You are getting to end of your satellite campus stay, but seem focused on why it is not the place to be. Yes, if you actually do what you need to do … you will be on Penn State Main campus next fall or maybe spring and you will have lots and lots of professors to choose from.
But you have to go to class. You have to go to the advisors office not to complain that you have outgrown the satellite campus but to put together a concrete plan on how to take all the classes required for transfer.
And yes, you have to attend and do the work in all classes, not because it is fun, but because it gets you to the next place. Do you do your laundry because it is fun, or because it provides you clean clothes to wear.
If you check all the boxes you will be in University Park … and a big university is absolutely a playground for the mind. Interested in astronomy, take a class. Interested in politics in China, take a class.
You do know that you need some formal academics to be able to function in higher level classes. Astronomy is all math-physics based, sure you can read Nature or wikipedia, but if you are math and physics trained there is much more to understand. Similarly political science has a core body of knowledge that you have to digest and understand to be able to understand and participate in political debate at an academic level.
Sure you could take time off and find yourself or start in a new school or whatever. But you really need to treat your depression and buckle down.
Being only in the top 25% of your class, likely because you did not apply yourself in high school, is why you did not get into main campus. Your friend with no ECs, not sure, but maybe his stats weren’t that great, or there were some issues with his recommendations. And no ECs for a flagship university … makes it hard.
Apply yourself properly and you will be rewarded with a good academic experience.
All the other approaches, working, switching schools, whatever … they are actually appreciably harder than
just doing what has to be done. Advisor to put together a plan, syllabus and professor meetings to get through each class, lots of studying and doing the dang homework, reading the assigned reading, writing the essays, whatever.
138 puts you right in the spot where you can do great things … but see … .most of us work hard and focus too.
Good luck.