The original definition of directional universities came from the the fact that a number of state universities that were not the main university for their state would use directional prefixes in their names, like Northern Arizona university, EastCarolina University, University of Northern Colorado. These were state schools that tended to serve their region heavily and often did not have as stringent admissions requirements as the main(flagship) school.
Directional Universities and colleges also often had preprofessional programs like Teachers college or Agriculture programs. They more often than not, do not have a direction in their names these days.
I think in PA, you have the 3 main State universities, Pitt in Oakland , Penn State in University Park and Temple in Philly. Both Pitt and PSU have satellite or you can call them directional campuses. Then you have the smaller colleges like Clarion, Edinboro, Slippery Rock, WestChester, Millersville, Lockport ,Indiana, California, Kutztown, etc etc.
In CA, many call the California STATE Universities directional, with the UCs being the main universities.
Just as with private schools, some are more selective and do have more kids with higher test scores, grades, rigor ranges, usually the directional schools are less selective. Just as some k-12 school districts have better number than others. How some private k-12 schools also.
However, study after study has shown that those students who are accepted to more selective schools with the higher average stats and stats ranges, do just as well when they go to less selective schools. Also , these days, with so many PhD academians, getting qualified professors at universities is not an issue.
I think it’s clear that most folks will choose HPY, the schools with the greater name recognition and reputations, the highly selective schools , the ones with the kids with higher stats…all things equal with some exceptions. Most of the highest ranked schools tend to be private or some state flagships .
That does not make these preferred schools the best choices all of the time. Certainly not the best deals when paying for them can cause hardships in other parts of life. College is not the be all to end all. Just as it could be a financial and stressful life decision to choose an unaffordable house because of features you so adore, choosing a school for its luster when the cost means all kinds of hardships is not a wise decision.