Congratulations, Penn State Class of 2018! You're about to embark on an incredible four-(or maybe five) year journey, meet amazing people, learn a ton of cool things, and have the most fun you've ever had in your life.
Being a freshman can be a little overwhelming, though - you're getting a lot of new stuff thrown at you, and it'll be incredibly valuable to go in with all the inside information you can. That's where we come in - we've used our years of Penn State experience, talked to friends & classmates, and come up with this list of 8 Things Every Incoming Freshman Should Know About Penn State:
The food at East Halls is solid, but West is best
The dining halls at Penn State are all pretty good. Compared to the food at places like Temple and Ohio State, the food at East/Pollock is pretty much gourmet...but West is even better.
Get between two and four cookies (fresh out of the oven), bury them in soft serve, cover 'em in toppings, and you've got yourself a one-way ticket to paradise (and the freshman 15...but mostly paradise).
Get a fitness membership
If you aren't an athlete (and maybe even if you are), you're about to find out how very real that freshman 15 is. Dining hall food and late night pokey stix (more on them later) are a dangerous combination, and you need to be vigilant in your fight to stay in shape.
Fortunately, Penn State has some awesome places where you can work off those calories. The White Building fitness center has all the equipment you'll need, plus daily classes like indoor cycling, yoga, and washboard abs. The Rec Hall center doesn't do classes, but it's usually less crowded and has world-class machines.
Never go to the HUB with the intention of getting work done
Someone you're working on a group project with will inevitably suggest meeting up at the HUB. This is an absolutely terrible idea.
The HUB is great for randomly running into people you know, watching free movies, and Chik-Fil-A. Because of the volume/crowds/tempting Chik-Fil-A smells, the odds of you actually getting anything done are pretty much zero. Meet up at the library or a computer lab instead.
There are places you should never eat before 10 PM
You will almost definitely eat at Canyon Pizza, Gumbys (order the Pokey Stix and nothing else) and Are U Hungry at some point during your freshman year. As generations of Penn State graduates before you have discovered, you'll find that something magical happens to these places once night falls.
[caption id="attachment_401" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Like crack cocaine, but worse for you[/caption]
It's not that the food is bad before 10 PM...it's just that if you're eating a cheese steak with french fries, mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers and bacon on it during the harsh light of day, it's harder to fight the feeling that you've made a terrible life decision.
Don't even bother with fake IDs
Seriously, you guys. You're at the nation's #1 party school (no matter what that list says...), and bouncers/bottle shop owners know how to spot fakes by now. If you successfully use a fake ID more than three times without getting caught, you're probably a professional con artist...in which case, what are you doing at a state university?
Figure out the bus schedule
Penn State is BIG. Not, like, city big, but the campus can be deceptively huge. If you wake up 12 minutes before class starts and you have to go all the way from East Halls to the IST building...well, good luck.
The white loop and the blue loop are absolutely clutch for moments like this (especially once winter starts), and there are other helpful buses that run around campus as well. Take a little while to figure them out - you'll be glad you did.
Go to office hours
At some point during your freshman year, you'll probably have to go to class and do some studying. Many of your classes (especially first semester) will be taught in classrooms the size of a cruise liner, and you'll only be able to see the teacher if you squint really hard.
If you go to office hours, though, you can actually get some one-on-one time with professors...and when they're wondering whether or not to bump your 79.9% up to a B-, it definitely won't hurt if they recognize your name and know you put in some extra effort.
Cut loose & try new things
Get classy and hit up 18 & over night at Indigo. Rush a frat/sorority, even if you aren't sure if Greek life is your thing. See how many Pokey Stix you can eat in one night. Go to at least one toga party. Celebrate State Patty's Day (safely and responsibly). Turn your dorm shower into a sauna (you should probably clear this one with your RA first).
You only get to be a freshman once...make it count.
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