Penn State Trustees Approve Room And Board Rates

3-20-98
Hershey, Pa. -- Penn State's Board of Trustees approved 1998-99 room and board rates at University Park and other Penn State campuses. The new rates go into effect July 1.

Room charges for an undergraduate student living in a standard double room will increase by $55 a semester from $1,035 to $1,090, and the charge for Meal Plan 3, or 12 to 13 meals a week which is the most common meal plan, will increase by $30 a semester from $1,135 to $1,165. For the 1998-99 academic year, these changes bring the average room and board charge to $4,510, an increase of $170 or a 3.9 percent increase. Housing and food services at Penn State are self-supporting and these increases reflect rising costs.

Penn State has undergraduate residence halls at University Park, Penn State Erie, Harrisburg, Altoona, Beaver, Berks, Hazleton, McKeesport and Mont Alto. Graduate residence halls or apartments are available at University Park, Erie, Harrisburg and Hershey. A total of 12,725 students live in University housing at University Park and 17,069 live in University housing systemwide.

Other 1998-99 housing charges per semester are:

-- At Penn State Erie and Penn State Harrisburg, apartment rates will increase by $70 from $1,290 to $1,360 per semester per person for double or four-person units.

-- Graduate residence hall rates for a standard double room at University Park without a meal plan will increase by $65 a semester from $1,190 to $1,255 while double rooms with a meal plan will increase by $60 a semester from $1,075 to $1,135. Meal plans will increase from $30 to $40 a semester for a range of cost between $1,065 to $1,330, depending on the number of meals or points selected. Graduate students are not required to have a meal plan.

-- Room rates for Nittany Apartments at University Park will increase by $65 to $70 for a range of $1,270 to $1,430 a semester, depending on type of apartment, and monthly rates for Eastview and Graduate Circle apartments will increase from $20 to $25 for a range of $345 to $510 a month, depending on the number of bedrooms and unit selected.

-- Rental rates for the University Manor apartments at Hershey will increase from $14 to $36 a month for a range of $544 to $1,236 a month, depending on the number of bedrooms and whether or not the unit is furnished.

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Contact:
Christy Rambeau (814) 865-7517 (office) (814) 237-9046 (home) cmr7@psu.edu