The opportunity to begin at the Berks campus and complete your degree at University Park provides you with a lot of opportunities to design your own Penn State experience. Planning early in the process is essential for a smooth transition to another campus. Below is information you may need to assist you in the planning.
Change of Campus Orientation
As part of the process, you will be prompted to attend the Change of Campus Orientation (otherwise known as COC Orientation). Change-of-Campus Orientation at University Park is aimed at providing you with an introduction to life on campus, in the classroom, and in State College.
Orientation for change-of-campus students is not required. If you’re not planning to visit University Park for orientation, you’ll have an option to select “I’m not attending Change-of-Campus Orientation” as your program choice. All change-of-campus students must select a program, even if it’s to tell us you’re not interested in attending.
Here are some of the sessions that you will attend during your orientation program
- an official welcome to University Park;
- an overview of new financial considerations including increased tuition and cost of living;
- meeting with an academic adviser to finalize your first semester schedule;
- information about career and internship services;
- an opportunity to connect with other change-of-campus students;
- a discussion about staying healthy and safe on and off campus;
- and information about continuing your previous involvement and exploring new opportunities to get involved in your new community.
Additional information about the orientation can be found at https://changeofcampus.psu.edu/up/coc/schedule
Office of Student Aid
The Office of Student Aid is located on the 3rd floor of the Shields Building. All visits are on a "first come, first served" basis, and you MUST have your PSU ID CARD with you (not the number on your phone, the actual card!). Staff in that office can help you with questions about applying for financial aid, student, parent and private loan options, and applying for scholarships. They can also help you with concerns about verification, academic progress appeals, and other extenuating financial situations.
Registrar
University policy (D-5) requires students to remain at the campus that they are first admitted to for two years or approximately 60 credits. Exceptions to this policy are approved if the student's major requires enrollment in courses only offered at the new campus in order to make normal academic progress for the major. Requests for an early change of campus because of personal reasons may be considered. However, the student must document that there are clear and compelling reasons why an early change of campus should be considered.
Students use LionPATH--Update Campus to request to enroll in a different location for the next term. This procedure is open after the first ten days of the term preceding the term of moving. For example, students who want to move to a new campus for the fall term will use LionPATH after the first 10 days of the spring term. The request is reviewed by the original campus and the receiving campus. Decisions are emailed to the student.
A change of campus can be for one semester which is a "temporary" change of campus. After the temporary change of campus, the student enrolls at their original campus. Using Update Campus, a student requesting a temporary change of campus must document that there are clear and compelling reasons why a temporary campus change should be considered.
Before using Update Campus for a permanent change of campus, students must be in the appropriate major (or pre-major if they haven't completed the entrance) for the campus they want to change to. Students use LionPATH-Update Academics to request a change of major, if needed, to a major to be completed at the new campus.
Since the change of campus process is separate from declaring one's major, students who are in a major to be completed at a different campus must use Update Campus to attend the new campus even if they are in their major.
Students may enroll in courses at other campuses while still registered for courses at Berks. The campus assignment must match where students are enrolled in most of their courses for the term. Students must contact the other campus where they want to enroll in a course after they are registered for their Berks courses.
Summer Sessions--Students may register at any Penn State campus for summer sessions; therefore, no change of campus is required.
Students may use LionPATH-Update Campus to cancel their change of campus request if they change their mind.
Off Campus Housing
- Off-Campus Housing Information: We’ll be live-streaming a presentation during Parent’s and Families weekend about renting off-campus housing in the State College market. (October 4, time TBD) This is a great starting point for students who have never rented before, and for experienced renters who have never rented in the unique State College market.
- Fall Virtual Housing Fair: Join us for a free virtual housing fair. Explore on- and off-campus housing options. Features 1:1 video-, audio-, or text-based chat with on- and off-campus housing providers. Register now!
- On Campus Vendor Tables: For students who live near the State College area, we’ll also have vendors available on campus to answer questions October 8 – 22, each weekday from 10:00 a.m – 4:00 p.m. A schedule of which vendors will be on site each day will be posted closer to the event date.
Students interested in obtaining off campus housing at University Park can contact the Office of Campus Life at 610-396-6076. For more information online about off campus housing in State College, you can visit https://livingoffcampus.psu.edu/
Academic Advising
For students to attend University Park, they must (a) declare their University Park major via the Update Academics function in LionPATH and (b) complete roughly 60 credits in order to change their campus from Berks to University Park via the Update Campus function in LionPATH.
To complete the Update Academics function in LionPATH, students need to do the following:
- Log into their LionPATH Student Center.
- In the upper-left corner, click onto the hamburger menu (read: three lines) icon.
- Click onto: Academics
- Click onto: Academic Records
- Click onto: Update Academics
- Read the instructions and follow the prompts to complete the process.
To complete the Update Campus function on LionPATH, students need to do the following:
- Log into your LionPATH Student Center.
- In the upper-left corner, click onto the hamburger menu (read: three lines) icon.
- Click onto: Academics
- Click onto: Academic Records
- Click onto: Update Campus
- Read the instructions and follow the prompts to complete the process.
For assistance with their upcoming semester schedule at University Park, students can either contact their current advisor at Berks or contact the Advising Center located within the College where their major is housed at University Park.
Career Services
Penn State Career Services at University Park assists students of all academic programs and class years with identifying and achieving their individual career goals. We welcome all students and embrace opportunities to collaborate with employers, graduate and professional schools, faculty and staff, and student organizations, as well as parents and alumni in order to provide the highest quality of service to our students.
Their services include but is not limited to:
- Part-time and Summer positions
- Resumes
- Career Counseling
- Interviewing and Job Search
- Nittany Lion Careers (Job and Internship posting site)
Visit Career Services at University Park at
101 Bank of America Career Services Center
University Park, PA 16802
[email protected]
University Police
The Penn State police division is a full-service police agency with sworn police officers who have full law enforcement authority. University Police is one, cohesive department serving 22 campuses across Pennsylvania, including University Park.
Specialized units include:
- Criminal Investigations
- K-9
- Bike Patrol
- Bomb Technicians
- Drone Unit
- Dispatching Services
- Community-Oriented Policing
- Student Auxiliary Officers
University Police and Public Safety proactively connects with the Penn State community by offering free educational programs and services, attending community meetings and events, and collaborating with University and locally based agencies and services that help foster a safe and healthy community.
For emergencies, call 911.
University Park Police Station
30 Eisenhower Parking Deck
814-863-1111
Parking Eligibility
All students (undergraduate, graduate, continuing education, part-time, full-time, or adjunct) wishing to use parking facilities at University Park campus, (at any time, for any reason), including Innovation Park, must register their vehicle with the Transportation Services office and, while parked on campus, properly display an authorized parking permit.
Resident students and off-campus students wishing to store vehicles on campus must have completed at least 29.1 approved credits to be eligible for on-campus parking (not required for summer session parking).
Students who do not meet the minimum credit requirement but have extenuating circumstances that may support having access to a vehicle on campus should email [email protected].
Penn State students and employees (regardless of campus or location) are not considered visitors.
Other requirements/regulations:
- Providing false or misleading information on permit application will result in immediate revocation of parking privileges and forfeiture of all fees paid.
- Vehicles must be registered by the first day of class each semester or by the first business day following arrival on campus.
- Students may only register vehicles owned by them or by a member of their immediate family (parents or siblings).
- A non-refundable processing fee of $25.00 will be assessed for all lost or stolen permits. This is not a replacement fee. The fee must be paid regardless of whether or not a new permit is issued.
- Permit holders are responsible for reporting all address and license plate changes immediately to the Transportation Services office. Failure to report these changes may result in tickets being processed to collections, at which time additional fees are assessed by the collections agency.
- All permits remain the property of Penn State and must be returned upon request.
- Permits may not be transferred, sold or duplicated. Violators will incur a fine, be referred to Student Conduct and have their parking privileges revoked.
Visit the Student Parking Regulations page for a complete list of student parking regulations.
Fall 2019/Spring 2020 Registration
Fall 2019/Spring 2020 student parking registration is now available.
Registration for spring 2020 only will be available beginning at noon on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020.
Student Activities
University Park provides a wide array of programs and services to help students stay safe, healthy, and involved in the campus community. Students will learn about many of these services and opportunities. Exploring services online before the transition will help to make the transition smoother and more seamless.
Welcome Week: Get involved! Welcome Week provides students new to University Park with activities and events to help you discover all the opportunities you have to get involved and feel at home. Visit the Involvement Fair, see a concert, attend your College Dean's Meeting, or head to LateNight Penn State. Be sure to read through the Welcome Week calendar of events which you will receive in the mail with Preface magazine.
Career Services: Career Services offers several programs and services to assist students in their career planning and implementation. Some of these include drop-in and individual career counseling, career information resources, career planning and job search courses, and outreach programs. Mark your calendar for both the fall and spring Career Fairs!
Health and Counseling Resources: Students at University Park campus may receive health care services from University Health Services and psychological services from the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services, both located in the Student Health Center Building.
Center for Spiritual and Ethical Development: Penn State recognizes the importance of religious, spiritual, and character development and has the largest multi-faith center on any campus in the country. The Pasquerilla Spiritual Center and Eisenhower Chapel is home to nearly 60 religious/spiritual groups and also provides many opportunities to develop your personal ethics.
Union and Student Activities: As a center of University community life, Union and Student Activities (USA) complements the academic experience by offering students opportunities in leadership, social responsibility, citizenship, volunteerism, and student employment. Through the various boards, committees, student organizations, and staff, USA provides a variety of cultural, educational, social and recreational programs.
For a comprehensive list of opportunities and resources, visit: studentaffairs.psu.edu