<p>How are the satellite campuses? Are they small and lonely or do they feel like a college town? I like Penn State and its research opportunities and as an OOS student I think it's more realistic to do that 2+2 plan. Or else I'd need a 4.0 GPA and $35,000 per year; both of which I don't have hahaha.</p>
<p>Any random comments on satellite campuses? Are there better ones? Are there ones that specialize in certain areas? Is it difficult merging into University Park after 2 years?</p>
<p>Havent seen much discussion on this board of Satellite campuses- I think everyone here is hoping to get into Main Campus. However, I’ll tell you based on my totally unscientific research that Altoona is a popular second choice because it is close to main campus. Have a cousin from a small town in Central PA who went to Altoona and transferred to Main Campus in his junior year, and is doing very well, in their engineering school. Also- have a neighbor whose grandson is very happy there- he is playing sports for them - I think soccer, and is having agreat time.</p>
<p>My youngest son, a high school junior, has just about exhausted our district’s advanced curriculum in science and math and is looking to start college early. His research pointed to Penn State as an excellent (and in-state!) option for his desired mechanical engineering major but he wasn’t too keen on the 45k+ student body size at University Park. So he investigated the branch campuses and found exactly what he was seeking at the Penn State Erie - The Behrend College campus. I have to admit that many of us on this board and across the state view the branch campuses as a 2+2 feeder to University Park but we were pleasantly surprised to find that some of the campuses, Behrend included, are in reality small colleges under the Penn State umbrella with four year degree programs, full amenities, and a decidedly student focused small college feel. We visited Behrend this past week and came away impressed with the campus, the facilities, the administration and faculty that we met, and the students we spoke with. This campus has about 4500 students with 2500 living on campus in dorms ranging from traditional hall-bath buildings to recently constructed suite-style dorms. Most of the academic facilities are fairly new or renovated with the most impressive being the new Burke Center that co-locates the business and engineering schools.</p>
<p>[Penn</a> State Erie - Research and Economic Development Center Facilities](<a href=“http://www.behrend.psu.edu/academic/engineering/redcfacilities/index.cfm]Penn”>http://www.behrend.psu.edu/academic/engineering/redcfacilities/index.cfm)</p>
<p>The engineering programs housed in the REDC utilize a broad range of very well equipped labs, modern classrooms, and feature small class sizes all of which are definite plusses for our son as he transitions from high school to college. We gathered from our discussions with faculty in both the business and engineering schools that he would have a wealth of opportunities for both research and project-based learning and the campus appears to have strong ties to local and regional businesses for internships and job placement. Keep in mind that all of this is offered within the overall Penn State system and a student at the branch campus can reach into or draw on the capabilities of the entire system (i.e. study abroad opportunities). Again, we came away impressed by the campus in all respects and our son is very enthused about the opportunity to attend there next fall.</p>
<p>This was not our first campus visit experience as our older son is a senior and we’ve visited a variety of colleges during his search including large urban, mid-size state, and LAC campuses, all with our younger son along to begin to form his own opinions about what he’d prefer in a college/campus. I think I can speak for all of us that Behrend really reminded us of some of the LAC campuses we’ve seen. It’s physically large in terms of acreage (725 acres, if my memory serves me correctly) but the actual campus in use by buildings and green space is smaller but spread out nicely yet still walkable. In other words, it doesn’t seem crowded yet nothing appears to be too distant from any point on the campus. They’ve done an excellent job of updating the facilities and the campus is actually quite nice although I’m sure it’s buried under snow for a good portion of the school year. </p>
<p>I hope this gives you some flavor of at least one branch campus in the Penn State system. We really think the branch campuses are worth a closer look especially if they offer the program you’re seeking and you don’t require the “big school” feel of the main campus but still want a Penn State degree. Please feel free to add postings here or send me a message if you have any questions about our visit or our exploration Penn State Erie.</p>
<p>Thanks, PaDadofTwo, that will really be helpful to students who are considering branch campuses. I think the branches often don’t get the respect they deserve. I’ve heard that when local State College kids want to get “away” but still attend PSU, Behrend is usually the campus of choice.</p>
<p>since my last post- I heard other feedback about Penn State Altoona- this time from a person who took a job teaching creative writing there. She says she is very unimpressed and disappointed with the caliber of student that she is teaching at Altoona. Just passing this along for what its worth.</p>
<p>The liberal arts students are generally not as strong as the science and engineering students. (Even the SAT verbal scores are higher for engineering students than for those in liberal arts.)</p>
<p>Ok, so are the classes toned down? Is the quality of teachers worse than College Park? Honestly, I would think that PSU would send their BEST teachers to College Park. Therefore, how do teachers from Erie or Altoona compare with teachers from College Park?</p>
<p>And are satellite campus’s infamous for being commuter colleges? Cause that would SUCK!</p>
<p>Our daughter chose to begin her education at Berks Campus because she wanted to start off college in smaller setting. While some students there went home every weekend, she found a group of students who stayed on campus every weekend. The whole group transferred up to Main Campus together their junior year. Most of these students came from the eastern side the state as she did, so now that she has graduated, she still can hang out with them. IF she has chosen Altoona, I’m not sure how often she would see thes friends. She never regretted choosing Berks over University Park for her first two years.</p>
<p>The issue of a particular campus emptying out on weekends has been a concern for us with both our sons’ college searches and was something we directly addressed during our visit to Behrend. From what we were able to gather there’s a fairly equal split between commuters and residents so one can expect about half the students to be absent on weekends. For the residents, the issue is mainly integration with campus life and activities. We asked our student tour guide about this and her answer was straightforward and not unexpected… there are students who leave, students who never leave their dorms, and students who get involved in a range of campus activities (many student planned) and who always have something to do. Our son qualifies for honors and would be housed in the honors dorm which should put him immediately with like-minded students. He’s also an active, engaged young man so he’d definitely fit into the latter category of active residents and would seek out opportunities to be involved. I think it’s fair to say that campus life is largely dependent on what you make of it given the opportunities provided by the school and in this regard Behrend seemed to have more than enough options from intramural sports to gaming clubs to outdoor/adventure activities.</p>
<p>As for the faculty, we haven’t done any sort of side-by-side comparison between the Behrend and University Park faculty in engineering or any other academic field. All I can say is that we were very pleased with our initial interaction with the professors we met during our visit last week. What stood out for me was their apparent interest in the specific academic program established for each student. I got the impression that they take academic advisement seriously and are very willing to tailor the curriculum to meet the student’s needs and interests. I can’t say if this is due to the honors designation for our son and if it extends to the more typical student, but it did leave us feeling very comfortable that he’d receive more than adequate attention and education in his major. Again, this is purely subjective but having toured campuses of all types and met with many faculty members I found the Behrend experience to be a notch above most schools.</p>
<p>As a final note, and related to the University Park feeder concept, our son is now researching Penn State’s combined BSME/MSME program that would move him to main campus for his senior year and one year of graduate school. Since he’s leaving high school one year early this would provide him with both bachelors and masters degrees in just four years after what would have been his regularly scheduled high school graduation and all at in-state tuition rates. I think this is a very strong option that gives him the best combination of small school/big campus learning experiences to prepare him for industry or further graduate study.</p>
<p>Does anybody have any insight on Altoona? I chose it as my second choice campus because i wanted to be able to play sports in college? Has anybody heard any specific opinions about the campus itself?</p>
<p>If you can’t go to Main Campus, definitely choose Altoona. I’m at UPark right now as a freshman and a lot of students from Altoona come up here on the weekends as theres literally tons of buses that go back and fourth, it’s like a 45 minute ride.</p>
<p>Ok thanks for the input! I’m definately hoping to get into UPark but I always gotta plan ahead</p>
<p>How does the campus selection process work? When psu sends in their decision do you get choices or do they tell you where you’re going?</p>
<p>You get to choose your two preferred campuses on your app. Obviously your first choice would be UP. Maybe they over a third, I don’t remember.</p>