Our child is accepted into the University of Maryland honors program. Her major will be Computer Science. However, she will not qualify for financial aid and her merit scholarship is $5000 per year. The cost based on current tuition out of state tuition and additional fees for being a Comp Sci major including her scholarship would be about $45406. The reason to keep this on the list is the high ranking of University of Maryland’s Comp Sci program and the opportunity for internships in the area. Any opinions on this would be helpful!
No out of state is not worth it. I am not sure where you live but I assume a close state. Rutgers, UDel, Penn State, Pitt, are all great options for in state. No reason to he paying out of state tuition for same edu in state.
We are in the same situation. Maryland is my sons top choice. He did receive a $12,000 a year merit award however with full tuition and just about full tuition at University of Alabama and University of Pittsburgh how Can I justify letting him go to UMD? We are OOS Illinois
It is so hard to justify paying so much for a large out of state school. My daughter loves it and the location.
It all depends what the other choices are.
UMD CS really us in a class apart. It’s got its own college and probably ranks in the top 3 public universities nationally.
On the other hand CS is 'flat’and in demand everywhere.
In addition, you shouldn’t take on parent debt.
In order to decide, try to think how advanced your child is. Is s/he trying CS because it’s profitable, they took AP CS and did well, are good at math? Or has s/he built an app that’s popular , developed a project and monetized it, masterrdd several languages, participated in national or international competitions ?
My daughter has not taken AP Computer Science as it was not offered in her school. She has not taken any online coding courses as she has been too busy with AP Chem, AP Physics etc. So she has a very basic knowledge on coding. She does very well in AP Calculus. In summary I would say she is not very advanced in CS and I wonder if it would be difficult to survive in Maryland’s CS program?
@greentravel - This is the link that shows the courses being offered next fall. You can look at the Computer Science offerings.
^ those are just the courses that are offer in the department not for fall 2017
Is Maryland worth the money for OOS? I think the answer is going to be different for everyone because finances are a personal issue. Here’s the thing about scholarship offers that another mom told me that provides an interesting perspective/consideration. Her son turned down a full ride at a school because if there were something to happen that he lost the scholarship (not that he was planning on it), he would not be able to afford full tuition there and it really was not a place he felt strongly enough about to pay that kind of money should that happen. So, take into account the full tuition OOS for all schools considered. The ones mentioned (U Alabama and Pitt) are basically in the same price range as Maryland for OOS. So, if that issue is temporarily removed from the equation, which school does your child feel is the best “fit”? Consider academics, social life, campus location, etc.
I think my participation on this forum speaks for itself about my own/my son’s satisfaction with Maryland, lol. (And yes, I am OOS)
Completely agree with @maryversity that the answer will be different for everyone. Is your home state flagship a really good school about the quality of UMD? If yes, your home state flagship is the safe choice because in-state tuition never wavers based upon grade point average, or taking an extra year because of a academic major change, for example. UMD requires a 3.2 GPA to continue any merit scholarship which is certainly achievable but not guaranteed by any means.
But if your in-state flagship is not a good option and you are only choosing betwen OOS schools, I have nothing but good things to say about UMD. See “things to love about Maryland” for a lot of testimonials. http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-maryland-college-park/1743639-things-to-love-about-maryland-p1.html
Good luck with your choice.
@greentravel she will probably be totally fine. Are you going to an accepted students day? If so, ask questions. I remember at last years accepted students day there were a lot of families asking questions of current cs students on some of the student panels we attended. If I remember correctly, there were several students that stated that they had no previous computer experience, but chose to major in CS and had done quite well in the program. Good luck with your daughter’s decision!
Will you be happy to be paying that amount for “the high ranking of University of Maryland’s Comp Sci program” if/when your D decides to change her major?
IMO the school and cost should make sense for a variety of reasons (including the availability of strong programs in other areas/other possible majors), not solely because of a single program/major.
Paying an amount higher than other similar opportunities solely for CS could put a lot of pressure on a student if they realize that major isn’t for them. If your D understands the sacrifice - more pressure to get good-paying summer work, working on campus, etc - and is still confident in her major choice, then it really comes down to a family decision regarding finances and comfort-level.
If it helps to know, Maryland was ranked in top 10 values for OOS students …https://www.umdrightnow.umd.edu/news/umd-named-2017-best-value-college-princeton-review
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All of your comments have been so helpful! You have all broadened our thought process on this whole decision. We are planning on attending the admitted student day. Hopefully, that will help with the decision. Our instate choices are University at Buffalo and Binghamton University. Both are great schools but don’t have the proximity to DC, internships etc. However, they will be significantly less expensive.
Perch 1024 take full ride to pitt great school and for free. To whoever said UMD is in a good location that is false. The campus itself is nice but the surrounding area seems to not be the greatest.
@DBook11 - I don’t think the comment about good location was referring to the outer town of College Park (which is in process of slowly being revamped, but yeah, not a bucolic area yet) as much as proximity to DC - and ease to get into DC from College Park.
Bottom line, at the end of the day, it really does not matter WHERE you go to school, as much as it matters WHAT you do when you get there…A successful, self-motivated student will do great things regardless of where they go!
Best of luck to everyone in the decision process. I know it seems stressful to make the “right” decision, but honestly, there is no one right answer. Strong students tend to do well no matter where they go, so no worries. The hard part is over, and you have only good options!
@maryversity do you know about the international student population at UMD college park ? And is the campus safe for internationals, specially Indians ?
Well, I know my son (an engineer) has several friends from different countries…Africa, Middle East and India. I don’t know how many international students are in various majors, but at least in engineering, there is a fair number.
I don’t know of any unique concerns for international students. The student population at Maryland, as a whole, is pretty friendly and it’s one of the more diverse campuses, so I really think you will feel comfortable. If you are on Facebook, you can check out the UMD Indian Students Association page. If not, you can check out this page to see all the student organizations http://thestamp.umd.edu/multicultural_involvement_community_advocacy/student_organizations.
Also, have you seen this https://globalmaryland.umd.edu/offices/international-students-scholar-services/international-students?
I’m sure there is more information available and some of it is accessible only to Maryland students, but hopefully that should get you started.
It depends on where you are from, what your desired major is, and how much money you have to spend on education. No one can TRULY answer this question for anyone else, as there are so many variables to consider, but here is our rationale:
My son is from a state that does not have his desired major (aerospace). In other words, we live in the boonies. His only choice is out of state. It came down to Cal Poly, Penn State, Georgia Tech, Maryland and Purdue. Although I think the latter 3 programs are probably a bit better than the first two, in all honesty they ALL have FAR more to offer than a student can possibly take advantage of, and he could have done great anywhere.
With varying combinations of cost, scholarships, and non tangibles like the Honors Programs, Maryland just worked out the best for him. Your mileage may vary.
Maryland is on the radar for my daughter next year. We will be OOS. We are from CT. I believe the schools are equally ranked . OOS tuition is tough but it is better that private school tuition for us.