Founded as the DuBois Center of the Pennsylvania State College in 1935, the first classes were held in the Hubert Street School by four full-time and one part-time faculty.

Following World War II, an influx of GI Bill veterans increased the student body, and throughout the next decades several new buildings were constructed to accommodate the continued growth.

Currently serving 600 students, Penn State DuBois offers 8 associate and 6 bachelor's degree programs which can be completed entirely on site.

[2] The first two years of an additional 160 majors can be started at DuBois, with students matriculating to the Penn State University Park Campus to complete their degrees.

Students from the area generally live at home and commute, or reside in apartments in the surrounding communities.