Taking Questions for Future Blue Hens!

<p>Feel free to post any questions about the University of Delaware - I'll be more than happy to answer anything.</p>

<p>Class of 2009:</p>

<hr>

<p>Number of New Freshmen 3,450
Percent from minority groups (African American, Native American, Asian American, Latino American, Pacific Islander) 15% </p>

<p>Number of Freshmen Delawareans 1,125
The University of Delaware admits all Delawareans whose academic records predict success. Approximately 65% of the Delawareans who apply are offered admission to the Newark campus. </p>

<p>Number of Out-of-State Freshmen 2,325
We generally admit between 40-45% of the out-of-state students who apply. </p>

<p>Below are approximate ranges for grade point averages and standardized test scores of the middle 50% of our out-of-state applicants who were offered Fall 2005 admission: </p>

<p>High School Grade Point Average (calculated on a 4.0 scale)
middle 50% of all admitted freshmen: 3.50 - 3.92
middle 50% of freshmen admitted to the Honors Program: 3.82 - 4.00 </p>

<p>SAT-I based on the best verbal and math subscores from all testings
middle 50% of all admitted freshmen: 1200 - 1330
middle 50% of freshmen admitted to the Honors Program: 1340 - 1440 </p>

<p>Average ACT Composite
average of all admitted freshmen: 28
average of freshmen admitted into the Honors Program: 31 </p>

<p><a href="http://www.udel.edu/admissions/viewbook/apply/profile.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.udel.edu/admissions/viewbook/apply/profile.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>I've read most of the UDel posts on CC and, as helping as they were, I still have some questions that need to be answered.</p>

<p>Some say the food is bad, some say the food is good, which is it?
Are the dorms really small as people say? Are they depressing?????
If I do not enroll in the Honors Program, how far of a walk is it from the dorms to class on average?
How hard are the normal courses?
How hard are the Honors courses?
Scholarships -- any information helps here
If I'm not enrolled in the honors program, are the people in the normal dorms academically motivated? (no fooling around/party kind of people) (the kind of people you leave highschool for)</p>

<p>Any more information about UDel is greatly appreciated.</p>

<p>Hey Thunda,</p>

<p>I'll do my best to answer your questions.</p>

<p>1) Some say the food is bad, some say the food is good, which is it?</p>

<p>I personally liked the campus food a lot - I had no issues with it at all. In fact, even when I lived off-campus, I had a meal plan as did a bunch of my friends. Remember taste is all relative as well - if you're coming from Buckingham Palace, your tastes will probably be different than if you're coming from an average high school. </p>

<p>2) Are the dorms really small as people say? Are they depressing?????</p>

<p>I really liked all my residences and Delaware. I think the campus community inside them were great. They do have online tours and stuff like that online so I would suggest checking that out. They also just finished a brand new residence hall on campus:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2005/mar/georgeread082305.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.udel.edu/PR/UDaily/2005/mar/georgeread082305.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Here is the best resource for figuring out the residence halls. If you take a tour of campus or do an overnight program, you'll get to see residence hall. </p>

<p><a href="http://www.udel.edu/has/c_tour.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.udel.edu/has/c_tour.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>3) If I do not enroll in the Honors Program, how far of a walk is it from the dorms to class on average?</p>

<p>Varies on the residence hall that you live in - maybe 10 minutes? It's not a long walk by any stretch of the imagination. </p>

<p>4) How hard are the normal courses? How hard are the Honors courses?</p>

<p>This is a tough question as I think it depends on your background and the subject matter. If you're accepted into the Honors program or allowed to take an Honors class, then there is no reason to think that it would be so difficult that you would not be able to succeed in the course. Course rigor in college often depends on subject matter, professor, curves (if possible) and a few other things. That said, Honors courses could be harder or easier than standard classes depending on all the variations. </p>

<p>5) Scholarships -- <a href="http://www.udel.edu/admissions/viewbook/finance/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.udel.edu/admissions/viewbook/finance/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>6) If I'm not enrolled in the honors program, are the people in the normal dorms academically motivated? (no fooling around/party kind of people) (the kind of people you leave highschool for)</p>

<p>Most definitely. UD definitely has a hefty share of motivated students. At every school across the country there are people who study really hard and those who like to go out and have a good time - and most of the time they are the same person. You'd be hard pressed to find an institution where there were no ''party people'' becuase being serious/motivated and wanting to party and have a good time are NOT mutually exclusive. I finished graduate work at Penn and there were just the same amount of party people at Penn as there were at Delaware. Don't be surpised if the person who goes out 5 nights a week pulls better grades & GPA's than someone who studies every night - everyone is different! The one for sure thing is though, that people will work hard to get their assignments done to the best of their ability - independent of whether they like to party or not. </p>

<p>People in the ''normal'' as you said, dorms are just as diverse as those who live in Honors housing in Russell, Lane & Thompson. You can be assured that you will find your niche at Delaware for sure - since there are so many different types of people - whether you want to go out and party or not. There are lotsa great ways to be social and hang out and Delaware is sure to foster that.</p>

<p>I hope this helps. --Mark</p>

<p>It indeed helped a lot.</p>

<p>I thank you for taking your time to answer my questions.</p>

<p>I have a few more, if [my questions] did not get on your nerves already:</p>

<p>Were you/Are you currently enrolled in the Honors program?</p>

<p>If so, do you remember your high school stats? (GPA, SATs, etc...)</p>

<p>I really want to be part of the Honors program--If I do not get accepted to it, is there a way I can attend UDel and later on join the honors program...say for example, second semester (you get the point). (That is of course, if I maintain the necessary GPA [at Udel]). </p>

<p>If you had to think of things you hated about UDel, what are they?</p>

<p>Any regrests about attending UDel?</p>

<p>Thanks again for answering my previous questions. </p>

<p>-Amit</p>

<p>I am an Hnrs alum of the university, Class of 2003.</p>

<p>My stats are hardly applicable at this point - however the Hnrs class entering this fall (Class of 2009) profile is as follows:</p>

<p>middle 50% of freshmen admitted Hnrs: 3.82 - 4.00
middle 50% of freshmen admitted Hnrs: 1340 - 1440 (28-31 ACT)</p>

<p>If you are not accepted to the Hnrs program but are accepted to the University and then matriculate to Delaware, then you can speak with your advisor and with the Hnrs program. I know several people that moved in and out of the program.</p>

<p>To be perfectly honest, I didn't hate anything about the university. I thought it was a perfect fit for me. I know this is the PC answer, but to be honest, I cannot think of one thing that I didn't really like about my time there. Sure I had my ups and downs with friends, grades, etc -- all the normal stuff college students go through but nothing I hated at all. I thought the university was VERY supportive of everything I needed. I ended up doing really well and graduated near the top of my class etc and went on to Graduate school at UPenn - and I felt very prepared to be there to be honest. </p>

<p>Regrets: None - I am 110% pleased with my experience there and love the school to death.</p>

<p>Let me know if you need anything else. :) --Mark</p>

<p>I see</p>

<p>Well thanks a lot, if any more questions pop through my head I'll definitely post them here.</p>

<p>You are a very good resource :)</p>

<p>By the way, when you attended UDel, did you know a girl named Amy Mikels? (very pretty, nice kind of girl)</p>

<p>Thanks again,</p>

<p>-Amit</p>

<p>Mark,</p>

<p>Thanks... your suggestions and answers are very helpful!
My daughter currently likes UD as her first choice but is also weighing UMD (among others). Do you know how well the Biology program is at UD. UMD is building a new Life Sciences building that will be ready next year and has a great rep. My only worry about UMD, is that it may be a little too big.
She is also thinking about Early Decision ad UD, but hate losing the flexibility if she goes that route.</p>

<p>Hey Bill,</p>

<p>I think it really depends on which school is going to give her the most opportunity along with where she is going to feel the most comfortable. I think that Delaware offers a great biology program - I know many of my friends are alums of the Biology department, many are in medical school or dental school and I have one that is doing a PHD in Biology at George Washington right out of Delaware - which I think is quite impressive. </p>

<p>I do know that Biology at Delaware is one of the most popular majors but it is also considered one of the hardest, especially once students reach organic chemistry - which can be a killer for most hopefuls of going on to Medical School.</p>

<p>Size-wise, I think Delaware is just perfect - enough to know people around campus and exchange greetings on The Green but also big enough to be meeting new people all the time in classes or at social events. </p>

<p>I think ED is a very personal decision - I personally was an RD admit to Delaware - but if I look back on my experience - I definitely would have applied ED because it turned out to be the perfect place * for me *. I think if it is her first choice hands down (I dunno if it is) then for sure apply ED - but if it's not, nothign wrong with going the RD route either. </p>

<p>Best of luck and be sure to post any more questions if you have them.</p>

<p>Hey Mark,</p>

<p>How good is Udel's Chemical Engineering section? Mathematics?</p>

<p>I always thought UDel is known for their Chemistry section but your last post distorted my opinion, is it a solid candidate for chemical engineering major? (mathematics major as well)?</p>

<p>Thanks,</p>

<p>Amit</p>

<p>Is it safe to walk around at night on and off campus--for female students?</p>

<p>ok, I loved my experience at UD and got in everywhere I applied for grad school, but I feel I can be a little more honest about the experience.</p>

<p>Some say the food is bad, some say the food is good, which is it?
It is pretty bad, and now that I am at USC, I have something to compare to. None of my friends would ever tell you its good.
Are the dorms really small as people say? Are they depressing?????
Most are small, some are depressing. For the space available UD could be far more accomodating, but I really like the Ray street dorms, Harrington, and honors are nice like Sharp, Sypherd.
If I do not enroll in the Honors Program, how far of a walk is it from the dorms to class on average?
It is all pretty close.
How hard are the normal courses?
Depends, math is hard because it is a horrible department, ask any math major, the ones I know hate it, but generally if you want to do well, expect to work.
How hard are the Honors courses?
I found them to be easier than normal classes.
If I'm not enrolled in the honors program, are the people in the normal dorms academically motivated? (no fooling around/party kind of people) (the kind of people you leave highschool for)
Some places you live will be loud and a disaster for studying, my freshman year was like that. We partied very hard, had a great time, but when I went to study the guys respected that, but I could never get it done at my place. My gpa was a full point higher than anyone out of 8 in my quad (Pencader) and 4 have not graduated, 3 no longer attend college. Other dorms will be so quiet you could study any amount of time and even have live in tutors (my sophomore year in Sharp)</p>

<p>Overall, it was great fun. Get involved, do other things than just study, but study hard, meet more people than your dorm and you will love it. The graduate placement is incredible across the board, but I would watch out for bio, math dept's. Everyone I knew hated those classes and some transferred out of bio to diffrerent schools altogether for a better shot at a real medical school. (Not just Jefferson)</p>

<p>Thanks, that was very helpful.</p>

<p>Just a couple more questions:</p>

<p>When you graduated from Udel, were you at the top of your class? Were you enrolled in the Honors program all 4 years?</p>

<p>I heard a lot about the study abroad they got there, did you do it? If so, was it a very good experience?</p>

<p>When you couldn't compare the food to USC food, was it eatable (hehe, I don't wanna die of starvation). </p>

<p>Is there a lot of things to do on Main Street? Around Udel in general?</p>

<p>If you have any more information, feel free to share. </p>

<p>Thanks,</p>

<p>-Amit</p>

<p>When you graduated from Udel, were you at the top of your class? Were you enrolled in the Honors program all 4 years?</p>

<p>Depends on what you mean. No, I was not top 10%, but I was not far from it. 10-15 I think. I was never a part of the honors program, I just was allowed into housing and classes because of my grades. If you were not admitted to honors outright, theres really no reason to be in it as all their special functions will be available to you with a high gpa. I believe if you are not in right away you can not get their special degree at the end. Although, you can still graduate with honors obviously and all that other good stuff.</p>

<p>I heard a lot about the study abroad they got there, did you do it? If so, was it a very good experience?</p>

<p>I have heard nothing but wonderful things here. I never went, but I travel on my own and graduated early. </p>

<p>When you couldn't compare the food to USC food, was it eatable (hehe, I don't wanna die of starvation). </p>

<p>Sometimes it was edible, most times I ate it for sustenance. As time went on I got more sick of it, but improvements in the Pencader dining hall changed it, although it was my last semester by then, but man did it leave the rest of them in the dust. It brought the food to a decent level and you could even get thai food sometimes. haha, but 3 years of snack packs and pizza got me by.</p>

<p>Is there a lot of things to do on Main Street? Around Udel in general?</p>

<p>Depends on where you are from. New Yorkers find it dull. I think there is tons to do. Although legal things are falling by the wayside. Ground Floor is gone, Stone Balloon will be gone. Parties can be good fun. All in all, stay active within school unless you have lots of money, then boredom will never happen. Main Street is always fun, but again, I ran out of money a lot, so I did more with club activities, school things too like school ski trips, ny bus trips and then bars at the end. Football games are great, you can even travel with them on Saturdays. UD can be incredible.</p>

<p>If you have any more information, feel free to share. </p>

<p>Watch your money, don't work too much(jobs), do everything.If you don't get involved it can be a boring place because to be frank there are less interesting things than other college campuses. I have visited places like Cornell, Michigan, Maryland where some of my friends go, and if you dont belong to anything you can still do cool things, and that was lacking at UD. USC has shown me some things that I wish I had as an undergrad also, but education wise, the professors have to be available to you at UD, and most places don't even come close in that area.</p>

<p>ChemE is the best department at Delaware - very competitive - it's a top 10 program nationally so it is also one of the most rigorous. </p>

<p>I graduated Delaware in four years, top 5% yeah.</p>

<p>I studied abroad Winter Session of Jr year in England/Scotland.</p>

<p>The food at Delaware is the same as it was at Penn - they have the same provider if that means anything. I personally didn't have a problem with it - but as I said - it depends on taste. </p>

<p>Main St. definitely has things to do - don't worry about the social scene - IT'S THERE!!!! :o)</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

<p>Many thanks to both of you.</p>

<p>You've both given me tons of info.</p>

<p>Thanks Mark.</p>

<p>Looks like we will stay with RD....too bad UD is probably 1st choice, but will be the last school we will hear from. UMD, UCON & UVM all have EA or Priority and we'll know earlier, then will have to wait a few months for UD's response.</p>

<p>Mark & USC......any response to pyewacket's q about safety.
Obviously everyone is more concerned after the tragedy from last year.
IMO the school seems to be doing a good job at working on improvements and not trying to hide the issue. How do the current students feel??</p>

<p>Safety for me was a non-issue. The incidents that happened on the train tracks were egregious and not representative of the campus safety. In my four years, I never had a problem with safety, I walked through campus alone at night some evenings - it was nice weather, it's very well-lit and there are always police wandering around. I think that it's smart to have a buddy of course if walking at night.</p>

<p>CAmpus safety can be called from anywhere and they'll come pick you up - or they'll walk you home -- whichever you like. Crime is extremely low at Delaware and I definitely view it as a safe place to be.</p>

<p>I respectfully disagree with Mark. People have been robbed, beaten, and with the occassional freak crimes and accidents that every campus has. Walking alone at night is stupid, and a close friend of my significant other pai dearly for that, and it happened fairly recently, a horrifying incident. To be fair, ALL</p>

<p>I respectfully disagree with Mark. People have been robbed, beaten, and with the occassional freak crimes and accidents that every campus has. Walking alone at night is stupid. To be fair, ALL campuses have these problems, but never walk alone, as I have seen a 6'3 240 pound looking junior get mauled by some punks from elkton, md. But again, this happens everywhere, including the campuses you mentioned, especially USC for me. UD is a thousand times safer than Southern Cal. I walked alone at night a few times (stupid) but it does not make you worry like south central LA. The daytime at Newark is one of the safest places you'll be. Maryland and Uconn are not as safe as Newark from what I know.</p>