the best for her. No, she will not attend any schools that require her to sleep in a tent or in a lounge. If that is her only choice at Pitt, then she will not attend.</p>
<p>“Someone (or someone close to them) must have been rejected by PSU in the past, and is holding a grudge.”
^^^^
Nope. No grudge, just an unwillingness to pay for ANY school that puts freshmen in lounges. I don’t care for the practice and will not support it.</p>
<p>My D is a soph at PSU and had people in study lounges on her floor freshman year. 3 didn’t want to move into permanent housing, so to each his own I guess. You would be hard pressed to find a school anywhere that ALL people are totally happy with housing. Some is too far away from classes, some is too old, some is too small, etc etc. All people need to evaluate a school as a whole; all have plusses and minuses. No school is perfect in every aspect.
What I do find amusing is that OP chose to come over here to this board and proceed to bash PSU as a whole, when a school that he is ‘thrilled’ that his D got in practices the same thing? Why isn’t he over on the Pitt board criticizing them for the -what did he say- appalling and nightmarish economic measures?</p>