<p>As a recent UMBC graduate I think I can help. </p>
<p>UMBC is between two towns, Catonsville and Arbutus. Catonsville is nicer, with restaurants and music stores. Arbutus is a less desirable area. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to walk to Catonsville (no sidewalk, huge hill) and no real reason to go into Arbutus too often. Because UMBC was designed in the 1960’s, the campus uprisings around the country had a large impact on campus design. “The Loop,” a road that encircles campus, was designed as an easy way for police to lock campus down in the event of student protest and there are even secret tunnels beneath campus buildings so that police would be able to storm buildings in case of a student takeover (a la Berkeley). </p>
<p>With that said, around 70 percent of freshman live on campus. Many do leave on the weekends, up increasingly many are opting to stay. With conversations I have had with professors that have been at UMBC for a long time, many note that as early as 10 years ago school pride was non-existent. That is not the case now. </p>
<p>Some freshman classes can be rather large. But from what I understand that is the case at most schools. I found most of my professors to be very good (few bad ones). Professors and advisers are very accessible and willing to help. </p>
<p>The reason I chose UMBC over UMCP was the size (didn’t want to feel lost in a huge sea) and emphasis on getting students into grad programs. I personally know many students who ended up in grad and professional programs at top schools such as Stanford, Umich, Cornell, Duke, NYU, Hopkins and Harvard. UMBC’s emphasis is mostly on the sciences, but as a social sciences student I never felt like a second class student. </p>
<p>The “Honors University in Maryland” title is just a marketing ploy. In fact, it was always a joke between my friends and I at UMBC. As for which is more prestigious, neither is prestigious to be frank (I personally think that there are very few schools that can be called “prestigious”). They are both decent public universities, but UMCP is a much more famous name. But with that said, I think UMBC has a good reputation among college admission committees and many employers (especially locally). </p>
<p>I do not regret my decision to choose UMBC over UMCP. With that said, UMBC is not for everyone. Some people do really end up hating it. While if you are looking to party you can definitely find that, UMBC is never going to be a huge party school. </p>
<p>I hope I have been some help and good luck in your search for the right university.</p>