Question on Housing (White Course) and Summer Internship

Hi this is Ming, Here is a common question concerning housing (at White Course Apartments) and related to it a question about what to do in summer: "Hello, I am from Italy and I have been admitted to the Energy and Mineral Engineering department for a Phd. First of all thank you for all the usefull information. I have just received the white course single apartment lease agreement and I see that for the spring semester the lease ends 5/17/2009. My graduate assistanship is for the spring semester and for the autumn one. So what does usually happen during the summer semester? do you think it would be possible for me to find some kind of internship on campus? If I return home will I be able to store my belongings somewhere? I am asking you this because I am booking my flight and maybe you could advise me on a possible return date. A return ticket would be much cheaper! Any time I might be able to return to Italy for a couple of weeks. Thank you again" Answer: The white course apartment allows tenants to stay on throughout the whole year. What you need to do is to inquire from the housing office there once you are here (or even before you arrive if you could) the procedure to entent your apartment's lease. Be sure to do it quickly though as housing is in high demand. If you continue to rent the White Course apartment, you would have a place to store your belongings or you could ask a friend to help you out.  Answer: Summer graduate assistantship is something every international student needs to "negotiate" with their advisors and department personally. Some graduate students gets a Research Funding for certain summer project, some becomes part of the ongoing reseach, some advanced students get to teach a summer course, some go for internships, some work part-time in the university's library or eateries, and there arel some who doesn't get any financial assistance at all for the summer. Note: as an international student, you can only work on campus even in the summer unless it is an internship (as part of your studies). Answer: Airline ticket prices fluctuate from month to month, so it is really depending on your schedule. If you have decided to stay here during Summer, then you could still go home for a couple of weeks before the Summer sessions begin or after they have ended. Check out the Penn State Academic Calendar.  I hope these info helps. See you soon!