I am going on exchange (spring 2018, business major) and am in the process of chosing my preferences. I am looking for a uni where i can have heaps of fun, make friends, have a good social life with that traditional American college experience (dorms + parties). Considerations: -weather: hate winter ESPECIALLY rain (before you ask, westcoast/florida wasn’t an option) -Not fussed about being next to the city, looking more for that ON CAMPUS experience. I heard american unis have that sense of community that australian unis are completely lacking. In this sense, uconn would top the rest since 70% live on campus? -people- not nerdy but also not jerks/cliquey -class sizes- the smaller the better -workload- the less the better. -food- good food because food makes me happy -costs: the cheaper the better. was planning on spending a month afterwards exploring beaches and nyc Any stories from past exchange students would also be great!
Penn is significantly more difficult than the other two colleges for undergrad business,and will have by far the highest workload. Its an older Ivy League school, and the most prestigious. As far as rain, they all have a lot of rain, its the east coast!
Maryland is on a Metro line to Washington DC , so easy to get to a major city with clubs, and all the rest. . UConn is in a very small town, which will have less to do, so more dorm parties. Penn is right in the heart of Philadelphia, and close to New York City. Maryland is in a suburban town, not very urban feel, but about 30 minutes by train to Washington DC. So only Penn is in an urban location, right on subway lines and in the heart of a major US city, but you will need to study a LOT harder at Penn and the students are way more accomplished so it will be very competitive.
Warton School of Business at UPenn is ranked about number 1 or 2 with Harvard Business school.
All three are known for good social life, with Penn being the most academic and intense of the three, but Maryland has plenty of science majors too. UConn is the most relaxed of those three.
You can get to beaches easily from all three, New Jersey beaches are really outstanding and not too far from Penn. Connecticut beaches are well, not that great,cold with sort of brown course sand, but Cape Cod is close to Connecticut and its has its charm. Maryland? You are near the Cheasapeake Bay, but you can get over to the coast with a car. The bay offers a lot of sailing. The beaches of Delaware and the other side of Maryland are fantastic. Look at a map to learn more about the east coast of the USA.
Costs? They are all about the same I would say but depends on how much you go out at night. U of Connecticut is probably least expensive as its in such a small town and there is so little to do there.
You can get to NYC easiest from Penn. and U Conn. About an hour and a half trip, there is a train from Philadelphia not sure about that part of Connecticut. For less intense academics, maybe you should look at some colleges like Temple U or Drexel U in Philadelphia? Temple U is the big commuter school, though so it may not be a fit. Penn State may be better for you, but its inland so not as close to NYC or beaches.
Maryland, its about a five hour bus or train to NYC, one way. Quite good deals on the bus.
What about Rutgers University in New Jersey? Plenty of parties easy to get to New Jersey beaches and NYC is
only 30 minutes by train ! . You may want a car at Rutgers but you can get around via the busses and trains, there is very good public transportation in New Jersey.
My uni doesnt have business partnershios with Temple or Drexel U. Im not gonna lie but the only reason im not considering other unis (rutgers, minessota, boston college) is because they either dont gurantee accomodation ( My sister was placed in a hotel last minute when she did her exchange in UK so im kinda scarred from that lol) or place you in apartments (prefer dorms). thanks for the insight. Taking upenn off my list now.
I wouldn’t come to philadelphia which is where temple, drexel, Upenn is…the off campus housing is infested with rodents and other nasty critters. The food in the University city area is C-…2 stars out of 5. In addition, the hospitality is not that great in Philadelphia. Now, You may experience philadelphia differently and end up liking the city. But, I would visit philadelphia before you study abroad here. Boston is wonderful, an amazing college city. Love that city so so much. I would do UMD, that is a great college city too.
This is base on the social surrounding.
Now…if you are looking just for academic challenge…UMD, Upenn I know can and probably will be challenging. I don’t know about Uconn.
UPenn is a city school and the workload is insane so I would rule that out right away. There are a bunch of public schools which fit your criteria, but if you are deciding between UConn and UMD then I would choose UMD since the winters aren’t harsh. Also, both are very similar in academics. Other schools that you might want to consider are University of Delaware, University of North Carolina, University of Georgia, Clemson, Auburn University, University of Alabama
Choose UMD! Or if possible choose a college in Boston