some good, but more bad
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4/30/2007
After living in State College for about 7 years, I finally decided to move out. I don't really have a chip on my shoulder about the place, but I'd rather raise my kids in a "real" town.
If you aren't a college student, an employee of the university, or a pizza shop entrepreneur, it's really hard to get yourself established. There aren't very many middle to high paying job opportunities outside of the education and research segments of the job market. In other words, unless you are a teacher, meteorologist, or engineer, don't bother coming to this town, (unless you want a career as a wal-mart employee or waiter).
The State College school district is very good, BUT THAT IS IT. DON'T SEND YOUR KIDS ANYWHERE ELSE! If you don't have the money to live in the State College school district (which you won't unless you work in a professional field at the University), don't move here if you have kids. The housing costs are very high compared to the rest of the surrounding area. If you are coming from the Philly 'burbs, Balt.-DC, NYC, New England, or the west coast, you will think housing is really cheap. But from anwhere else in the country, it's very expensive for the location, and taxes are getting to be really high.
The people that live in the town tend to be a little on the arrogant side, but I also have found that to be the case in almost every college town I ever visited. The town gets really old after a while. If you are in your late 20's-early 40's and want to go have a night out on the town with your spouse, the "American Ale House" is about your only option. There's also a theatre downtown, but they only have about 4 plays a year and 2-3 of them usually suck. Other than that, ALL the entertainment is catered to college students. If you need any amenities of a big city, you have to travel 2 1/2- 3 hours to Pittsburgh, Baltimore, or Philly.
Unless you have a really good job with the university lined up, you're better off just paying the extra couple bucks and living in a big city suburb. That's all that State College is: A suburb of nothing, with 40,000 college kids. Unless you are really in to fishing, hunting, or mountain biking, you might as well just live in a real suburb and have all the amenities you need nearby. Plus you don't have to worry about your underage high school daughter going to frat parties on the weekends.
John | Saint Johnsville, NY