My chances? And what's so special?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Maryland - College Park
1

<p>Hey everyone,</p>

<p>Well here are my stats first of all. I'm worried about getting accepted because I have a really low GPA. but anyways: </p>

<p>Academics:
-GPA 3.1 / WGPA 3.8
-1320/ 1600 SAT, 1950/ 2400 SAT
-And I'm also in the IB Program, which is what I hope pulls me through, but my GPA still scares me. And for those of you who don't know what IB is, it's basically just like AP. You get college credit for the exams you pass, etc. etc. except there is a lot more writing and no multiple choice or anything, but if you get enough credits in the end then you get an IB Diploma, which just looks special I guess, but by the time you get your IB Diploma, you'll already be accepted into college so I don't even think that matters that much. But my course load is pretty rigorous I would think. I have around 14 IB/AP courses I think.</p>

<p>Extra Curricular:
-National Honors Society
-Science Honors Society
-Muslim Student Association
-Cross Country
-Lacrosse
-And I tried out for basketball but I twisted my knee at tryouts and tore my ACL so I have to get surgery now lol
-And maybe some other stuff I'm forgetting</p>

<p>So what do you think my odds are of getting in? I really have to get in because I don't want to go to UMBC or a community college or anything, which is all in state, because I don't think I can afford anything out of state, unless I get some super scholarship which is not going to happen.</p>

<p>So that covers the first question, "my chances?", and now for "And what's so special?"</p>

<p>I was just wondering what makes the University of Maryland so special, why would anyone would want to go there? I've lived in Maryland all my life so UMD just seems like a "whatever" kind of thing, and I want to hear from you guys what you like about it to get me a little more motivated to go there. </p>

<p>I also know a lot of people that go to UMD. That's one of the reasons why I don't want to go there. It's not like I hate these people or anything, but I think seeing the same old people will make UMD feel like high school, and I want college to be an experience that I remember for the rest of my life. All my close friends from high school are going all over the country, because frankly they are all a lot smarter than me. So at UMD, I would see people that I don't hate but that aren't really my friends either, and it would just be too awkward for me. I wanted college to be an adventure, and I think if I had gone somewhere far away where I knew nobody would have been the best. I like meeting new people and it would be a lot more fun than seeing the same faces, like I'm assuming will happen at UMD.</p>

<p>Sorry if I came off sounding too negative or anything lol.</p>

2

<p>I think you are in b/c of IB(our DD is in the IB program and it is more rigorous than the AP that DS did), but probably not for Scholars, Gemstone, or Honors.</p>

<p>You need to go and tour UMDCP...you might have a ton of friends going there, but chances of you seeing them after the 1st week is slim to none.</p>

<p>Example...our DS is in Scholars, he is housed in the Cambridge community, specifically, Centreville. Centreville has a North and South wing with 8 floors on ea, a lobby seperates them. I asked him if he ever goes over to the other side of the dorm, he said he has been there a couple of times, but not really, then I asked do you know people on every floors, nope...he knows people on 4 of the floors and hangs with them. Now add into the fact that you have Gemstone and Honors dorms, plus the other dorms like Easton,, Queens Anne (?), or the Knox Boxes, you probably won't see anyone you graduate with unless you make the effort. You will hang with new faces and new people. There are dorms on the north side of campus and southside, again I highly doubt you will see people you know.</p>

<p>DS absolutely loves UMD, he loves the football games, he loves taking the metro into DC with friends, he loves that there are things to do on the weekend, he loves that it is big and has a lot to offer, he loves everything about it, we are OOS he has had friends that have come to visit from NC State(football games, NC and UNC) and now want to transfer. Go to one football game and you will be hooked for life! :)</p>

<p>What you need to see is if UMD has the best program for your major, and that the size of the school is something that appeals to you. Many kids go and hate it because their Econ class is 250+ students and the campus is too big.</p>

<p>You might be from MD, but trust me as the spouse of an OOS UMD alum and now a Mom of a UMD student, UMDCP is truly a great school and a lot of fun that will be an adventure. If you visit make sure to check out the black squirrels and rub Testudos nose ;)</p>

3

<p>i love instate tuition!!!!</p>

4

<p>Thats funny. When we took the bus tour of campus during orientation my sons Mom was amazed at the black squirrels.</p>

5

<p>They actually have tee-shirts that have the black squirrels on them...did you rub Testudos nose? Do you know why people rub it on graduation day(this explains how the rest of the body is dull, but the nose is still bright and shiny?</p>

6

<p>^People don't rub the nose on graduation day. If you're out by McKeldin any day of the week you'll see people rubbing his nose. And it's always funny to see what people leave there for Testudo during the winter/near finals week. One particular cold day someone put a beanie on his head.</p>

7

<p>I rubbed the nose on graduation day for luck post-UMD :)</p>

<p>To the OP, I know exactly how you feel because I felt the same way. I really wanted to start anew after high school and knew that quite a few people from my high school would be going to UMD. However, when I toured it I fell in love with the campus and decided to give it a chance.</p>

<p>Out of the maybe 25 people from my hometown who went to UMD at the same time as me, I saw one regularly (my boyfriend, although we broke up pretty quickly) and a couple of others occasionally. Everyone wanted to make new friends in their dorms and classes. You seem like the kind of person who wouldn't want to live with someone from high school -- I think that's a great choice. </p>

<p>The neat thing is that when I was a senior, a few of my old friends' younger siblings started at UMD and I really enjoyed seeing them find their places in the school, meet my new friends' younger siblings, etc. </p>

<p>Many of the people I went to high school and then UMD with are still close friends and see each other regularly, but I knew that wasn't for me. With 25,000 students, it's easy to blend in with the crowd when you want to!!</p>

8

<p>Whups, I definitely mean to say "people don't just rub..."</p>