aglages

cbd: Many other colleges do put up with "some" empty rooms, or just offer singles to students after their final yield is determined. Others (as you said) offer less upperclassman housing, which does not seem to be much of a hardship for the older and more experienced students. IMHO - either of those solutions is preferable to "cramming" freshmen into study lounges to maximize profit.

As you said: "I'm sure there will be many many others who would gladly take your spot, and Penn State will not blink an eye." Not only is this correct, but based on your Dad's experience it has been acceptable for decades. While I won't (with my money) support this approach at PSU, I can certainly understand how (for some) attending PSU(UP) is worth putting up with the practice.

Hopefully this thread will serve to make all prospective students (and those with the "say" in which college they attend) aware of the possible housing problems at PSU.

slipjig

I would pitch a tent if I had to.

aglages

"I would pitch a tent if I had to."
^^^^
If PSU keeps admitting more freshmen than they have dorm rooms, you might not only pitch the tent but also share it. <grin>

1moremom

PSU always admits more freshman then they have rooms for. Some students apply to have it as a safety; some ultimately decide to go elsewhere for other reasons. The admissions folks know this and send out many more acceptances than they have space for. The problem is that they have not been doing a very good job estimating what their "yield" (how many accepted students will actually matriculate) will be. This is getting even more difficult as they consider how the current economy will influence students choosing between public and private options.

aglages

"The problem is that they have not been doing a very good job estimating what their "yield" (how many accepted students will actually matriculate) will be."
^^^^^^
You would think that they were not doing a very good "job" of determining yield if this was a recent or short term issue. Certainly a "bad" job of estimating over a period of time would show as many (close) examples of over estimating yield (and thus many extra empty rooms) as the other way around. Considering this has been an ongoing issue for at least 25+ years, it is very possible that they are intentionally admitting more students (more estimated yield) than they have available rooms for purely economic reasons.

cbd

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.

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.

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.

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.

1moremom

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.)

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.

aglages

"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?

"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?

aglages

"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.

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......

cbd

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.

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 :-)

And a search reveals that yes, the University of Illinois STILL does have people living in lounges 30 years later.

Availability of dorms

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

Btw, the Princeton Review has a category "Dorms like Palaces". Obviously Penn State does not rank #1 in that!.

cwryan1

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).

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?

slipjig

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...

aglages

"aglages, please if you don't like what you hear about these housing issues at Penn State then don't apply."

"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.

1moremom

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.

aglages

"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."