My son has made his decision! He will be a Terp come Fall 2017 in the Honors program.
He is set for an orientation, housing and dining plan. He is going to look into going on one of those TENTS trips.
Obviously we have dorm room shopping to do, but what else should we know/do in relation to UMD in particular? Can you throw some suggestions our way as total newbies? My daughter went to a small LAC so this feels much more overwhelming to me in scale.
@vandygrad87 - I would recommend purchasing a Metro SmarTrip Card in advance. At some point, your son will want to go into D.C. It can be linked to a credit card for automatic or manual money additions. The one with a $28 stored value might be a good choice
YAY! Awesome decision! Welcome to Terp Nation!!! While your son may be going to a bigger school than your daughter, I can tell you from experience that boys are FAR easier to pack/prep for college.
We got my son down in one car trip, with 4 passengers in the one car. For my daughter, it took two cars, two passengers in each car, and still didn’t get everything that she wanted…lol…well, at least I can laugh now, but trust that I wasn’t laughing at the time…
My son said the best thing I bought him as a freshman was a small clip-on fan that he attached to the top of his bed. Let me think on other stuff, but just wanted to say congrats on the decision - I have no doubt your son will enjoy Maryland as much as mine did.
I didn’t realize the Metro was that “far” away but as long as their is a shuttle bus to go to and from the station, it sounds like it would work just fine.
Maryversity- I will add a clip on fan to the list. Did your son have AC in his dorm? DS will be in Anne Arundel hall.
As a freshman, he did not have A/C in his dorm, but every year after, he did and still got use of the fan - it’s relaxing to have a personal breeze to help you fall asleep. As he said, it was the best $7 I ever spent!
Oh my gosh, yes, a bike is a fabulous thing to have! Do you need it from day one? No. (My son didn’t have one until sophomore year.)
Room in your car is best reserved for more important items. But maybe parents’ weekend would be a good time to bring it…be sure to “register” the bike, though. All bikes on campus must be registered with DOTS (Department of Transportation Services) http://www.transportation.umd.edu/bike_campus.html.
I’m not sure it’s done every year, but I know that in the past they have given away bike locks to encourage early registration…
For parents, a good tip would be to book your hotel room for parents’ weekend asap…they fill up fast. Also note that it’s worth getting tickets to the football game that weekend. Regardless of how much you like or don’t like football, Maryland games are fun for the school spirit and “experience”
If you are on Facebook, “like” Maryland pages
University of Maryland Office of Student Financial Aid (to see alerts for scholarship opportunities)
your school/department, for example, for MechE students, I would “like”
a. james clark school of engineering
department of mechanical engineering, undergraduate academic studies
for all students/parents, here are some other good pages to keep you up to date on things
University of Maryland Education Abroad
university of maryland career center
student entertainment events
university of maryland bookstore
UMD Parent and Family Affairs
University of Maryland Department of Resident Life
there are so many pages available, so just search around and see what interests you that you would like to get updates on!
@vandygrad87 When your son gets his room assignment (not until end of summer), go to this page http://reslife.umd.edu/halls/north_hill/anne_arundel/
and scroll to the very bottom. At the very bottom, on the right side, you will see a diagram titled “typical traditional floor”
Click on the diagram and there will be a pop up diagram detail with a drop down menu in the center of the top. Click on the arrow, and you will be able to select specific floors.
While the first floor (the one that first pops up) has no detail, if you select 2nd, 3rd, or 4th floor, you will get to see exactly where his room is located in the hall. It’s a small thing, but does help to have a sense of where you are in relation to stairs, bathroom, lounge, etc.
It also gives you a sense of room size and shows how many windows there are. Yes, there are blinds already on the windows, however (and this is my next gem from my son) it is nice to bring black-out curtains. Since there is no way to “install” the hardware to hang the curtain, just buy a pressure rod to do the trick. The curtains block out any extra light between the blinds to make it easier to sleep in on weekends. Another option, for those on the lower floors, is to put the curtain rod half-way down the window. You can keep the blinds open for light, but with the lower half covered by keeping the curtains closed, you will still maintain your privacy.
They will definitely give you lots of tips at orientation, including some pages/apps that are useful such as how to see/plan when the bus will arrive at your stop…http://www.transportation.umd.edu/nextbus.html
@vandygrad87 If you don’t mind the drive, I wouldn’t waste money on a hotel for family weekend (unless the game is at night and you don’t feel like driving when it’s over)…however, since you can always cancel without a charge if you give enough notice, it can’t hurt to book a room now and then decide closer to the date…
@mdmom6 Oh, that is great! Apparently there aren’t many boys. From what I was told during the symposium thing last weekend, the boys are pretty much on the second floor and the rest is girls!
maryversity a belated thank you for all your tips and help! You have really helped with the decision making process and lowering the anxiety level! Your experience and thoughts are invaluable!
@greentravel - glad you found the posts helpful. I am happy to pay forward what was done for me…so excited for all the new Terps! Enjoy every moment because it goes way too fast…