<p>Interested in any and all compare/contrast thoughts about these two schools, especially regarding the government & politics major. Thanks.</p>
<p>Are you from Maryland or North Carolina or neither? </p>
<p>Great question… If people are answering wld they please note their perceptions about pre-med too. We r oos for both.</p>
<p>@bigbooklover Originally neither but I attended UNC as a graduate student. It was an outstanding grad school for me but I don’t know how it is for undergrads and I don’t know anything about the political science department. I thought the campus visit to UMD was much better than the visit to UNC and the information about the programs at UMD also looks better on paper, but UNC seems to have a better reputation overall. I haven’t spent much time in College Park but I think Chapel Hill is probably a nicer small town, if a bit boring. However, I like the idea of being closer to DC if that proximity is something students really take advantage of.</p>
<p>Let me first say I was just deferred at UNC but if I had been accepted to both and received merit aid from both I would have selected UMD. Agree with UNC being “nicer” town but UMD campus is nice and how can you trade proximity to D.C. especially if you want to major in government & politics. UNC is only 18% OOS by state mandate so I was a little concerned about the diversity there. I believe OOS at UMD is about 29%. I think the strength of your particular program is far more important than the overall “reputation” of the school. I liked the location of UMD, strength and flexibility of the journalism program at UMD and the diversity of UMD/D.C better than UNC. I also thought highly of the students and faculty I met at UNC.</p>
<p>^^^^^^sorry… I also thought highly of the students and faculty I met at UNC and UMD</p>
<p>“However, I like the idea of being closer to DC if that proximity is something students really take advantage of.”</p>
<p>Yes, they absolutely do. However, that is something students do in varying degrees and for different purposes…the metro ride is easy and convenient, but some students are naturally more adventurous about going out than others. In addition to the the numerous internship opportunities, some students just like to take advantage of the access to the museums/culture/restaurants/nightlife. You will hear lots of stories of people having amazing experiences that are unique to Maryland because of the proximity to D.C. </p>
<p>Whether it’s working for a government agency or a politician, the advantages of attending Maryland cannot be stressed enough, especially for a government and politics major. I don’t think UNC can compete in this respect. The only other schools that can boast this advantage are those located in DC and environs (Georgetown, GW, American, etc). Rankings are just opinions that will change. The proximity to the nation’s capitol and all that it has to offer will not change.</p>