Hi! I think Maryland is a GREAT place to do an exchange program at…I will try to respond to all of your specific questions, but you might want to check out the thread I started a few years ago that also gives some insight into what makes Maryland so awesome…http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-maryland-college-park/1743639-things-to-love-about-maryland-p1.html
As for your specific questions, I answered each briefly as I am sure others will also add their input as well…
-What is campus life like?
The campus is really beautiful, the student population is diverse and overall friendly. You will find students of all interests and backgrounds.
- How far away is Washington DC from campus and how long would it take to get there using public transport? DC is about 20-30 min away via public transportation depending on where you are going in DC.
- How is Washington DC night life? A LOT of great bars and restaurants. Lots to do. FYI, the drinking age is 21, so you mentioned you will be "around 21 years old" - it does make a difference being 20 v being 21. They are strict with drinking age/showing proof of age here. https://www.collegemagazine.com/10-best-bars-in-dc-turn-city-party/#
- Is Washington DC the closest main city? Yes, but Baltimore is also a good day trip (prob about 30 min by car and closer to 45 min by public transportation). Philadelphia is 2 1/2 hours by car and easy train or bus transport. New York City is about 4 hours by car, but also an easy train ride (faster than car) from DC.
- Is there any other tourist attractions apart from the white house in Washington DC? Oh my, yes! So many great things to see - from monuments to museums galore. https://www.tripsavvy.com/hidden-gems-in-dc-1040410
- How are uni parties or is it not really a party place? Ha ha, well actually Maryland is VERY social and actually used to be known as a party school years ago. While it has become more academic/competitive over the years, students still like to have fun, so yes there are lots of parties!
- Is college football big at uni? and if so, how much are tickets? Yes, Maryland has a LOT of school pride, so football games are a lot of fun to attend. Basketball is probably even more popular for students to attend and crowds can be very entertaining at times. Students get one free ticket per game, but the tickets are not automatic. You have to log-in and request/sign up for each game. For the more popular games/events, timing can be critical because they can run out of student tickets, but that's not typically an issue.
- How are dorms? Are there a lot of people who live on campus? Dorms vary. I'm not sure what housing is available for transfer students, but the high-risers are where all the freshman are placed and while I used to refer to them as blech, I gotta say that in comparison to my daughter's school, they are not so bad after all! There are lots of newly renovated dorms and brand new dorms that are really pretty nice; the suites and apartments are among the nicest on campus. I'd say the majority of freshman and sophomores live on campus, and after that, most either move to apartments or greek housing that are technically off-campus, but really across the street walking distance.
- Are there a lot of locals (American people) who live on campus? (I'm asking because over here at UNSW most people who stay on campus are all international students and it's not compulsory to stay on campus. I know some American unis make it compulsory for uni students to live on campus). It's not compulsory to live on campus, but yes, many, many students do. Many "locals" live either too far from campus to commute - that includes both in-state and out-of-state students - or just want to live on-campus to be away from home/close to the action.
- Also, just a general question, what is the difference between college and university? Well, in some respects, the terms can be interchangeable...but technically, a university can be comprised of many different colleges/schools/departments, but not vice versa. So, in the case of the University of Maryland (note that all of these are all housed on the same campus), there is the Robert H. Smith School of Business, A. James Clark School of Engineering, Phillip Merrill College of Journalism, College of Computer, Mathematics & Natural Sciences, etc.
Hope this helps…