<p>So, at this point I'm set on transferring...but I'm not sure to where....
Right now I'm looking at JMU, UVA, and UNC as other options, with UMD being the most realistic. What would you guys pick? I'm only concerned about UMD b/c of the housing, and recent influx of crime.
Would it be better to transfer spring or fall? I'm sure that i'll get in both, its just a matter of feeling rushed or not.</p>
<p>thanks guys</p>
<p>Okay let’s go 1 by 1</p>
<ol>
<li>JMU and UVA are night in day differences, not only in college programs (JMU is seen as a LAC in VA), but the level of selectivity.</li>
</ol>
<p>UVA and UNCCH are on par with each other. UMDCP is below them and no offense to JMU, but they are below UMDCP. For a VA or NC school, Tech and NCST would be on par to UMDCP.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>What is your major? UMDCP is highly ranked for Engineering, journalism, business, architecture, Criminology and CIS. DO you want to intern in DC? If so JMU is not a good choice. Want to go to vet school than you should go to VT because they have a great program with UMDCP. </p></li>
<li><p>I hate when people bring up this crime crap. UMDCP is a campus that is the size of a small city. Yesterday they made news because a student was mugged on campus. Now that is scary, but he was walking by himself at 4:30 IN THE MORNING. Use common sense. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Our DD is at VT, and our DS is at UMDCP, should I have said to her don’t go to VT because of the massacre on campus @4 yrs ago?</p>
<p>UMDCP IMHPO is safer than VT. At UMDCP you not only need your id to enter the building, but to get on the elevator or into the stairwells. At VT even after that incident, once in the building you are free to roam.</p>
<p>Yeardley Love’s parents at UVA and Eve Marie Carson at UNCCH, never thought about crime when they sent their kids to school. Yet, they both had to endure the pain of a vicious murder. </p>
<p>If you use crime in College Park, which is an actual city, not just the campus, than you are using it as an excuse. If you are familiar with this area you know you cannot drive around on RT1 without seeing multiple police cars on patrol. UMDCP is very crime conscious. Use common sense like you would at any college and you will be safe. Walk around RT 1 onto campus at 4:30 a.m. and you are not using common sense.</p>
<ol>
<li>College is more than just academics it is also social life. UMDCP is on par with UNCCH since it is more urban. JMU is in the mountains for all sakes and purposes. UVA is suburban. If you want to go into town on Saturday night, Christiansburg is not the same as DC or Raleigh. You want to go hiking…JMU is a great school since it is in the Shenandoah Valley…good luck at doing that at UMDCP or UNCCH.</li>
</ol>
<p>Love ACC sports for FB or BB, UMDCP, UVA, UNCCH are all great options, JMU not so much.</p>
<p>You need to look at the big picture. If you are a true candidate that can be accepted by UVA or UNCCH and money isn’t the issue, but housing is, you’d be a fool to go to either UMDCP or JMU, since UVA and UNCCH has been for yrs the top 5 public universities in the nation by USNWR, Newseek, Time, Forbes, etc. UMDCP is always in the top 20, and JMU is below them.</p>
<p>UMD is actually going down in crime. You can see that in the crime statistics sent out to students last year. </p>
<p>If the forum had a file upload I would show the .pdf, but it does not.</p>
<p>And UMD housing is no worse than any other large public school.</p>
<p>I think many people who have limited knowledge of UMDCP, do not understand the actual campus is really a city within College Park. College Park is also a city in its’ own right. It is not tiny like UVA. It is quite large, thus, if you google College Park crime rate, many of the offenses have nothing to do with the CP campus.</p>
<p>What are you planning to major in? UMD housing ain’t pretty (well, most of it) but you’d only have to deal with it for two years. The crime really isn’t that bad (and I know that makes it sound like it’s still an issue, and it is, but when is crime NOT an issue?). I was actually talking about this with some people in a club of mine today, how I’ve lived in the DC area for 16 years and I’ve never ever been a victim of a crime (knock on wood) or seen a crime. Granted many of those years were in an ultra-safe suburb, but even now living in a neighborhood that has a fair amount of property crime I’ve been fine. </p>
<p>One must keep their wits about them and use some common sense. Yes, in an ideal world one could walk around at 4:30AM and not have any problems, but sadly this is the real world and there are deviants who wish to not be a productive part of society who will victimize others. </p>
<p>And like bullet said, if a few robberies are enough to scare you then surely a brutal murder should scare you from UVA.</p>
<p>What would /we/ pick? Well, isn’t what matters most what /you/ are looking for in a college? If you told us, maybe we could help let you know if MD is right for you.</p>
<p>But I’ll tell you what I picked (I think you know). </p>
<p>I was a strong candidate for both UNC-Chapel Hill and UVa. My parents begged me to apply to both. Quite frankly, I wasn’t interested in the big state school atmosphere, and I figured if I was going to have to go to a state school anyway, why not spend less and go to Maryland.</p>
<p>So, there, you have the short answer.</p>
<p>The longish-er answer is that I visited UVa and felt it was way, way too preppy. I knew people who went to UVa and thought they were way too preppy. The whole secret society thing seemed cool but added to the fact that UVa was so preppy, it just had kind of an elitist air to it. I don’t regret not going there for a heartbeat, even on some days when I’m miserable at MD. I know it’s just totally not the school for me. It’s not laid back enough, not nerdy enough, not eclectic enough. Maryland delivers much better on those fronts. Furthermore, I was not impressed with Charlottesville, as nice as people say it is. I prefer big cities, i.e. Washington, D.C.</p>
<p>I never visited UNC-Chapel Hill and had a much more positive inclination of it as a place that was more friendly to diversity and odd-balls and all that. But the fact that the only reason I liked it was because it was more like MD made me reluctant to even bother applying when I knew I was going to get into Maryland and that Maryland would be half the cost at the least and most likely even less than that. I think I do regret somewhat not looking closer into UNC. Sometimes I’m not satisfied with the caliber of students at MD and wonder if they would be different at UNC. But, it’s quite possible they wouldn’t be noticeably different, despite the fact that UNC is more selective. Ultimately, it’s still the flagship state uni, and so is Maryland. Other downsides I saw to UNC was that Chapel Hill < Washington, D.C. and I figured more southern would generally = more conservative.</p>
<p>JMU was never on my radar. If I had any reservations about going to UMD it was that I wished I had gone to a more selective/smaller school (also near a major city), but JMU is less selective and not near a major city. It is indeed smaller, but if it’s a less selective school in a more isolated area its size works AGAINST it (less smart people, less things to do!).</p>
<p>I think people already covered the safety thing. I’d prefer to be less safe and near Washington, D.C. than more safe and near…a cornfield. And, overall, MD is safe. There’ve been 5 muggings near campus so far this semester and there’s 33,000 people on campus alone (don’t forget the entire population of the city). You do the math. </p>
<p>I can’t comment on the housing situation because I don’t know what year you’re transferring into (hint; the lower you are in class standing, the better chance you have of getting housing), I don’t know how much money you have (hint: the more money you have, the easier it is finding close to campus housing w/ lots of other students), and I don’t know how much better the housing situation is at UVa, UNC, and JMU (if it is better).</p>
<p>“What are you planning to major in?”</p>
<p>Right now I’m applying as a Government and Politics Major to BSOS; originally I was accepted as that major last year as a freshman. I may however be interested in business, environmental sciences, and maybe psychology. This is one of the reasons that I want a big state university; there are so many options of classes to take, thus I’ll be able to develop my interests. </p>
<p>“And like bullet said, if a few robberies are enough to scare you then surely a brutal murder should scare you from UVA.”</p>
<p>I totally agree. I realize that UMCP is relatively safe in comparison to its size, but my father is a bit concerned, as he has been seeing all the reports on the news. It may take some convincing to go to UMD, because I think he would rather see me go to UNC or UVA if I actually get in. </p>
<p>“I can’t comment on the housing situation because I don’t know what year you’re transferring into (hint; the lower you are in class standing, the better chance you have of getting housing), I don’t know how much money you have (hint: the more money you have, the easier it is finding close to campus housing w/ lots of other students)”</p>
<p>I’m applying as a second semester freshman, so maybe that will help. If I don’t get on campus housing, maybe I’ll live The View if I can find a room with one of my friends.</p>
<p>Thanks yall! You’ve been a lot of help! If I may ask one last question, how accepting is UMD in regards to liberal ideology?</p>
<p>If you want to do Government and Politics, there’s no better place to be than DC. The business school is also top-notch. But I’ll let others who are in those program/have more knowledge of them take the reigns there.</p>
<p>My aunt (my parents don’t live in the area) is constantly telling me about news reports about things happening at UMD, but it’s blown far out of proportion. Because a) they tend to report crimes not on campus and attribute them to campus, and b) neglect the size of the school. Like the warning issued to the entire government last year that “50 people on the UMD campus have swine flu!” when that is less than a percent of all the students, grad students, faculty and staff. (It’s not a crime but the specific example that came to mind).
They also neglect important details, like last year when a person was mugged outside of Ellicott, everyone neglected to report that no one involved was a student, and the three involved arranged to meet on Craigslist. The victim was buying an iPhone from the attackers. He already had two iPhones on him, and during the sale turned to use the atm in front of ellicott. The phones and the cash were snatched and the guy was only hurt because when he was pushed his face hit the ATM.</p>
<p>If your father wants specific statistics I can report those from the crime report of 2009 issued to students. </p>
<p>The thing about applying as a second semester freshman is that there are many students who originally applied for fall and got pushed back to Spring. A lot of these students have been signed up for housing since then. But you still have a relatively good shot, and where you get is a crapshoot. I’ve heard of people getting apartments and suites and one of my best friend’s ended up in an Ellicott double with a sophomore roommate.</p>
<p>And UMD is ridiculously accepting of liberal ideology. There are a lot of active liberal student groups and students in general tend to be liberal. Thousands of students got up before 6 in the morning last year to stand in line to see Obama speak. (On campus, for free, another perk)</p>
<p>Yeah, I’m from Montgomery County, MD and have only visited UMD once; I loved it, and in hindsight am not sure why I didn’t choose to go there. I just really hope I’m accepted for Spring, and hope that I get housing.</p>
<p>The business school at UMD is good, but they only accept students at two points - as first semester freshman, and then as a junior. In order to get into the business school as a junior you need to have completed 60 credits and have a 3.0 GPA. Other requirements are in the link below:</p>
<p>[Undergraduate</a> Program - Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, College Park](<a href=“http://www.rhsmith.umd.edu/undergrad/shadygrove/admissions.aspx]Undergraduate”>http://www.rhsmith.umd.edu/undergrad/shadygrove/admissions.aspx)</p>
<p>Upper level courses for the Smith School of Business are in two locations- College Park and Shady Grove.</p>
<p>If you have a chance at either UVA or Chapel Hill - I think most would say those are better options. As far as safety, your dad has a reason to worry. How can people compare the lax player’s murder and the VT shootings to the crime at UMD. Those are extremely rare instances, not a concern on a daily or weekly basis like it seems to be at UMD. Just today the news is reporting 4 more stabbings outside the Thirsty Turtle - a popular bar. 3 of them are students ages 19, 19 and 20. It seems to be more of a “quality of life” issue when living in College Park. Yes, other campuses have tragic events like those mentioned above BUT I think it is ludicrous to say they are similar. </p>
<p>UMD is a great school but sadly its location is a serious issue for many people.</p>
<p>Both of my D’s chose UMD BECAUSE of its location. They both significantly wanted to be near a large city, and have LOVED living near Washington D.C., for all the reasons that UMCP11 and Gina have stated above. I am assuming that both will probably always live near large cities, they both fully realize that they can’t be oblivious to their surroundings. At college age, most people think themselves invincible, whether they live in an urban environment or in the middle of cornfields. </p>
<p>I went to school in the dark ages, in a fairly large public univ completely surrounded by cornfields in the midwest. I was exposed to significant drug and alcohol use/abuse, and there were a rash of rapes and other serious crime around campus…and it was considered a “safe” campus. I guess that gave me a solid dose of reality way back then…</p>
<p>You’re also making the same mistake of sighting a rare instance and making it a common occurrence. People do not get stabbed here every day. </p>
<p>That being said my favorite sign of all time is by Ikea and Shoppers: Welcome to College Park: A Livable Community.</p>
<p>I find it so interesting when they live with this fear of safety.</p>
<p>There are so many parents and students on this site that keep repeating the same thing over and over again, but it appears that these people are dismissed as anecdotal information or as if we are all lying or shading the truth regarding crime.</p>
<p>Astro actually hit the nail on the head. UMDCP is a large campus in a large city. It is not a small town community. When you comprehend that fact than you will understand that of course there are more crimes reported, but the question is not the amount of crimes, but the statistical chance that a crime will be perpetrated against you.</p>
<p>If the crime issue bothers you, then don’t go because you will live 4 yrs in constant fear. If you understand that statistically due the size of the community, crime is not as bad as people make it out to be, than you will enjoy every minute.</p>
<p>I have been on this site for 3 yrs. Our DS is a jr, with a large social circle, and he has yet to meet anyone who has been a victim, EXCEPT for 1. Guess who victimized him…College Park Police after the Duke game last yr, which because of that his parents are now millionaires. </p>
<p>The point about UVA, UNCCH, VT, was that you can’t send your kid to school and believe that they are safe because they have never had violence. Yes, you can do due dilligence, and yes, you can select the school with a lower % of crime, but that is not going to keep your child safe. The only way to keep them safe is COMMON SENSE.</p>
<p>OBTW, Bullet is an alumni of UMDCP, and 20 some odd yrs ago, the crime rate was just as bad. He managed to make it through college, and all of his friends too without getting robbed, stabbed, or raped.</p>
<p>Like I said if you are looking for an excuse NOT TO ATTEND, than there you go, use the crime as the reason. Just don’t go to UNNCH and think that Raleigh doesn’t have bad parts of town either.</p>
<p>I think you all may think that I’m overly concerned about the crime at UMDCP. For me it actually is not an issue at all. My dad, however is concerned, but he would still let me go. UMD is my first choice, as I applied for transfer spring '11. UVA&UNC are too expensive</p>
<p>Send your dad our way. We’ll straighten him out!!!</p>
<p>surf, I didn’t think you are overly concerned about the crime. I just think for us old members we read a post like this all the time, so we just have our pat answers, and inevitably people think we are feeding them a line.</p>
<p>In the end, everyone has a comfort zone, and you have to find out where yours or any applicants zone lies. If you buy into the hype, than you will be miserable, because the fear will overtake your life. A fear that to almost every UMD student or parent feels is unbased and just rhetoric for why not to attend UMDCP.</p>
<p>Astro is correct, have your Dad create an account here and read the threads. I think when he sees female posters and parents saying that the crime issue is way over blown he will feel more comfortable with your decision.</p>
<p>If all else fails, explain to him he raised an intelligent young girl, who has weighed every aspect, and that in the end UMDCP is where you want to attend. From a parents POV be prepared to back that statement up…i.e. the college program, the chance of internships, the great campus, etc. compared to where he would prefer you to go.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>haha the thing is, is that im a guy! My dad has always harbored an anti UMD sentiment and I have no clue why; its one the reasons I chose not to go. But after not liking the small LAC that I attend, I see that I really want UMD with or without my dads approval, but he’ll support me in the end.</p>
<p>hahaha burned… surf… you gal ;)</p>
<p>I think UVA might edge out UMD in business and government, but not by much. I know there are several college companies that rank B-schools, just google it. A high gpa from both schools are good enough to get your foot in the door at the most selective companies.</p>