Penn State Altoona offers the appeal of a small, private college, with the name recognition and prestige of a major research university. Our goal is to help you reach your goals—educational, personal, and professional.
Penn State Altoona By the Numbers
- 21 Bachelor's Degrees and Associate Degrees, plus numerous minor programs
- 13:1 Student to Faculty Ratio
- 302 Faculty Members
- 2,680 Undergraduate Students
- Average age of 20 years
- 52% Male; 48% Female
- 3.3% International
- 7.3% African American
- 6.8% Hispanic American
- 4.0% Asian American
- 889 on-campus housing spaces available
Plus more off-campus housing locally - 60+ Student Clubs and Organizations
- 15 NCAA Division III Athletic Teams
Plus club teams and intramurals - Students from 39 states and 24 countries
- 42,000+ Altoona Alumni
Part of Penn State's worldwide 700,000+ alumni network, ranked #1 by College Magazine
About Penn State Altoona
Penn State Altoona is an undergraduate college of Penn State, one of the nation’s largest and most widely recognized academic institutions. The campus enrolls nearly 3,000 students and offers twenty-one bachelor's degrees. There are also four associate degrees along with the first two years of study leading to more than 275 baccalaureate majors offered throughout Penn State.
Penn State Altoona accepts students transferring from all Penn State campuses, community colleges, and other accredited colleges and universities.
Located in beautiful central Pennsylvania, Penn State Altoona’s two campuses serve a growing and vibrant region. The 171.5-acre Ivyside campus includes a number of academic buildings, residence halls, an athletic complex and fields, and a reflecting pond (complete with ducks).
The dynamic Downtown Campus features labs for rail transportation engineering, IST programs, and nursing, along with a communications suite, an entrepreneurship center, and classrooms and offices supporting the college's business and accounting programs and the Office of Development and Alumni Relations.
Housing and Food Services
Penn State Altoona’s four residence halls provide an on-campus living experience to more than 900 students. A variety of off-campus living options are also available.
Port-Sky Café is where hunger is satisfied. The facility contains a food court with dozens of dining options, a coffee and baked goods center, and two spacious dining rooms.
Meal plans are available for students living both on- and off-campus.
Robert E. Eiche Library
Eiche Library offers a vast collection of textbooks, periodicals, leisure reading materials, DVDs, and CDs. There are printers, scanners, computers, and a photocopier available for use, plus electronic equipment such as still and video cameras, laptops, MacBooks, and iPads. There are also plenty of study rooms and individual study spaces.
The library’s lower level is home to the Robert L. Smith Learning Resources Center and the Writing Commons, both providing peer and professional tutoring and other academic assistance.
Steven A. Adler Athletic Complex
The recently renovated sporting complex includes two gymnasiums, a fitness center, a natatorium, and two multi-purpose rooms for various recreation and wellness activities. It is also home to our intercollegiate athletics program, recreation offices and facilities, and kinesiology degree program.
Outdoor athletic facilities include a softball field, a baseball field, an all-purpose athletic field, tennis courts, and Spring Run Stadium, home to an eight-lane, all-weather track, a soccer field, and a 2,000-seat grandstand.
Outreach
The Altoona LaunchBox supported by the Hite family is a no-cost accelerator and co-working space designed to provide early-stage startup companies with the support and resources needed to build and sustain a business. The LaunchBox is part of the Invent Penn State initiative.
The Sheetz Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence is where many of our business and entrepreneurship programs take place. The Center includes a mini-trade showroom, a business incubator, classrooms, and conference rooms.
The Sheetz Fellows Program molds students to take on the world through mentoring, community service, internships, study abroad, and research. There are workshops, seminars, and professional development experiences, all designed to prepare students for leadership and citizenship.
The Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts offers numerous cultural, performing, and visual art programs throughout the year for Penn State Altoona and the community. The Center includes a 400-seat theatre, a dance studio, costume and scene shops, art studios, and Mac computer labs. Additional events are hosted in the McLanahan and Sheetz Art Galleries and the Titelman Study.
The Center for Student and Civic Engagement provides opportunities for students to connect with each other and the community. Through the Center, students can join clubs and organizations, serve and lead the campus, and participate in different forms of civic engagement. Being involved means students actively engage themselves to become better citizens and make a difference.
Out-of-Class Learning
What is Engaged Scholarship?
Engaged scholarship consists of out-of-classroom academic experiences that complement in-class learning.
- Study abroad/study away programs provide opportunities for students to be challenged by learning in social and cultural environments very different from those in which they grew up and traditionally study.
- The Center for Community-based Studies engages students in real-world problem-solving opportunities that tap the knowledge, skills, and perspectives they are developing in their academic studies.
- Internships are vitally important for today’s college students. Nine out of ten employers indicate that they are more likely to hire a recent college graduate if they have had a successful internship; more than 40 percent of new college hires come directly from an employer’s internship pool.
- Opportunities for Undergraduate Research and Creative Inquiry abound at Penn State Altoona; many students begin their research experience in their freshman year.
Through these transformative out-of-the-classroom experiences, students receive personal attention from Penn State Altoona faculty, the opportunity to team with fellow students on short or long-term projects, and the chance to interact with faculty at other campuses, visiting scholars, and graduate/postdoctoral students. At other institutions of higher education, such personal mentoring from faculty is usually only available to senior graduate students; at Penn State Altoona, it is the norm.
