My DD got accepted to Gemstone to the Class of 2022 but have not committed as of yet. We have several questions about this program:
- It being a 4-yr commitment, what happens if one decides that it is not for them? Change to a different group/team? Change to a different Honors Program? What are the options?
- Coming in with several AP credits (grade of 5s), will these APs be credited?
- If AP grades are credited, then the student can graduate early, but what happens to the 4-yr Gemstone commitment?
This article here is a bit of a concern: http://www.gemstone.umd.edu/pdfs/early-grad-agreement.pdf because what if the student, in fact, finishes early and is already working — then he/she needs to come back as per this statement " In both cases, the student MUST assist the team with writing the thesis AND be physically present at the Team Thesis Conference in the spring." Seems to be TOO RESTRICTIVE.
Any input/comments/guidance is much appreciated. Thanks!
@ceomommy21 - Can’t answer any specific questions about Gemstone, but as I understand it, students can always change to University Honors. Some of the other Honors Programs have limited space, so they may not be able to accept a new student.
My D started out with University Honors and completed the requirements for her Honors Citation by the end of Sophomore year.
The following link will let you determine credit your D can get for her AP courses.
http://www.transfercredit.umd.edu/plc/APGenEd.pdf
Graduation requires a total of 120 credits generally, split between GenEd courses and Required Major courses.
My D could have actually graduated in 3 years, with a heavy course load and AP credit., but she applied for a Departmental Honors Program at the end of her Sophomore year, which typically takes 2 years to complete.
If the 4 year Gemstone commitment is an issue, you should probably look into getting into one of the other programs, but first look at the 4 year plan for her major and the specific required course and see if a 3 year graduation is feasible.
Keep in mind that not all courses are offered every semester and there are prereq courses in certain majors.
Your student has the option to drop Gemstone entirely and go into University Honors instead (that’s the only kind of LLP switching that’s allowed). But, if your student just doesn’t like her team/project, that’s something they could probably talk about with the Gemstone directors and figure out once they gets here. Any specifics about the Gemstone program should probably be directed at the Gemstone office. (I’m not sure there are many people on CC with students who have participated in Gemstone.) Here’s a link with their contact info: http://www.gemstone.umd.edu/newstudents/prospective.html . I’d recommend calling them on Monday.
Thanks @soofdad and @whenyoubelieve. I already sent them an email.