Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus Top Questions

To be completely honest, the stereotype of students at our school could not be more incorrect. The student populations is not focused on partying, but rather academics, service, and good, healthy fun.

Penn State students are very proud of the university and much of campus life is focused on football and the spirit of the sport. However, I also believe that Penn State has so much more to offer than simply cheering for a football game. There are many other activities for students to occupy themselves with on campus that don't relate to athletics or football. Yet, it can still be said that no matter what activity a person is involved with, I would agree that most Penn State students love the university and are filled with its pride.

In many ways they are very accurate stereotypes. A majority of the student population likes to go out or drink at home on the weekends. Partying is a large party of the student culture on the University Park campus. Also, no one would argue that Penn State has some of the best football fans in the country. Penn State's football team usually is not the most talented college team, but that never seems to discourage the thousands of people that flock to Beaver Stadium every fall to watch their games.

The partying? Yeah, though we're nothing like WVU.

For the most part, these stereotypes are accuarate. The saying 'bleeding blue and white' is often used to show how dedicated students are to PSU. Football is taken very seriously at PSU, from season tickets being sold out in five minutes, to students camping outside Beaver Stadium for a week before a big game. Partying is pretty big at PSU and most people are out Thursday-Saturday nights. PSU does offer a lot of non-drinking activities, and if you don't drink, you will find a lot of people to hang out with who don't either, but for the most part, everyone drinks. Greek life does play a big role in the social scene, but if you're not greek, or frat parties aren't your thing, there are also tons of apartment parties to go to.

PSU students are heavy partiers, this one is quite accurate, yet if drinking isn't your cup of tea, there are so many other things to do, HUB Late Night shows some solid movies every week and have a bunch of fun activities. Frats and sororities have their stereotypes as well, however having the largest greek system in the world, there are enough options to avoid those stereotypes as well.

No, the town IS in the middle of a lot of farms and agriculture but Penn State itself is so busy and fun. There is so much to do and if you get involved, either in the social scene or extracurriculars, you will NEVER be bored.

I would say they are about 75{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} accurate, however its not good to get the wrong idea if someone is in the greek system, because there is about a 25{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} chance they are actually cool and not one of the stereotypes.

In general, yes.

No, THON is something that make PSU different then any other school. It shows how one school can come together for a cause like cancer. We do it because we want to and it means something to us. Those who have seen/been to THON know what I mean. We do love our Football. We have the best student section and biggest stadium in the country. We are not all Frat kids that get drunk and party way to much. We are much more.

Yes, there are a ridiculous amount of football fans but that actually improves the over all moral of the campus. I am not the biggest football fan in the world, trust me on that, but it is fun to get hyped about my school with everyone else. As far as the size of University Park...it is amazing just how much this school shrinks. Give yourself three weeks and you will never have felt so at home.

Not really, you just notice them more because they're loud and obnoxious and frats dominate the freshman social scene.

Yes

For the most part, yes. Football is pretty big year-round, but from August through December, it's unavoidable. As far as drinking goes, most people drink Thurs-Sat, but there are parties going on pretty much every night.

To some degree. There is definitely a huge sports following since we're part of the Big Ten conference. We have one of the largest representations of sororities and fraternities, but there are plenty of happy independents, and we all peacefully co-exist.

These stereotypes are not accurate. Yes, there is a lot of partying here, but you don't have to party. I personally have never gone to a frat party and I do not intend on ever going. Furthermore, despite the party scene, we do have to work hard to earn good grades. Penn State is a very tough school, despite being a public school. Many of our programs are world renowned and it is rather difficult to gain entrance into them.

Yes.

Some kids in my classes make Paris Hilton look like a genius.

No, though I do not know for sure about the dressing one...

To an extent, but PSU is such a huge school that you really cannot stereotype it. There are so many different kinds of people who go there.

Yes, school spirit is a huge part of life here, but it adds to the college experience in a good way. After attending a few football games, it will quickly become second-nature to you. Whenever you go home, you can be proud of the Penn State tradition.

I feel it may be 50-60{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} accurate. More so if you treat it as an or statement (people here either drink and/or belong to a frat/sorority).

Yes.

I'm not going to say these kinds of people don't exist here, or that Penn State isn't huge. I'm not even going to tell you that the majority of people aren't into sports and drinking. But not EVERYONE goes greek, drinks, or even watches football at all. Penn state IS huge. But that's what makes it so great. No matter who you are, there are people like you here. It might be a little hard to find them, but they're here. We've got Hippies and Frat boys, Athletes and Feminists. There are die-hard studiers and people that party every night until dawn. If you've got a hobby, we've got a club for it. It's really wonderful. At Penn State, anyone could find their niche. You just have to keep looking.

Not accurate but I did see other nationalities there too, and the International office made alot of efforts to make us feel included

For the most part

Somewhat. Penn State main campus is in the middle of no where, so with nothing else to do, drinking and sports (official team sports to intramurral) are two major past times. And if students aren't actually in the fraternities or sororities, they are still doing activities with them or at the frat houses.

No!

The majority of them are.

I would assume so

yes

- i think partying is a huge part of going to college here, but the students know when enough is enough. thursday through saturday, its crazy, but the other days of the week, people are really serious about their work. - i think greek life is really big

ABSOLUTELY!

many people do drink but there are plenty who don't- such as people who go to the activities held at the hub over the weekend.

It's not easy to find students who don't drink, although most don't do pot. There are an unusual number of Frats and Sororities, but I never felt like these people were any kind of an imposing or particularly significant presence on campus. As for money, it did seem to me like everyone was pretty well off. Tons of ipods and the newest, hotest phones, kids with cars (and plenty of nice ones), and few work jobs.

to some degree. there definitely are students who drink every night just to get drunk but then there are others who have fun without drinking.

yes

yes

They aren't completely off base. Many students who attend PSU do have similar backgrounds, middle to upperclass white kids from PA. However on my floor alone freshman year were 4 international students as well as a few out of staters, so there definitely is some diversity. As far as being a party school PSU definitely qualifies. The police don't even try to stop the drinking; they just try to contain it. Unless you are throwing up or fighting you can basically walk around as intoxicated as you want without anyone stopping you.

Yes

yes

NO. Girls join sororities in order to meet people. With so many students attending Penn State, it is hard to meet people, and build relationships with them. Greek life gives you the opportunity to meet a lot of people, which you wouldn't have the opportunity as much otherwise.

Yes. Very much so.

I don't know about the sorority girls one because I am not in a sorority. The THON was is not true as I am a member of the university moral committee.

Partially. Most students do get drunk and crazy, but its not everyday- just Thursday-saturday. If you're in a sorority/fraternity, it starts on wednesdays. Penn Stateis definately in the middle of no where. Most students here are smart, but most work for their good grades.

These stereotypes are not accurate. PSU has a very competitive sports program, as well as very competitive education program. Students here are based on their knowledge and not their money or athletic abilities.

To some degree, PSU is wilder than any of the other college's I've visited. So, it's true that there are plenty of opportunities to have fun and meet new people. But it's not necessarily always fun. I guess it is more a question of what interests you. There's sort of a repetition to the life here. While the community attempts to offer a strong cultural blend, I find that if you have a thirst for excitement and world experience, its hard to find it here, regardless of how populated the town is.

Every school loves to party. It's the most popular way to temporarily put the stress from school aside. But there IS a lot more to PSU than what most people assume (PSU has a wonderful curriculum and offers tons of classes of all kinds). As for football... yeah. We get a little too crazy during football season.

There are always people who will fit the typical stereotypes of Penn State, stereotypes don't just randomly form, but I think that there are definitely a lot of students out there that are not your obnoxious, snobby, drunk. With so many students in a small town in the middle of no where, you will always find a variety. One thing is for sure, the party school stereotype is definitely accurate.

In stereotyping a whole university there will always be some students who accurately fit the stereotype and some students who do not. Overall, it is an innacurate stereotype to say all Penn State students dismiss their academic duties to party. Football has long been a Penn State tradition, there is no denying that. Even when we're having a losing season, students stay true to the team and still show support. So to say Penn State is a football school is true, but to say students come here strictly for the football tradition is not.