Penn State Erie, The Behrend College

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From the College

Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, is committed to providing the best possible education in the disciplines of business, engineering, engineering technology, the humanities, science, and the social sciences. Students benefit from the resources and opportunities provided by a major research institution while they enjoy the advantages of learning in a small university setting. The College offers thirty-two 4-year baccalaureate degree programs, six 2-year associate degree programs, and two graduate degree programs–Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) and a Master of Project Management (M.P.M.).

Among all public colleges and universities in Pennsylvania, Penn State Behrend ranks in the top three in the student-to-faculty ratio, freshman retention rate, and SAT scores.

More than $100 million in new facilities are transforming the Penn State Behrend experience, including three new residence halls, an athletics center, a chapel, an observatory, a child-care center, a baseball and softball complex, intramural fields, a research center, and a high-technology park.

Established in 1948 when Mary Behrend donated her Glenhill Farm estate in memory of her husband, Ernst, the campus is magnificent, with 725 acres overlooking Lake Erie and Presque Isle State Park, which has miles of sandy beaches and some of the most beautiful sunsets in the world. Penn State Behrend’s campus has extensive woodlands, deep gorges, and beautiful streams. It also features cross-country skiing and fitness trails.

More than 4,000 students attend classes in modern academic buildings and labs, and 1,650 students live on campus in traditional student housing, four-bedroom suites, and two-bedroom apartments.

Penn State Behrend participates in twenty-one varsity sports, and it is an NCAA Division III member and a member of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. Varsity sports include ten teams for men (baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, indoor track, soccer, swimming, tennis, track and field, and water polo) and eleven for women (basketball, cross-country, golf, indoor track, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track and field, volleyball, and water polo). More than 65 percent of students participate in a comprehensive intramural program. The Junker Athletics Center features a swimming pool, gymnasium, and exercise equipment.

A multifaith chapel and carillon is designed to inspire quiet reflection and offer enrichment opportunities provided by campus ministries.

Knowledge Park at Penn State Behrend is a 200-acre research and development park housing knowledge-based companies that benefit from the site’s technological infrastructure and the University’s strengths in applied research and technology transfer. A number of students work as interns for companies in the park.

Penn State Behrend students benefit from the college’s convenient location near I-90 (and close to I-79 and I-86) in a suburb of Erie, Pennsylvania. The population of the area is more than 280,000.

Public transportation departs from campus every half hour to other points throughout the Erie area, including dozens of movie theaters, ethnic restaurants, a philharmonic orchestra, museums, theaters, and a zoo. A convention center in downtown Erie features Broadway plays and top-name performers in rock, classical, and country music. Erie is located within 2 hours of Buffalo, Cleveland, and Pittsburgh and is a comfortable 4-hour drive from Toronto.

Penn State Behrend confers the Bachelor of Arts degree in communication, economics, English, general arts and sciences, history, political science, psychology, and science. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is offered in creative writing. The Bachelor of Science degree is offered in accounting; biology; business economics; business, liberal arts, and science; chemistry; computer engineering; computer science; electrical engineering; electrical engineering technology; finance; international business; management; management information systems; marketing; mathematics; mathematics education; mechanical engineering; mechanical engineering technology; physics; plastics engineering technology; psychology; science; and software engineering.

The Associate in Arts degree is awarded in one major–letters, arts, and sciences. The Associate in Science degree is offered in business, and the Associate in Engineering degree is offered in electrical engineering technology, mechanical engineering technology, and plastics engineering technology. The College also offers an associate degree in nursing.

Each baccalaureate program has two components: at least 46 credits in general education and at least 78 credits in specific requirements for the major. Students must complete a minimum of 124 semester hours to earn a bachelor’s degree; the exact number depends on the program. Associate degrees require a minimum of 60 semester hours. All Penn State Behrend majors require an overall grade point average of at least 2.0 and a grade of C or better in all upper-level courses in the major. An honors program and the Schreyer Scholars Program are available to students who show exceptional promise. Several majors serve as excellent preparation for law or medical school. Special prelaw and premed advisers assist students in planning their programs. The Division of Undergraduate Studies enables those who have not yet decided on an academic major to explore several areas of study before selecting a specific program.

The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in creative writing is one of few such programs in the country. It is an intensive course of study in the art of writing. Students have the opportunity to serve on the editorial staff of the national literary journal, Lake Effect.

The Plastics Engineering Technology program and its facilities are among the nation’s best. The program is one of only four in the country to earn accreditation. The School of Engineering and Engineering Technology also has nationally accredited programs in electrical engineering technology, mechanical engineering technology, and electrical, mechanical, and computer engineering.

The College’s chemistry program has earned approval from the American Chemical Society, making Penn State Behrend one of only 619 colleges and universities in the United States to achieve such approval.

The Sam and Irene Black School of Business is the first and only school of business in the Erie region to receive accreditation from AACSB International, the premier accrediting agency for programs in management and accounting. The school was named for Sam and Irene Black following a $20-million endowment bequest.

The fall and spring semesters are each fifteen weeks in length. Registration and advising take place before the first week of classes, and the final examinations are given after the last week. There are also three summer sessions. The Division of Undergraduate Studies provides a summer preregistration and counseling service for all entering freshmen and their parents.

Many students present their undergraduate research at regional and national conferences, and others publish in refereed journals. This provides Penn State Behrend students with an advantage when looking for a job or applying to professional or graduate school. The Career Development Center works closely with employers, and each fall it hosts recruiters on campus at its successful engineering and business career fairs.

Penn State Behrend features a mix of contemporary and traditional buildings in a parklike setting. Facilities include a science complex, library, academic buildings, observatory, and science labs. A Research and Economic Development Center just opened and houses the Black School of Business and the School of Engineering and Engineering Technology.

In addition to using Penn State Behrend’s library collection, students can draw on the resources of the entire Penn State University Libraries collection through the computerized Library Information Access System. The collection comprises 4.3 million cataloged items, 38,500 serial titles, and 2.5 million government documents. Computers connect students to major databases throughout the world.

The General Electric Foundation Computer Center provides a sophisticated, high-speed electronic link from Penn State’s mainframe computer–one of the most up-to-date in the country–to supercomputing. Students benefit from T-3 Internet access, technology classrooms, and e-Lion, the University’s online student advising system. In addition, the College has more than thirty microcomputer labs with IBM-compatible personal computers running both Windows and LINUX operating systems, Silicon Graphics workstations, and computer-aided design systems. Wireless computing is available in many locations on campus.

Educational costs at Penn State Behrend vary depending on whether the student is a resident of Pennsylvania, whether enrollment is in the upper or lower division, and whether he or she lives off campus or in a residence hall. The 2007–08 tuition at Penn State Behrend for Pennsylvania residents (lower division) was $10,912 for the academic year. For out-of-state students, the tuition was $16,694 for the academic year. On-campus rooms are a fixed cost, but board and all other costs are variable and fluctuate according to each student’s spending habits. These variable costs are approximately $6000 for room and board, $800 for books and supplies, and $1200 to $2400 for personal expenses, including clothing, laundry, travel, and miscellaneous items. Other costs are a nonrefundable $50 application fee, a nonrefundable $200 enrollment fee and general fee, and a $100 housing fee for students living in on-campus residences.

Students benefit from more than $1 million in annual Penn State Behrend scholarships, and more than 75 percent of students receive some form of financial aid. Awards are based on an analysis of the student’s financial need. Students should file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by February 15 of their senior year of high school. Penn State’s school code is 003329. Students are encouraged to seek grant assistance from their home state. Financial aid applications are available from high school counselors and financial aid offices at colleges and other institutions. These forms and the application for admission are the only forms that incoming freshmen need to complete to be considered for federal, state, and University aid. Aid includes Federal Pell Grants, Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency Grants, Federal Work-Study Program awards, Federal Perkins Loans, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Federal Stafford Student Loans, and Penn State awards and scholarships.

A first-rate faculty is at the heart of the Penn State Behrend experience. Of the 275 faculty members who teach both graduate and undergraduate students, almost all have earned the terminal degree in their major field. There are no graduate teaching assistants, and the use of part-time professors is limited. The faculty members are distinguished scholars and superb teachers. They are extensively involved in research and publishing, and they are caring people with a record of excellence in advising students. Professors and students get to know each other, and such close relationships have many educational and career advantages.

The Student Government Association is the official representative of the student body at Penn State Behrend. In addition to representing students to the administration and faculty, the Student Government Association charters all student organizations and allocates funds to support and promote student activities. The association also appoints student representatives to serve on key administrative and faculty committees and the appropriate adjudicatory boards.

As part of Penn State University, and in compliance with federal and state laws, Penn State Behrend is committed to the policy that all persons shall have equal access to admission without regard to race, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, color, sexual orientation, handicap, age, or status as a disabled or Vietnam veteran. Each applicant is evaluated on the basis of his or her high school record and the results of the SAT or scores from the ACT. The high school grade point average, when combined with the SAT score, produces an evaluation index, and students are admitted on the basis of that index.

Students interested in freshman admission to Penn State Behrend may obtain a Web application at http://www.admissions.psu.edu. Students who do not wish to file a Web application can obtain an admission application form from any Penn State campus or by writing to Penn State Behrend. Application forms are available in late summer. The recommended deadline for submitting an application is November 30. Applicants admitted to Penn State Behrend are notified approximately four to six weeks after the application and credentials are received. The student must make certain that the Educational Testing Service forwards the SAT scores to the Undergraduate Admissions Office, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802.

This description is available in alternative media upon request. For application forms, more information, or a campus visit, interested students should contact: