Friday, August 10, 2018

A Guide to the Best Study Locations At PSU!


           As we all know, Penn State is a huge, huge university. Luckily, that means that it has a wide variety of places to study to fit every student’s individual needs. Penn State has resources and locations all across campus that suit every personality type and study preferences. Keep reading on to find out where it might be best for you to study!

A Place for Everyone!


        
         Pictured above are Penn State’s Paterno and Pattee libraries. Within them, there are multiple different areas for studying. There really is something for every student looking for the best place to study.
         For quiet studiers, there are two areas, one in each library, that will ensure that you are never disrupted by loud noise. Most of the Paterno side of the library is a quiet space with large computers, desk space, and easy access to printers. If you prefer a smaller environment, the lower level of Paterno is usually much less crowded, and is conveniently located next to McKinnon’s café, so that a caffeine fix is only a one-minute walk or a thirty second sprint. The second option is the Stacks, located on the Pattee side of the library. The Stacks are piled high with books on just about any topic imaginable. Throughout the Stacks smaller and very, very quiet study areas are interspersed between rooms full of bookshelves. It ensures a distraction free study zone.
*Note, if you like a good true crime story, an unsolved murder occurred in the Stacks in the 1960’s, feel free to go visit!
         For students who prefer some background noise or group studiers, the Business Library is the place to be! It is located on the third floor of the Paterno library, and offers large tables and individual desks. While most of the library tends to be quiet, I have found that the business library allows for more noise and conversation than the rest of the library.
         Lastly, for a more DIY spin on studying in the library, students are allowed to rent study rooms. These rooms let anywhere from two to fourteen people study in their own room for up to three hours. Some of the amenities in the rooms include large TV monitors with HDMI cords, so that study material can be projected for everyone in the room to see. The rooms work best for working on larger group presentations or working as a group to complete a homework assignment, but since they individual rooms, they can be used for absolutely anything (within reason).

A Place for Engineers


         The lovely rectangle shown above will likely become like a second home to you during your time here at Penn State. It is the Hammond building! Not only does it serve as home base to our lovely leader, Cheryl, but also it is a hub for all things engineering. It is a smaller library dedicated to just us! Just like the Paterno and Pattee libraries, it offers computer spaces and easy access to printing, and also has individual rooms available to rent. Another great facet of the Engineering library is that it is easy and fast to find textbooks for engineering classes on reserve. If the library style environment is not your favorite, Hammond also has a Kunkle lounge. Kunkle is sometimes used for events at night, but during the day, it is a great space with lots of tables and chairs for studying. It tends to stay on the quieter side, but talking is 100% okay!


A Place for Outdoor Fun (and also studying)


         For those of you who have taken tours of Penn State’s campus, you have probably seen these two beautiful lawn areas. On the top is the HUB lawn and on the bottom is Old Main Lawn. During the start of fall semester and the tail end of spring semester, these areas serve as a way to soak up some sun both before and after the dead of State College’s winter months. If you are a studier who can handle a fair amount of distraction and noise, these are great places to study or just read a book when the very rare warm weather makes an appearance in Happy Valley.

Additional Tips, Tricks, and Places to Go

         In all reality, Penn State has thousands of places to study. Many residence halls have small private study rooms on each floor. Most of the dining halls serve as great places to study during their slower or late night hours. Also, late at night, buildings have empty classrooms where you can study alone or with friends. I would recommend a building like Willard that has a ton of rooms to choose from because you can always find somewhere that is empty. Because Penn State has too many study locations for one person to ever try, I have linked some articles that give other people’s opinions about where to study on campus! I promise that somewhere on Penn State’s campus, your best study spot is out there waiting for you!

Articles


By: Emily Lanzetta (Mentor Team L)

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