<p>Ok, here’s the thing.</p>
<p>I’m sure the GC mentions that rank is a composite of magnet school and less challenging public school. And I’m sure GC mentions the rigor of courses and the large percentage of the student body being National Merit Finalists. </p>
<p>So, a 3.2 is really not that bad - when paired with a 32 ACT, though, it’s less impressive. I hope she takes the SAT since her PSAT scores are very much off the chart.</p>
<p>I go to UMCP so I can give you a run down of what I perceive the strengths/weaknesses of the school to be. I do think if you come to visit American/etc. you should check it out. The government building is “Tydings” so be sure to check out what’s in front of it, behind it, etc. to really get a feel for what areas of campus you’ll see most. The tour can take you to some weird and ugly locations that sometimes don’t reflect where you’ll actually spend your time (such as the stadium…don’t really spend time there myself…lol).</p>
<p>Strengths:</p>
<ol>
<li>Huge Jewish community, Hillel, Hillel diner, etc.</li>
<li>Great location near DC with metro access and all that DC has to offer, but still far enough outside that you get a traditional campus vibe (huge green lawns, strong sports, student activities on campus out the wazoo)</li>
<li>The student groups very frequently bring in local politicians (and sometimes not so local, such as Obama’s multiple visits to campus), sponsor debates, go on trips to lobby state and federal gov, etc. </li>
<li>Good internship connections due to location, professors</li>
<li>Very strong history classes (a political science major should hopefully be interested in taking a few!), new English building (I’ve found English classes, however, to be more hit or miss than history in terms of the rigor)</li>
<li>Also a UMD for Green Energy club that is SUPER active, a good environmental science major (there is also an environmental science and POLICY major), an “EcoHouse” living-learning program, and has been rated consistently as one of the “greenest” schools in the nation in terms of sustainability efforts/etc.</li>
</ol>
<p>Weaknesses</p>
<ol>
<li>The school which houses the poli sci department is huge and one of the most overcrowded at MD. That said, the government classes are capped to government majors only, so the sizes of these classes and attention you get from the profs are fine - the problem comes with the academic advising, which I found to be very bureaucratic and crappy.<br></li>
<li>Some government majors have been protesting the fact that there is more of an emphasis on “quantitative” rather than “qualitative” classes. So, less political philosophy classes, more classes that are more practical. I don’t really know if I agree with this argument, though - we do have a philosophy department, and I imagine if you are into political philosophy you don’t have to restrict yourself to the gov school</li>
<li>Some government majors have also been protesting lack of focus on underrepresented regions, such as Latin America, Africa, etc. And more focus on the Middle East, China, and other “hotspots”. This is true - the gvpt school does cater its offerings towards things that are more recent or popular, and there’s even a “terrorism studies” minor (eww, in my opinion, but some could say interesting and useful). At the same time, they recently hired three new faculty to try and teach some of the less represented areas, so they heard the complaints and listened.</li>
<li>Generally, the profs are moderate. This is another thing students have mentioned that may or may not be seen as a bad thing by your D. But they tend to try to be really balanced, rather than very radical or biased</li>
<li>Introductory classes are often big and not very challenging (so, you might have sit through some classes with dumb, unmotivated students the first or second semester…)</li>
</ol>
<p>One that is both a +/- : Yes, there is huge Greek Life/party scene. Yes, there is also a sizable activist community /etc. Something for everyone.</p>
<p>It’s definitely a VERY different school than many on the list, such as Claremont McKenna, etc. It is NOT a small school by any stretch of the imagination. Sometimes you go to a popular club meeting and there are 50 people there (50 very friendly people, but still 50 people). Sometimes you go to club meetings with only around 10 members, too, though, of course. Sometimes you feel like your advisor doesn’t give a crap about you (sometimes they do, but sometimes they really don’t). The intro classes can be big and there can be unmotivated kids in them (can make discussions a drag, depending on your group). Make of that what you will - I have had great TAs (some with PhDs and impressive resumes themselves and coming back for a second!) and approachable profs in the gov and history school no matter the class, so it doesn’t bother me at all, but I realize it’s different from the small school experience. To me, the hustle and bustle, always something new to do, someone new to meet, people everywhere, totally outweights the few intro courses I had to take (yes, you’ll test out of a lot with those AP credits!) or the time I felt shy at a club meeting…</p>
No interest on D1’s part. She’s seen NYU when we were on a family trip to NYC; no significant interest. Fordham is worth checking as she did like Manhattan. I’ve tried floating Barnard since she liked Columbia. No dice. I foolishly promised to not raise the women’s college option again as the price for her agreeing to tour Bryn Mawr, otherwise I’d raise paying3tuition’s wisdom about looking at your male/female mix of friends when considering single sex schools. I’ll just find some other adult to pass on the wisdom. :D</p>