Hey, current Sophomore at PSU Altoona here, struggling to decide whether to go up to UP next Fall. On one hand I’m happy here, its, way cheaper, and close enough to drive up for football games and the like. On the other, I just have the feeling that you gotta go to UP to experience the “real” Penn State. Any thoughts?
what is your major? Are there better facilities at UP for your major?
I think you can be a ‘real’ penn stater regardless of which campus you attend, but there is definitely a different atmosphere at UP campus. Much much more going on there…
PoliSci w/focus on International Relations - so no, from what I know its pretty much the same.
I guess I’m just unsure if being 40 minutes closer to the action justifies an extra $20k in student loans 
Very few things are worth an extra $20k in student loans.
No, no, no…for $5K you could drive up every weekend, get season tickets, buy concert tickets, eat out while you’re here, buy iverpriced sweatshirts and STILL be waaay ahead of other Penn Staters who have $200/month of debt when you all graduate. You are happy, and financially stable – good stuff. Don’t believe the hype 
No, I also don’t think 20k is worth the jump to main campus - but how are you calculating that? Are you out of state? Because room and board is the same across campuses and tuition is about $2500 more for in state students between Altoona and UP. If you are OOS, then yes, tuition is much higher at UP (9k a year) and I don’t think it’s worth it for that. My assumption was that costs were similar (as for in state students). I would never advise taking 20k in more student loans to be 40 minutes closer. Ever.
Yeah, and being off-campus at AA I’m paying half of the cheapest thing on campus. And from what I’ve read, UP on-campus housing is tough to get, and off-campus is way more expensive. I’ve got a car, but it seems like unless you get out of State College student housing is really expensive - and at that point, I might as well stay in Altoona and drive the additional 25 minutes every day.
You are right about on campus housing and a car won’t do you much good either. If you were unable to secure an apartment that’s walking distance from campus you would be taking the bus. (There is no daily student parking to speak of on campus.) The Collegian ran a series of articles just recently about housing options if you care to look. I agree with the others; you’ll be getting the same degree as the UP students at a bargain price. Not having big loan payments will give you more flexibility when it comes time to look for a job in your field.
The problem is that IR is one field where university “prestige” and networking play a role in employability.
And there’s no doubt UP will have the upper hand there, by a long shot. 
This is a conundrum because lots of loans will make it harder tfor you too.
How do you get to that amount in loans though? It seems like a HUGE difference.
Have you had poli-sci internship yet? Job shadowing or volunteering for an international organization?
Are you developing technical skills alonside your Poli Sci/IR degree (like applied math or cs or agriculture…)? What’s your current level in foreign language(s)?
Can you commute from Altoona? If so, apply to UP and commute unless you find affordable housing in State College. If you’re instate, you shouldn’t have much more to pay for tuition and if you’ve got good grades you may get some financial aid (it’s very random though so don’t count on it). As for dorms, while on-campus housing is very expensive, off campus housing can be priced decently. There are buses running all over towns and some student residences include the bus pass in your rent. You could drive up and start looking at rentals, see what the prices are like, rather than relying on what you’ve been told.