<p>Im having a hard time deciding between PSU and UMD...thoughts?</p>
<p>Penn State is overall a better school, though it would depend on your major</p>
<p>communications</p>
<p>UMD and PSU are very much equals. Have no idea about communications - I would think it comes down to location/environment and COA. The campuses are quite different so that may be a differentiator.</p>
<p>Unless you are from PA, there is no reason for to come to PSU. It is a horrible place to spend your college years and you will most likely regret it.</p>
<p>Our son is debating between PSU Smeal business school & UMD where he got into Letters & Sciences, but in Markets & Society program that better preps students to apply to business school. He fell in love with PSU but I prefer UMD, although both have pros/cons. Any insight would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Curious why IH8PSU wrote that PSU is a horrible place to spend college years…</p>
<p>Sparkie, IH8PSU is likely a ■■■■■. Moving on…</p>
<p>UMD vs. PSU is a very interesting debate: both are great schools, and are pretty similar, although I have never been to UMD so I can’t comment too much on that. Personally, I would go to the school that would be in-state, and if you’re not from PA or MD, I would suggest visiting both schools and doing some research as to which school has a stronger communications program. Good luck in your decision!</p>
<p>Our freshman daughter is a pre med major and loves PSU. Sparkie, Smeal college of business at PSU is one of the top in the nation, and the networking/alumni is one of the biggest in the country. This will benefit your son greatly once he graduates.</p>
<p>PSU is very popular with recruiters–
[Job</a> Recruiters Prefer State Universities Over Ivy League Colleges - WSJ.com](<a href=“Job Recruiters Prefer State Universities Over Ivy League Colleges - WSJ”>Job Recruiters Prefer State Universities Over Ivy League Colleges - WSJ)
B schools often prefer that an applicant have some work experience.</p>
<p>Thank you for the feedback…We have visited both school twice & both have pros/cons. Have read all the rankings new/old but know statistics are just part of the puzzle. We live in NY & none of the SUNY schools are noteworthy in business.</p>
<p>both are good schools. i live in maryland and i’m going to psu. (although i chose not to apply to umd for various reasons the biggest one being my major) i completely fell inlove with psu. also if you’re into sports DEFF psu!!! umd is cutting sooo many of there programs its awful. psu is ranked 10 slots higher however they are pretty similar. one thing to keep in mind is location. psu is in the middle of nowhere and that can make a difference for some people. best of luck with your decision! both are great schools!</p>
<p>sparkie1964- you said your son fell inlove with psu. in that case i would definitely choose psu!!! usually the school you fall inlove with is the school you are most likely to thrive at!</p>
<p>Dancergrl979…I got lots of questions for you…I am reading articles saying that PSU state funding has been getting cut up to 50%. Have you seen a change in program offerings? Do you have an easy time getting all the classes you want? My son does love sports which is a big draw at PSU. Have been there a few times & see it’s in the middle of no where but really beautiful landscape. State College seemed to be bustling too. Is there enough to on campus & around it if you’re not part of Greek life which he hears is big…Are you in Smeal? What dorm do you suggest? Any newer than ones we saw or all pretty much the same?</p>
<p>I am an incoming freshman so i’m not going to be able to answer your questions as well as somoene who currently goes there but i have talked to alot of students and have done alot of research on a couple of those topics so i’ll give it a shot. from what i hear the course offerings are no different. the students say they don’t feel affected by the budget cuts. if he is a business major i highly doubt the budget cuts will affect him at all. i’m a theater major and the arts arent anywhere near from being cut and thats usually what goes first. and unlike maryland psu will deff not cut sports teams. as far as housing north is the nicest. its suites and the only dorms with airconditioning. however it costs more. also you may need a special living option (arts and aritecture majors live in one of the halls in north) another drawback is its a mix of all grades. for some people thats a drawback because they want the freshman experience. i found a great roomate that i dont want to give up who doesnt want to live in north because of the expense. so im living in south which for me i think is perfect. east can be really wild and uncomfortable. south has bigger dorms, has all freshman dorms but is queiter and in a great location (right by downtown)</p>
<p>as far as greek life only about 20% are greek.greek is big however most people are not greek and you can deff have a social life outside of greek.and there is A TON to do at psu. even if you dont drink or are a big party animal there is still A TON to do. there is always something going on on campus. which is great! and everyone there is sooo friendly and welcoming i absolutely love it!!! and yes the campus is gorgeous!!! i’m a theater major and i chose psu over case western and temple which are in cities. and usually theater ppl want to be in a city and i surprised myself when i chose a school in the middle of nowhere but i think that deff says something about how incredible pus is!!!</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/penn-state-university-park/1083915-ask-me-anything.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/penn-state-university-park/1083915-ask-me-anything.html</a></p>
<p>heres a link to a thread that you can ask a current student questions. which will prob be much more helpful than me!</p>
<p>i just asked the budget cut question on that thread! hopefully it will help! i’m interested in it too :)…sorry for all the posts haha</p>