<p>Hey all, I've lurked and posted in the UMD forum for a little while now, and am thinking about becoming a Terp for 2018! I was admitted to the Honors EIP program, and am excited for the opportunities it provides; however, my ultimate goal is law school, and to quote the UMD pre-law advisor from Marquee Day--"It's a numbers game." My practice LSAT scores (as a senior in high school this year, I've taken 3-4 practices and I'm scoring in this range consistently) are around a 165 with little to no studying, so I should be able to get that to 173+ within the next 3-4 years. So, my only concern would be my undergraduate GPA. Which leaves me with a few questions:</p>
<p>How difficult is it to get around a 3.8+ GPA (mostly A's and A+'s, for a >4.0 )?<br>
Is it more difficult to get a higher GPA in the EIP program?<br>
Is it more difficult to get a higher GPA in any honors program? </p>
<p>(Aside: I've taken 15 AP classes, so I'm used to a heavy workload. I understand that high school AP work != college work, but am fairly confident I'll be able to do well if I apply myself. I'm a Government and Politics major, and considering a double major in International Business [want to go into International Law]. For reference, I'm looking at Yale, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, and Chicago--or any other T14 school.)</p>
<p>If you are considering graduate school of any kind, forget about ivies for undergrad - you’ll do better to go to a good school (like Maryland) and get a stellar gpa than to go to an ivy and get an average gpa.</p>
<p>If you are a strong student, a 3.8 should not be a problem, but 4.0 may be a challenge depending on the courses because of the +/- grading scale. An A- =3.7, so while you can have all A’s, if any are A-, that will mean you will not have a 4.0. Close, but may be more like 3.9 instead of 4.0.</p>
<p>Can’t answer about gpa in EIP program, but have <em>heard</em> from others that the honors versions of regular classes are not worth the challenge (as in MATH241 v MATH241H) because you have to work harder and are less likely to be at top of curve. However, taking other honors courses in the HONR (honors) category are fine.</p>
<p>Just do your homework about the instructors before signing up for classes (check our ourumd.com (like rate my professor but specific to UMD) where you can look profs up by name for reviews and grade distribution history).</p>
<p>If you want to be an attorney and have an interest in government and politics, Maryland is an ideal location to be studying at! There are so many unique opportunities and experiences at Maryland that it’s hard to take advantage of everything the school has to offer! </p>
<p>I find the non-technical courses at Maryland to be labor intensive, but not mentally exhausting. In fact some courses, such as mythology, can be quite fun. As long as you can manage your time appropriately and have decently strong analytical reading and writing skills you should be able to hit the A range consistently. I will echo what maryversity said though, definitely pick your professors wisely. I was surprised by the percentage of professors who give an A- all day long but not a proper A/A+. But really if you can get that LSAT north of 170, any gpa over 3.8 should suffice for top law schools (meaning give yourself a budget for a couple B+/A- so you don’t kill yourself).</p>
<p>It’s pretty easy to get an A in EIP. As long as you show up to class and put some effort into your papers/group projects, you will do well. I’d say it’s easier than other honors programs like Gemstone and ILS, and it’s only two years of EIP classes, which gives you more flexibility in your schedule your last two years.</p>
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I’m starting to like UMD more every day! </p>