Graduate Life at Penn State

Recreation

Nature, entertainment, athletics, culture and the arts.

Penn State offers a tremendous range of facilities for recreation and sports throughout the year. Miles of hiking trails abound in the mountains and valleys of the region, with similar possibilities available for biking and cross-country skiing. Several nationally-renowned trout streams lie within the Penn State valley. Swimming facilities, both indoor and outdoor, are available at the University and in the surrounding State College area. Several state parks also provide swimming and boating areas. The University operates two golf courses and a driving range, has numerous tennis and racquetball courts, and provides facilities for team sports, such as softball, soccer, basketball, and touch football. This broad potential for athletic activity offers the interested student excellent opportunities for exercise and relaxation.

For the spectator, Penn State has many exciting athletic teams. Football, baseball, fencing, soccer, basketball, lacrosse, field hockey, volleyball, wrestling, and gymnastics have all generated a considerable following.

The University and surrounding community also offer a wide variety of cultural activities including music, dance, theatre, film, lectures, and art. Programs featuring these activities are sponsored by the University and bring world-renowned individual and group performers to the area at reasonable ticket prices. Devoted moviegoers can choose from a large number of films shown weekly on campus (including several foreign-film series), and in numerous State College theatres. The University presents an active program throughout the year in two state-of-the-art theatres on campus.

Each summer, the highly regarded four-day Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts is held in State College and on the University Park Campus. Artists from across the US attend the festival. This arts festival has been rated on of the top 20 in the country. In addition to the extensive arts exhibits, a large number of free concerts ranging from classical music to jazz, folk, and rock are presented along with a variety of films. Other cultural activities also take place during the summer.

The Palmer Museum of Art contains a varied collection of art from Greek, Roman, European, Asian, African and American artistic traditions.

Web Guide to the State College Arts Festival