Penn State is a great place to be for ambitious, positive people with a strong work ethic.
Pros
The benefits cannot be beat. We get 24 days of vacation a year plus 7 holiday days at Christmas. Also, the educational benefits for you, your partner and your children are very helpful in continuing your education or paying for a child's education. There are a lot of professional development opportunities and in my department, people are very willing to mentor you and help you learn more to get ahead. There are a lot of great resources and people to know on campus, including the students. As a result, town is full of great service opportunities and organizations where you can volunteer or enjoy the arts.
Cons
It is located in the middle of Pennsylvania. It's 3.5 hours to NYC, Philadelphia, and DC so it takes a while to get to a place more diversity and a plethora of cultural opportunities. While the transplants to the area can be more inclusive in their thoughts and actions, the local culture is very close minded and can make some people feel very uncomfortable. If you don't like football, you'll need to get away or hide in your house a good eight weekends out of the year. Like any large organization, there is a beaurocracy in place that can be stifling. I guess it's necessary for keeping a system in place for thousands of employees, but sometimes it seems unfair and sometimes you see things that are wrong that won't change. If you are on a bad team or have a bad boss, you are better off finding a new job as it is rare for people to be reprimanded or get fired.
