University of Maryland College Park (UMD) Early Action for Fall 2023

A score of 5 in Comp Science will give your son Credit for CMSC131. A score of 4 or 5 will give your son credit for MATH140 and MATH141. He will not have to take those classes, but yoou must have Official scores sent.

CMSC132 is being offered in the Fall 2023, so he should be able to register for that class to complete the Gateway courses and transfer into CS.

Make sure that the Comp Science A score is sent well before he goes to Orientation, so that his advisor will have it. Send the Calc BC score as soon as it is available.

Google “UMD AP Credit” to see which other courses for which he may get credit.

See the following link to find all the courses being offered in Fall 2023

https://app.testudo.umd.edu/soc/

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Correct. Plus the full B/K is not just full tuition - it’s a full ride.

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Just a quick observation on UMD merit, selection for special programs, etc.
I suspect based on observations (not insider proof) that UMD uses software to maximize their return of recruiting good students. Whereas some colleges might profile the very highest stat students and based on basically the same criteria, offer that same group Honors, admission to their major, AND a large merit award, it does not seem to be the way UMD does it. I suspect that they offer what they NEED to OFFER (based on profiling) to get as many great students to enroll as they can. So some will get into programs with prestige, and some will get merit. Will some get everything? Yes, but it is far less predictable than one might imagine. And the reason they CAN do this, (and also offer fewer merit awards overall) is because they get such a high volume of applicants.

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An interesting observation. One thing is that in the recent years, CS or other high demand majors attracted many high stat students, but UMD has to balance different majors in the Honors, so some of them will go to Scholars or other learning communities. UMD will offer them scholarships in stead. I guess we are talking about the same thing basically.

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Offered OOS S23 presidential scholarship and honors college. Now “only” $4k more than most prestigious instate alternative. Worked for us!!

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S23 got President’s Scholarship - 50K over 4 yrs.
OOS admit (No Honors)
James Clark School of Engineering (Major: BioComputational Engineering)

Does anyone understand the relationship btw Shady Grove vs College Park campus? Is Engineering split btw the 2 campuses?

The engineering college is at College Park. The buildings are new, with great facilities. Definitely worth a visit.

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Not familiar with it but a heres a link. Apologies if youve already reviewed. University of Maryland at Shady Grove | UMD Undergraduate Admissions

You may try searching YouTube.

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Shady Grove isn’t designed for freshman students. As per the site:

Most competitive applicants have completed approximately 60 applicable credits, achieved junior standing and completed General Education requirements. Most credits earned at Maryland community colleges will transfer and you can choose from a variety of majors, with classes offered at times that meet your schedule.

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Dont know if you are familiar with the geography of suburban MD, but I-270 cooridor (where Shady Grove is located) is home to a large number of biotech firms. Given you son’s major, that certainly makes sense to investigate.

I would not recommend the Shady Grove campus. It’s more for commuters and non trad students. Would not get the full college culture and experience at Shady Grove if that is what your applicant is looking for, if not then Shady Grove can be a good option. Was a grad assistant at Shady Grove.

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The Shady Grove campus is more of a satellite site. Several Maryland colleges have programs at a shared location in Montgomery County. To my knowledge there are no dorms. It’s designed for students who live in the area and have jobs, I believe. I have no idea of there are separate admissions for that campus.

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Your son was admitted to UMD College Park. He was not admitted to UMD Shady Grove. He was awarded a scholarship from UMD College Park. He was not awarded any scholarship from UMD Shady Grove, because he did not apply there.

At this point, the only option is to enroll in UMD College Park, if he decides that is what he wants.

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Admit letter is clear about degree from UMD College Park. When we visited in Nov 2021, we only visited the main CP campus.

S23 is interested in the BioComputational Engg major and this is the first year they allowed direct admission to it for undergrads. A FAQ on their site says student will live & attend all courses for the first 2 years in College Park campus but will take classes at Shady Grove in senior year.

So I wanted to find out what other departments are in Shady Grove campus which seems newer? Is it an extension/satellite of UMD CP or is it another enitity like UMD Baltimore or something else?

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Congrats to your son, you describe a new program!

From reading the website, Shady Grove offers majors to students from UMD and other public universities that are part of University System of Maryland.

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The idea was to do BioComputational Engg for BS from School of Engg and then do MS in BioInformatics from Dept of Computer Science at UMD CP.

Just 2 degrees/majors from James Clark School of Engg are provided at Shady Grove. Maybe we need to rethink this wrt Shady Grove. Or we could apply for transfer to BioEngineering major which is within CP campus.

The concern is Shady Grove, as @MarylandMom1970 notes, does not have housing or dining, & tends to focus on non traditional students or commuters.

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At Shady Grove, students can take courses that are offered at College Park and the health science Baltimore campuses via zoom, but would have to travel to either if hands-on (lab) are required (desired). Shady Grove serves food, but I am not sure of the operation hours of the cafeteria. For years, SG has received funding for buildings, departments, faculty; perhaps it needs time to grow.

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OK, UMD has not done a very good job of explaining all this. I would describe UMD Shady Grove as an extension of UMDCP, but that is just my opinion.

I do not know the history of UMD Shady Grove, but it seems to have started as an Educational option for working adults. Again, my opinion. It was not created as a Residential Campus.

The real question is - Where will your son live during his Junior and Senior year. Theoretically, he could continue to live at UMDCP and commute to Shady Grove. He would need a car. This is not something I would want to do myself. I have spent many years driving on 270 and the Beltway.

Another option is to rent an apartment somewhere in the Shady Grove area. This is likely to be expensive, and he would still need a car.

You should contact the Head of the BioComputational Engg Department and discuss these issues in detail.

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Do you mind share your stats? What is the major your son applied? It is not L&S, right?