I have gotten into College Park Scholars at UMaryland- College Park as a Freshman and have chosen a major in Physics. However, I have a few concerns that I hope someone could address.
I took a look at the Physics courses UMaryland offers but I am quite disappointed. There is no rigor. General Relativity is not taught at all (they have mentioned Relativity, but I assumed that that’s special relativity) and Quantum Mechanics is taught only in the fourth year whereas in Reed, Pomona and other liberal arts colleges, GR is taught at the undergraduate level. Are students provided the opportunity to take graduate level courses without any hassle, or are extra courses provided at the College Park Scholars itself?
Is active research conducted at UMaryland? If so, at what level does research begin? Is it really research in the true sense of the word or is encouragement given to copying entire experiments from the Internet? Also, do undergraduates receive adequate time to engage in research?
Is freedom of speech given priority in UMaryland? Apart from my academic pursuits, I plan to do a few shows of stand-up comedy. Also, is the college crowd generally liberal or conservative?
How is the College Park Scholars program? I plan to pursue theoretical physics, will the program be helpful to me? Are all the courses that are covered in the normal major also covered in the Scholars program? What extra courses are provided for Physics?
Was not physics nor science, cannot compare physics here vs any of the other schools besides to say that undergraduate is a lot of general education and exploration. Because of that the depth of what some subjects get into may seem limited for those that know exactly what they want to study and a lot about that subject. Keep in mind that while you may be ahead of some students, classes are offered in the schedule for what the department thinks is best suited for students at that level, many undergrads may not be prepared for the courses you are looking for. However, if you reach out to the department (now or as a student) and prove you are capable, you will find many doors will open and opportunities will present themselves.
Yes, absolutely, NASA is right down the road. As is nearly every large federal department and many contractors as well. I am not sure how much you will see at the undergrad level (see point 1), but it is there. If you have not seen the brand new physics building it is pretty impressive and was built specifically for the labs and research being done there.
Is it as open as some of the liberal arts colleges in the middle of no where? Probably not, is it more open then nearly anything you have experienced before, probably. College campuses are notoriously open minded and you will find people thinking, supporting, and saying everything. The campus is open meaning I have seen petitions for everything and people protesting to impeach the president, you name it it has probably happened. College campuses (as well as Maryland) tend to be more liberal, but you will find republicans and everything in-between. There are all kinds of opportunities to get involved with comedy troops and stand up comedy (clubs and just random people that get together).
Wasn’t in it, but it is not major specific and therefore you probably will find nothing directly related to that major. Remember that college is not just about studying one specific thing, its a holistic experience to teach you to learn how to think and solve problems, as well as learn more about subject areas. The scholars program will allow you to experience things outside of physics, that you may not be able to do within the major. Scholars is a two year program, and as far as I remember there wouldn’t be any specific scholars courses for physics. There may be I-Series (http://www.gened.umd.edu/i-series/iseries.php) courses through physics that are interesting however.
Thanks a lot! I had been looking at yelp for reviews on UMaryland and while most of them were good, there were quite a few bad ones as well.The following are some of the complaints I have heard
Crimes such as homicide and theft are rampant on campus.
Parking tickets are superfluously issued.
The professors are not very approachable and are usually apathetic to students
The bureaucracy is corrupt and the administration is inefficient and gives maximum priority to profit
These are some of the common factors stated in the negative reviews and the positive reviews didn’t seem to counter the above points. Are these things true about the University?
Most of those crimes are committed off campus actually. The area right around the school is good but some surrounding areas are not the best. I lived there for 4.5 years and never once felt unsafe or at risk. A lot of these thefts and situations are being in the wrong place or by yourself at the wrong hour of the day. Its usually petty crime, not locking your room door, walking around with flashy things, stuff like that. And I don’t think homicides are any higher in college park then anywhere else. They are really working to make the area around the school look better as well. People make crime seem like an aspect at the school, but whenever you look at schools in metro areas they suffer from the same sort of problems.
Maryland and every other school I have visited has had this problem. High student density and no school wants to be all parking lots. I got a few tickets while on campus, but most people complain about the tickets because they made a mistake and didn’t read the parking signs. You really don’t even need a car, and if you do just park it in the lot you are assigned and you won’t have any big problems. Yes you will get tickets, but its that way at most schools this size.
I didn’t find that to be the case at all. Of course its going to depend on what professors and department you are a part of, but no professor I ever reached out to ever turned me away. There may be a few bad apples, but overall I had great experiences with the professors I got.
Couldn’t be further from the truth, do you agree with everything your principals and administration have done throughout your schooling career? Same idea here, they are looking out for the future of the school, you are focused on your experience while you are there. Wally Loh is one of the most approachable people you will ever meet and will speak with any student who runs into him. And the school is a non-profit, they can’t make a profit. In fact this year there was a short fall and tuition went up slightly. If you don’t agree with how it is run while you are there, run for the SGA (student government), you can make an impact.
I live in MD not all that far from UMD and my D is a freshman living on campus. I am not aware of any homicides on campus. There was a shooting off campus at a McD’s earlier in the fall. My D hasn’t complained about any theft, rampant or otherwise. Living on campus, she doesnt need a car, and I’ve never gotten a parking ticket when I went there. No complaints about the professors, but I am sure some are better than others. And we have not had any problems with the administration.
Also, have you seen this information about research via the Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics?
The Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics (IREAP) is a joint institute of the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences and the A. James Clark School of Engineering. The mission of IREAP is to advance modern science through research and educational programs that are interdisciplinary between physical science and engineering. The flow of knowledge between basic science and engineering at IREAP is bidirectional: applying basic science skills to problems of practical importance and engineering skills to aid in fundamental scientific investigations, with an emphasis on diversity, quality, and excellence. IREAP is recognized internationally as a leading university research center and conducts experimental and theoretical research in many areas; e.g., high-temperature plasma physics, plasma spectroscopy, microwave electronics, high-brightness charged particle beams, laser-plasma interactions, nonlinear dynamics, biophysics, ion beam microfabrication techniques, nanoscience, and nanotechnology.
A detailed list of research conducted at the Institute can be found on IREAP’s research webpage. http://ireap.umd.edu/research
also this summer program: http://ireap.umd.edu/education/trend
The University of Maryland’s Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, with support from the National Science Foundation, is offering exciting research opportunities for undergraduate students in the broad area of nonlinear dynamics. Students from a variety of universities and backgrounds typically work in teams of two or three for 10 weeks during the summer and are supervised jointly by faculty members and graduate students. The program begins June 1 and ends August 7, 2015.
UMd Physics is a top notch research department both for theory and experiment. The grad program used to be ranked in the top 15 by USNews, but it is actually even better in many areas such as Nonlinear dynamics, plasma physics, particle theory, condensed matter theory… Some very well known people have been and still are there in gravitation and general relativity too. Research in the department is deadly serious, not a showmanship item. The faculty and most grad students live and breathe their work. They are happy to involve very gifted and well-prepared undergrads in their research but do not usually go about it with any sort of salesmanship or sensationalism.
The undergrad coursework is standard; you can take QM-I as early as your sophomore year, if you’ve entered with sufficient preparation (AP CalcBC, PhysC etc and/or further advanced courses at a local college). Special Rel is seen right in PhysicsI (taken by entering freshmen); there wasn’t a regular GenRel offering in the past for undergrads, but occasionally such special topics courses were organized and offered to undergrads depending on interest or demand. An undergrad can sign up for grad courses only with special permission which certainly involves supplying proof of readiness.
The dept is not like the ones at Reed or Harvey Mudd or Pomona; it isn’t focused solely on getting undergraduates a fabulous experience like those are, but instead tries to provide rigorous undergrad and grad programs while concentrating on real professional research.
UMd has a nice campus, with no more crime than in any typical suburban university. There is a reasonable amount of free speech exercised, with the usual limits. The general admin has some very sweet, hardworking professionals, and some of another kind. Nothing unpleasant you wouldn’t encounter elsewhere. But the Physics, Math, and some other engineering departments are certainly outstanding.
I’ll add that this was due to a student drunkenly (at ~3am) assaulting security officers hired to maintain order in the McD’s on Friday/Saturday nights where students stop by after a night out.
Also, I’ve never gotten a parking ticket! It’s mainly people complaining because they did something wrong and the university wouldn’t repeal the ticket.
All of my professors have been extremely welcoming.