For the thousands of Penn Staters graduating in a few weeks, there are just as many potential roads to travel.

And these soon-to-be graduates, with diplomas in hand, said that although they are heading off to many different places, including graduate school, the "real world" or the unknown, one thing will remain the same -- Penn State was their home.

Ian Sutcliffe (senior-history) said that after nine semesters here, he is a bit worried about what the future will hold outside of his college experience.

"I'm still waiting to hear about graduate school," Sutcliffe said. "And I've been at Penn State for four and a half years; this has become my home. So I basically don't know where I am going to be this time next year."

He and other students said there might be an advantage to graduating in the fall semester, rather than in May.

For Sutcliffe, the benefit is financial.

"I get time to relax, so I can get a job, save up and make some money before heading off to grad school," he added.

Dan King (senior-accounting and international business) also said there is an upside to graduating in December.

"Not being in school for the next six months would probably help people get a head start over those graduating in the spring," King said.

King, who said he is more than ready to leave, is taking advantage of his graduation in a different way. "I don't have a job," he said. "I'm going to travel around the world for six months."

And even though his home for the past four and a half years is far from his worldly travel destinations, King said Penn State will always be something he remembers.

"Looking back, it definitely went by so quickly. It's weird to think I spent more time in college than in high school," he added.

Steph Fazio (senior-early childhood and elementary education) said Penn State has provided her with an amazing experience, but with teaching jobs in her near future, she is also ready to move forward.

Fazio added that she will miss many aspects of the Penn State, especially the Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon.

"There was no better feeling than participating in Thon and spending time with the kids down at Hershey," she said.

Not all students are fully prepared to move on, though.

Rich Shusman (senior-agricultural business management) said he has mixed feelings about graduation.

"I love college, but at the same time, most of my friends are also graduating, so I guess I am ready to move on," Shusman said.

After graduation, Sutcliffe said he will remember his friends, sleeping in late, football games with Joe Paterno and the great faculty.

"Penn State has been my home in many ways, and the relationships make it feel that way more so," he added.

Fazio, Shusman, King and Sutcliffe are just four of the many students graduating. Yet, while the numbers are reaching into the thousands, they are still small in comparison to the graduates from May 2004.

Penn State spokesman Geoff Rushton said most students graduate in the spring simply because that is how it seems to work out.

"It's just the way that most students are on track to graduate, and it works out that most do in May," Rushton said.

He said the students following the educational trend of not necessarily graduating in eight semesters will be accepting their diplomas in the coming weeks. "There are several students that graduate in December because they are leaving early or took an extra semester," he said. "But that's the nature of college; these days not everybody will graduate in four years and in the spring."