dragonneedspank

As many of you probably know, I applied for Cornell and U. Penn. If I do not get accepted, I am force to go to my back up schools. And right now I don't know which back up school to go. So I need you guys to help me out here!! I will list the pros and cons of each school and you guys can help me decide . I will be a pre-med major planning to go to med school. If I do not get accepted to Cornell or U. Penn., I want to enjoy my college years and go to a school that is easy to maintain a high GPA and at the same time gives me an opportunity to stand out when I apply to med school. I want a very active campus, meaning that there is always something fun to do, especially the Asian clubs and Asian Greek Life.

Temple University:
Pros
- Diverse Student Body
- Okay housing (If i get it)
- Philadelphia, has a Chinatown right next to it!
- I will be majoring in Neuroscience: Cellular and Molecular
- Will have to do research by my senior year
- Lower rank so less work (I'm assuming)

Cons
- Limited housing!!!!!!
- Out of state tuition
- Very Rural
- Less Asian/Chinese People

University Of Maryland - College Park
Pros
- Diverse Student Body
- On Campus housing not very good
- Limited Food (I have visited there and there is not much choices)
- In state tuition
- More Asian/Chinese People
- Not that rural as Temple

Cons
- More work (assumption by the higher rank)
- Inactive clubs (This is coming from a friend of mine that goes to UMD - CP)
- Need a car if you want to go somewhere

The most important thing I am looking for in my back up school is;
1. Easy to maintain a high GPA
2. Give me opportunities to stand out as a med school applicant
3. Lots of Asian/Chinese People
4. Very active student/campus life, especially from the Asian/Chinese clubs
5. I want that feel that I am not a minor student, I want that cultural asian/chinese feeling.

I guess that is all. Thanks!!! Help me!! If you have any questions let me know!

dragonneedspank

Oh also I do need tuition... But I am willing to take a 3k loans per year at least.

lockn

UMD is ranked #2 on Princeton Review for "students never study".

dragonneedspank

My friend goes there and she is also a bio major and her status is always saying, NEEDS HELP WITH LAB!!, is doing bio homework, and etc. so iono :O!! lol

armageddon2000

princeton review is wrong. i go to umd-cp and it isnt exactly a cakewalk. I wouldnt say its ridiculously challenging but, given the scope of the campus, your grade is pretty much determined by 2-3 tests per class and teachers are not particularly lenient/forgiving as far as grades go. For some people, this is good. However, if you are used to a nurturing private school-type environment, it can be a tough transition.

dragonneedspank

Yeah I have a couple of friends that said the same exact thing about CP. So thats why i was wondering why Princeton review ranked UMD-CP as students study the least. But I'm not sure about Temple University. Can someone shed some light on the workload of Temple university?

blu_g8orade

Maryland is ranked as a Tier 1 University by US News & World Report, and is also ranked as a top 20 public school.

In the same USNWR rankings, Temple is ranked as a Tier 3 University. Not even in the top 150.

Take that how you want.

dragonneedspank

I also heard that CP is increasing their tuition cost by increasing student fees, technology fees, and etc. and they are not informing their students, is that true?

rsala004

uf listed as students never study, i think #1
uf's academics are nothing to scuff at

dragonneedspank

Does any1 know how the off-campus housing is for both schools? I know Temple's offcampus housing sucks badlyyyyyy.

diontechristmas

"- Lower rank so less work (I'm assuming)

Cons
- Limited housing!!!!!!
- Very Rural
- Less Asian/Chinese People"

We get plenty of work
There's plenty of housing
Rural? We're five minutes from Center City Philadelphia. What are you talking about?
We have a TON of Asians


I take that to be irrelevant coming from a magazine instituting a silly methodical way of ranking schools, who cares only about selling more magazines.

terptransfer

As a current study at Maryland, I must admit the off-campus housing situation may be a deterrent. With a limited amount of complexes, it is tough to find housing. If you transfer to UMD, start your housing search immediately. Great places to look at are University View and College Park Towers. Unfortunately, transfer students are shut out of on-campus apartment housing such as South Campus Commons and The Courtyards. The process is tedious and annoying, but don't be completely discouraged -- something always comes through.