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!

Getting a Driver's License in Pennsylvania

This is Rachel -- so based on the Transportation post (see below), we received a question about getting your driver's license in Pennsylvania. Thanks for the question! It's a good one, although it's a long, complicated, and confusing answer. I'll try my best to give a general answer here, but please remember that you can stop by the International Student Services office in 410 Boucke Building for more information when you arrive in State College.

The first thing you'll need to do is stop by the ISS office and pick up a driver's manual. This manual will help explain the rules to get your learner's permit and driver's license and will help you prepare for the driving test. While you're in the office, you should tell the front desk reception staff that you are interested in getting your driver's license -- they will ask you to complete a LETTER REQUEST FORM to start the process.

You'll then need to get a physical health examination, which you can get at University Health Services on campus.

Now, the regulations. As an international student, there are certain requirements that need to be met in order to get your license here in Pennsylvania. In order to get a driver’s license a student must:

• Be in registered status for the semester

• Have updated address with ISS

• Fill out a LETTER REQUEST FORM, which you can pick up in the ISS office. This letter typically takes 3-4 days to process, and just verifies that you are an international student at Penn State.

Once you get a letter from the International Student Services office, you should take your letter and go to the Department of Motor Vehicles (http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/). The closest DMV is located about 11 miles from State College. You'll need to take the following items with you to the DMV:

• Letter from ISS
  

• Passport, visa, and I-94

• I-20 or DS2019

• Two documents showing where you live (you can find a list of what documents that the DMV accepts in the ISS office)

• Social Security Card (if you don’t have one, you will need to apply for one with the Social Security Office, get rejected, and then take your rejection letter). (Social Security Numbers are only available for students who have jobs).
  

You will then need to pass a driving test and written test before you can get your license. You should study this driver's manual very hard before your test.

Again, please remember that you can visit the DMV website (http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/) for more information and of course, stop by the ISS office for more information once you've arrived.

And remember, in the United States, we drive on the right!

Searching for Topics and Answers

Hi There!

Although this ISS Orientation Blog is really quite new, we have already been getting responses from future students. According to the sitemeter, ISS Orientation Blog is being visited by readers from around the world! Take a look at July's stats from the sitemeter. Hopefully, more people will get to know the blog and its usefulness (the funny thing about this blog, is that the more people use it, the more useful it will be).

You could use the ISS Orientation Blog by randomly browsing through it (for those of us with hmmmmm...more time on their hands) or you could look at the FAQs Keywords located on the sidebar of the blog. For example, if you want to know about the dormitory you will be staying during the Orientation Week, click on the keyword "dorms" under FAQs Keywords. This should bring you to the postings that talk about dormitories in Penn State.

The ISS Orientation Blog is still expanding and we will keep on adding more topics and details. If you can't find what you are looking for today, come back in a few days to see if that topic has been added. Better still, post a comment on the blog and we will try to look for an answer for you.

Places to Study at Penn State

I know we're all in summer mode right now, but some of you might be wondering about how and where you might study when classes start in...let me check...54 days!

This campus is full of quiet places for times when you are feeling overwhelmed by work and don't want to be in your room. Close to home for those of you living on campus are the study lounges that can be found in every dorm. Check with your RA for exact locations of the lounges in your building once you get to campus.

Whether you want to study with 6 of your loudest friends or by yourself in silence, libraries are always a good option. Our main library (which consists of two parts - Pattee and Paterno) is full of group study spaces. These rooms can be reserved ahead of time and all come with large tables and other helpful study equipment. Stop by here to find out more.

If you're looking for a quieter spot, you can find individual desks (some with computers) in the stacks area of the Pattee side of the library, and more tables and computers in all of the special subject libraries on the Paterno side. For those of you who like Harry Potter (and for those of you who don't), there is a huge, very quiet room on the second floor of Pattee that some people think looks like the Great Hall at Hogwarts. It might make studying for that Econ exam a little more fun.

The HUB is also a great place to study. It's best for groups, since it can get pretty loud, but lots of comfortable chairs, tables, coffee, and food make the noise worthwhile. Also, while the weather is warm at the beginning of the semester, lots of students take advantage of both the HUB lawn and the Old Main lawn. That's always a good way to go, since it's easy to slip in a game of frisbee between assignments.

Downtown is full of good study locations - Webster's Bookstore on S. Allen St., Irving's on College Ave., the Schlow Library on the corner of Beaver and Allen, Panera at that same intersection, and Saint's Cafe on Beaver are all great choices (among many others!).


This blog entry was written by Ruth Parrish (Orientation Staff for Fall 2008) for Fall Orientation 2008.

Undergraduate On-campus Housing

Living in the dorms. For most of us, there is no escaping it. I'm sure a lot of you have filled out your housing request forms already but for those of you who have not, I'll tell you a little bit about the on-campus housing options for undergrads (both 4 year and exchange students).

I lived on campus my first two years at Penn State but I've lived in East, South, North, and Pollock Halls. Dorm buildings may either be single sex or co-ed. Co-ed dorms tend to alternate floors (one floor is girls, the next is boys). Each floor has one Resident Assistant (RA) who's pretty much in charge of enforcing the rules, handling roommate disputes, and answering questions. It's a good idea to get to know you're RA!!

Most dorm rooms house two students of the same sex. For many people, college is the first time they have to share a room (with a total stranger, no less!) and this is often a cause of stress. You’ll always hear of roommates-gone-wrong stories, but most people are able to live peacefully with their roommates. If you are one of the unlucky ones, there is always the possibility to switch rooms. Usually there are room-swap lists posted in the halls, but when in doubt, ask your RA!!

Bathrooms tend to be centrally located on each floor, and yes, you have to share the bathroom with all the other students on the floor. It's amazing though...I've never had to wait in line to use the bathroom or shower!! It takes some getting used to, but it's not so bad. Be sure to wear flip flops in the shower stalls...they are cleaned every day but it's still kind of gross to share showers with sooo many people...

Your dorm rooms are fully furnished, which means they have a bed, a desk and chair, and a set of drawers/closet for each person. They also are all equipped with a small refrigerator/microwave unit (one per room). The following is a list of “must-haves” for your dorm room which you will need to bring with you or buy during orientation on one of our student-led shopping tours!
Pillow
Sheets/bedding (size: twin extra-long…must say extra-long on it or it won’t fit!!!)
Blanket
FAN (there is no AC in the dorms!!!)
Bowl/plate
Fork, spoon, knife
4 Bed risers (these are great because they make your bed taller so you can store stuff underneath!)
Shower shoes!! (flip-flops work well)

Those are the basic things you will need to make your dorm room livable!

So…where is the best place to live on campus?...I think most Penn State students would say West Halls. The dorms in West Halls are located near the big Pattee/Paterno Library. The rooms are fairly spacious (for dorms) and West Halls has the best dining commons!! West Commons is best known for its delicious melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chip cookies. The west side of campus is close to the engineering and IST buildings.

If you are a freshman, chances are you’ll be living in East Halls your first year. East Halls is the largest and is home to ONLY first year students. You guys will be isolate on the east side of campus away from pretty much everything except the creamery, Beaver Stadium, and Bryce Jordan Center. It’s not the best place to live, but at least you’ll be living with all the other first years who are eager to make friends and explore State College!

Pollock and South Halls are located next to each other and are close to the HUB (student union building) and downtown. I think the rooms in South tend to be a little bit bigger, but the two are similar and the dining halls aren’t bad! A lot of first years also live in Pollock.

North Halls are located near the business building and most of the halls there are newly renovated. It is the smallest of the living areas on campus and it’s far from downtown BUT it offers two and four person suites complete with a shared living area and bathroom. I wasn’t lucky enough to live here but I’ve heard these are really nice! You must be in a special living option to live here.

So what are special living options? They are special programs where students with similar interests can live together. They have special social and educational programs throughout the year. For example, my freshman year I lived in East Halls but I was in the living option for First year students in Science and Engineering majors (FISE). We had our own tutors who would come to our buildings and help with chem, math, bio, etc, and we had ice cream socials and other fun activities. There are also special living options for women in science and engineering (WISE), engineers, business majors, architecture majors, community-service based options, etc etc. The list goes on!! Check out the website!! http://www.hfs.psu.edu/housing/undergraduates/slo.shtml

For exchange and transfer students, you have the option of living in Nittany Apartments, Eastview Terrace (single room, single bathroom with shared kitchen and lounge), and possibly The University Club (must be 21 or older to live here, and it’s hard to get in!).

No matter where you end up, you are guaranteed to have a good time! There really aren’t dorms that tend to be more “party” than the others but I think that East and Pollock tend to be the loudest. West Halls houses a lot of upperclassmen so they tend to be quieter. North Halls is small and houses the least amount of people so it would be quieter there as well. However, you should note that underage drinking (legal drinking age is 21) is NOT tolerated in the dorms…and most people do get caught.

If you have any more questions check out the housing website: http://www.hfs.psu.edu/housing/


This blog entry was written by Beth Harvie (Orientation Leader 2006-2009) for Fall 2008 orientation.

FAQs: What to expect for your first week in State College?

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