Service & Emotional Support Animals

Penn State Housing and Food Services provides reasonable accommodations for a student with a disability who has a verifiable need of having a Service Animal or an Emotional Support Animal (ESA) in University housing. A reasonable accommodation is an exception to the University’s rules, policies, practices, or services that a student with a disability may need to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy University housing.

What's the Difference?

Service Animal

Service Animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. These tasks can include things like pulling a wheelchair, guiding a person who is visually impaired, or alerting a person who is having a seizure. The tasks a service dog can perform are not limited to this list. However, the work or task a service dog does must be directly related to the person's disability. Service dogs may accompany persons with disabilities into places that the public normally goes.

Emotional Support Animal (ESA)

An ESA is an animal (typically a dog or cat though this can include other animals) that provides a therapeutic benefit to its owner through companionship. The animal provides emotional support and comfort to individuals with psychiatric disabilities and other mental impairments. The animal is not specifically trained to perform tasks for a person who has emotional disabilities. Unlike a Service Animal, an ESA is not automatically granted access to places of public accommodation, including areas where residents are normally permitted to go (for example, commons areas, student lounges, laundry facilities, dining halls). An ESA is not permitted in other areas of the University without prior approval through the reasonable accommodation process administered through Student Disability Resources (SDR). 

Request Process