New Admits--Advice from mom of 2 Terps....

Colleges & Universities University of Maryland - College Park
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<p><strong>blush</strong> Phersdad, congrats to your son, and thanks to all the nice posts from everyone! I’m by no means an expert on UMD, but we’ve been exposed to a bunch of things, and if I can make it easier for anyone, I try.</p>

<p>Ha, last year there was one particular poster who suggested at one point that I put my apron on and get back into the kitchen and stop posting. (Ha, he used the same screenname on one of the online chat sessions, so D knew his name…at orientation, he was as obnoxious in real life as he was online). It’s nice to be thanked.</p>

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<p>As a student who has seen many of my friends deal with this…</p>

<p>If you want to change colleges, especially to the business school, engineering, or chemical/life sciences, I would recommend calling and doing that now. It will be much easier (they may just put you in automatically, luckily I didn’t have to deal with this so I don’t know personally) to do this now than once you start classes. I have a lot of friends who were really banking on getting into the business school or life sciences and did NOT, and now must deal with having a different major or even transferring. In fact, if you want to change majors to ANY LEP (limited enrollment program), I would suggest doing so now. I even know students who were on the fence about wanting to do business and entered as business majors just in case, because the program really is so competitive.</p>

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<p>maryversity,
S2 was admitted as a CPS and into the Scholars program related to his LEP and got the Presidential (IIRC) merit award – $5k/year. Agree that if your student is interested in a LEP, declare it now. It’s much harder to get in later.</p>

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<p>tbh it’s only hard for architecture and business</p>

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<p>But it’s still never a bad idea to take care of it early. Especially because it can be really bad to fall behind in the chemistry/bio track of courses.</p>

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<p>Astromom:</p>

<p>My D is trying to follow your advice, re housing, but can’t find a way to do that. Where does she start?</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

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<p>AstroMom: I have said it before and I will say it again: Eternal Thanks to you!
I have read your sound advise since I enrolled last year, and you have been the most accurate of all!
Many thanks again and again.
By the way, it it would be like facebook, I would have clicked “like” in all of your posts, haha!</p>

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<p>My daughter really wanted to get into the Business School, but was not admitted. On an earlier thread, you said “to call and switch”…is that even an option? She was admitted into the Honors College, but was placed into Letters and Sciences. I have called and been told that it is harder to get into the Business school than it was to get into the Honors Program, which makes me shake my head a bit. Any advice??</p>

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<p>How about changing between majors within an LEP such as engineering</p>

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<p>@Dooglar,

</p>

<p>[Department</a> of Resident Life | University of Maryland, College Park](<a href=“http://www.resnet.umd.edu/]Department”>http://www.resnet.umd.edu/)</p>

<p>Try to login, then go through the setup DirectoryID and password procedure, then sign up for housing. :)</p>

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<p>ProudMom, I’m not sure which other thread you were referring to, but if your D was placed into Letters and Sciences (and she indicated Business as her choice), it meant that she didn’t make the initial “cut”. Other business majors have posted here before that it is possible to transfer into the Business school after a certain number of VERY SUCCESSFUL semesters grade-wise, but you’ll need to get info from them. Neither of my two were in an LEP, so no familial experience here, sorry.</p>

<p>Yodelo, within the same LEP, I think it is easier, but you’ll need to check within Clark to find that out.</p>

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<p>I did the business LEP song and dance so you can message me if you wanna know more.</p>

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<p>Thanks for taking the time to respond to inquiries with your advice. My son has been accepted to UMD and the University Honors program. He selected University Honors because he has many interests but doesn’t know where he wants to focus his energies yet. As we discuss his interests (not in order) the top of the list is: 1) Theater but not as an academic subject. What are the opportunities to participate in student run theater and sing in acapella groups? 2) How strong is the English department and any creative writing programs? 3) How good is the languages department and study abroad programs 4) Political Science/International Relations - how strong are these programs? 5) Class size - Outside of the honors classes how large will the classes be? What kind of relationship do the students develop with the professors in Honors and non-Honors classes? 6) How easy is it to get into DC? Do kids do so on a regular basis or do they tend to stay on/around campus? 7) With 10% of the male students in frats, how big of an influence on the social life are they? What is the center of the social life for the kids in the Honors program?</p>

<p>Thanks again for your time.</p>

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<p>My take based on my son’s experience:</p>

<p>There are wonderful a capella groups at UMD. My son is in one of the groups and keeps quite busy rehearsing and performing with them. They go on a Spring Break performance tour every year.</p>

<p>I don’t think there are student-run theater opportunities, but maybe we just didn’t encounter them. If your son is a leader, he could form a group. I think there are a lot of people who enjoyed their high school theater experiences who would love to participate. It just takes one person to start it.</p>

<p>Relationships with professors are possible no matter how large or small the class, although it is probably easier in smaller classes. Professors love students to visit and discuss ideas during office hours.</p>

<p>The size of non-honors classes depends on the major and the level of the class. The 100 and 200 level classes tend to be large. 300 and 400 level classes are small to medium sized, depending on the major and topic. If you sit in the front of the class, you never notice how many people are sitting behind you.</p>

<p>There are so many activities happening on campus every night that many students never leave the campus and immediate surrounding area. Other students take advantage of living close to DC. It depends on a student’s own interests. It is very easy to get into DC. There are shuttle buses to the nearby Metro (subway) station.</p>

<p>For students in the Honors Program, the center of social life varies from student to student. Freshmen tend to engage in social activities with their hall mates. By the 2nd semester or fall of
Sophomore year, they tend to branch out beyond their hall mates, but still maintain many of the friendships.</p>

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<p>Some of your other questions…Political science/int’l relations program(s) at UMD are very strong, and the proximity to internship opportunities in DC is a real plus. One previous frequent-poster’s son did an internship on Capitol Hill as part of his Scholars program, and loved it. Getting into DC is extremely easy, with a free (frequent) shuttle from Stamp (student union) to the metro station. As mom above mentioned, it all depends on the students’ (and their friends’) interests. Both of my D’s went into DC much more frequently early on as UMD students, and not as often later.</p>

<p>The language department has some great programs and professors. IMO, the advising and overall organization of the department leaves a lot to be desired. In the end, D1 (with a minor in German) and D2 (with a major in Spanish Lit) had excellent classes. They both also lived (live) in the Language House, which contributed a TON to their foreign language experience. D2 came in to UMD with the max AP credit for Spanish, and had to be waitlisted for multiple classes in Spanish, but they all worked out—just a bit of extra hassle each time she registered until now, when she’s got the hours to have top priority when registering. </p>

<p>Study abroad options are wide and varied. Neither of my 2 ended up doing a study abroad semesters, as they both had double degrees they were pursuing, but both had several friends who had exceptional experiences. </p>

<p>Creative writing opportunities are strong at UMD. Next to the Language House is the Writer’s House, another living/learning opportunity devoted to writers. The Journalism school also gets good publicity…again, the proximity to DC is a big plus here.</p>

<p>I agree with what mom^ says about relationships with professors. It is up to the student as to how well they know their professor and vice/versa. Especially for the first half of the semester, almost no students show up for office hours. As a freshman, all of D1’s professors knew her by name, except one old dude who taught an honors seminar and who announced at the beginning that he had no intention and would make no effort to learn anyone’s name! This was a class of 18 kids (and was the only honors seminar that she didn’t LOVE). One of her profs (class of about 150 students) first semester became a trusted advisor, mentor, and she did honors research with him her last 2 years at UMD. (He was also instrumental in recommendations for internships and grad school). All this started from her introducing herself to him early and setting herself apart in class. Both D’s found that they could be anonymous when they chose to be… (with professors or classes that they chose to stay under the radar on), but it was their choice. </p>

<p>Hope this helps. Especially for someone who isn’t sure what they want to do (which turns out to be a big percentage of college students, based on the # that change their majors)…UMD is an awesome choice, because the sheer size allows for a wide variety of choices, and UMD has established strengths in many different areas. Good luck to your son!</p>

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<p>MomofApplicant and AstrophysicsMom,</p>

<p>Thanks for the thoughtful feedback. I appreciate your insights into the school.</p>

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<p>Hey, I was wondering if you could help me with a couple of questions. Ive heard of the language house, but I dont really know what it is. I can speak Russian fairly well, does this mean I would be eligible to live there? Is it nicer than most of the other living options? Also, any idea how hard it is to get a job on campus and how much they pay? Thanks for the help!</p>

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<p>You need to apply and interview to live in the Language House (usually students are at least sophomores). You interview in the language you want to target, and also interview in English. You do not have to be a foreign language major, but you do have to take at least one course in the language of your cluster every semester. The “clusters” are apartments within St. Mary’s, and each apartment is either male/female (no coed apartments). Usually Spanish and French are the most difficult clusters to get into. Your spoken language should be such that you can speak it 80% of the time you are in your apartment. There is also a requirement of attending cluster meetings, participating in language-house events, and to live there multiple years, you need to be actively involved (i.e. leading) one of the many Language House clubs or groups.</p>

<p>Check out their website!
[The</a> Language House Website](<a href=“http://www.languages.umd.edu/lh/index.html]The”>http://www.languages.umd.edu/lh/index.html)</p>

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<p>Just wanted to bump this extremely helpful thread up… it’s important to start at the beginning of this thread. The information that astrophysicsmom posted is spot on and made a big difference for all of us that were wise enough to act on her advice!</p>

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<p>I was reading about the Scholars program on the website but was wondering if anyone knows what the criteria for admission really is. It says that the application is reviewed at the time of admission but is there a minimum GPA or SAT score? Also, if anyone can comment on their experiences in the Scholars Program, that would be helpful. Thanks.</p>