<p>Current students & parents, what do you like (and dislike) about this school, including the area around campus? Assuming my son gets accepted, he will have a difficult choice to make between UMD and his other top choice. We visited UMD last summer, and plan to visit again over spring break if he is accepted.</p>
<p>Opinions wanted!</p>
<p>I'll speak for D....she has said multiple times since August that she can't imagine having made a better decision than she did in going to UMD-CP. She LOVES the campus, the quad, the stately buildings of Maryland bricks with white columns; she loves being at a large school where she could reinvent herself in many ways; she quickly learned that she can be as anonymous or as "known" as she wants to be....unlike all the horror stories, first semester all her profs knew her by name, except for the crazy one who only had 18 kids in his seminar. She loves the amount of AP credit she was given coming in (now, in her 2nd semester there, she has the credit hours that classify her as a junior in all "priority" based things, like registering, etc.) She ABSOLUTELY loves being so close to DC---she goes in at least once a week---is a regular at several of the Smithsonians...of course, Air & Space is her favorite. She feels safe there, but knows that she's got to be street-smart....takes advantage of the UM-Shuttles that can take her directly to her dorm at night, if necessary; takes the shuttles from the student union directly to the metro station...</p>
<p>She loves her dorm and the people she lives with and near.....I appreciate that it's a mostly Honors Dorm, but wish the rooms and buildings weren't so dated and tiny. She was totally not interested in college sports before---now she's a major Terp fan and has a bunch of tshirts from football and basketball games (and as I crowed elsewhere this week--she was shown in 2 different closeups this week on ESPN during the bball game on Wednesday)!! She knows when and how to do all the rude cheers and songs....</p>
<p>College Park is no quaint college town -- the surrounding area and crime is usually listed as one of its big draw-backs. I don't have a problem with it, and know that's part of the deal of living near a large city, and trust her to make good decisions. I'd recommend when you visit to stay at the Marriott on campus or one of the hotels near Greenbelt/Nasa. The only Rt 1. hotel that I've stayed at that wasn't too sketchy was the Quality Inn in "downtown" College Park---but make sure you're in the 4-floor "tower" building, and not the motel-looking part.... Room rates vary quite a bit, depending on what else is happening on campus, or in the Greenbelt area.</p>
<p>Party school? Yep, it's got that rep---and in comparison to some of her friends who were home at Christmas time, she described it that she had the opportunity every day to see at least one person who was drunk; some of them at very small private schools said it's usually only Thurs, Fri, Sat and Sun that they observe drunk people. It depends on the kid.....she went to college as a sworn non-drinker. I know she's "imbibed" on several occasions, but most of her weekend (and all of her week night) activities do not include drinking---and she has a whole circle of friends, male and female. that choose not to drink. There's lots of options for things to do that don't require drinking.</p>
<p>It will probably all come down to how your S feels---which campus he feels like he "belongs" at, after comparing all the rational, objective factors. Good luck!</p>
<p>Son is a freshman there so I make sure to read the online student newspaper each day to find out the "bad news" about budget cuts, crime incidents, and housing shortage. I'd recommend you check out <a href="http://www.diamondbackonline.com%5B/url%5D">www.diamondbackonline.com</a> as well as the online paper for your son's other top choice.</p>
<p>I really want to write a nice long post for you, but am currently SO busy with sorority recruitment. Will try to do so later this week!! :)</p>
<p>^thanks Lindz, I will look forward to reading it.</p>
<p>astrophysicsmom, thank you for your informative post. </p>
<p>worrywart, reading the paper is a good idea. I have bookmarked The Diamondback and forwarded the link to my son's email as well. How does your son like Maryland - is he glad he made the decision to attend?</p>
<p>Any other opinions would be very helpful. Thanks!</p>
<p>hi oregonianmom! i agree it's a BEAUTIFUL campus, and so huge there's something for everyone! i remember on our tour we were impressed by their incredible sports complex ( we snuck in and saw the team practicing basketball! a maintenance man let us in, as the door was locked!) and i remember music underwater in the pool. however, the dorms are very small, unless you're in an honors/specialty living situation. and my biggest "con" would be the sad town of College Park. we were told by everyone, including kids attending UMDCP that it's unsafe and a bit sleazy, and never to take the metro alone, better to NOT take at all at night. we have an older friend who was raised there and went there, and he said the town has gone way "downhill". i tried to give you a mix of comments. take care, and best to your son!</p>
<p>Love: </p>
<ul>
<li>The main academic areas (they're gorgeous...when it's warmer, I love to just walk around campus and find new places to do reading/studying)</li>
<li>The close proximity and ease of access to DC (hop on a shuttle for a 3 minute ride to the metro station, where some of the most exciting parts of DC are only a few stops away, like U Street, etc. My friends and I love to explore the city, see concerts, and go clubbing weekly)<br></li>
<li>The huge number of on-campus clubs and activities to sample </li>
<li>The art galleries, the gym, the book store, the co-op, the arcade, the on-campus convenience stores, and all of the other fun places to buy/do things or just hang out</li>
<li>The town of College Park (I was surprised to see so many list College Park as a "con;" there are tons of restaurants and bars, a video store, necessities like dry-cleaners and convenience stores, and many other places to chill, all located within walking distance...it is miles above many of the small towns surrounding my friends' colleges)</li>
</ul>
<p>*A note about safety: Many people percieve College Park and even the campus itself as "unsafe" or "seedy." College Park is a much more urban environment than most students experienced growing up. The picturesque campus and quiet surrounding neighborhoods may cause students to forget that they are on the outskirts of a major city - therefore, they fail to exercise appropriate caution. In addition, not only do students fail to "upgrade" their "street smarts", but they "dumb them down"! Would any of these students walk 2 miles to their beds at 4 am incredibly inebriated in their suburban hometowns? Most likely not, and yet 100s (1,000s on the weekends) do this every night in CP (amazingly, most without incident!). Of course, the resulting crime reports cause misconceptions about safety, because students do not pause to consider their contexts. </p>
<p>Hate:</p>
<p>-It's a party school. There ARE people who just want to hang out and watch movies on Saturday nights...but because CP is so big, it is often hard to find your niche at first. It is easy to get caught up in a group of friends looking to go out partying 2x or more a week, every week, who are dissatisfied with anything less.<br>
-Because the school is so big, it's sometimes difficult to make friends (and even more difficult to get leadership positions) in popular clubs with large numbers of students...but a little extra initiative will put you in a good place
-Some departments aren't that great, read: English, anthropology. The curriculum may be limited, or professors horrible. Make sure CP is strong in the areas you are interested in.
-North campus is ugly!!</p>
<p>Other cool things in College Park that I forgot to mention: ice skating rink, park, cd/game store, comic book shop, independent book store...</p>
<p>And I also forgot to mention that public transportation is excellent. The buses go around the whole town at night, from the frats and apartments, to restaurants/shops on route 1, to the metro, PG plaza (a mall), Silver Spring (which is a really cute, fun place to hang out, too!), etc. But don't expect to hop on a bus to class during the day...bring a bike!</p>
<p>OP: Son loves the school. Has made friends in his dorm and just pledged a frat. Immediately got involved in a professional association within his school. Finding classes to be easy. Which leads to my #1 reservation. I'm not convinced he's being challenged. Hubby says to wait until he's an upperclassman and no longer taking intro courses.</p>
<p>I like the location: close to DC, baltimore, georgetown....
sports are great here (though going down)
Classes are okay, the school environment is nice, the weather is great. All the on campus facilities are great</p>
<p>I dont like the fact that campus is too big. Gotta ride bikes around. Hard to meet people (announcements, meetings are online or thru emails)</p>
<p>maryland is boring, nothing to do lol no joke</p>
<p>v3ndetta.....you're not yet a student at UMD, right? "Nothing to do" is not an accurate assessment of UMD.... If a student says there's nothing to do there, it's just because they aren't making any effort whatsoever. The opportunities and activities are abundant and extremely varied at UMD-CP.</p>
<p>i live in Maryland. i would know</p>
<p>Well considering that UMD-CP is only 15 minutes by the metro from DC (and I did travel this way for a few days while I was staying in a motel near College Park) I would have to disagree in saying that there is nothing to do. One could say it is boring everywhere, it's very subjective. </p>
<p>When I rode around the area of College Park I did notice that it was quite a lonely area place with many motels, a few liquor stores, a quiet suburb and not much more. I didn't go into the UMD campus but I am sure there are things to do there if you are in a sports team or if you join some student club or organization. And of course, the shuttle bus from the CP campus to the metro station is a short ride (I think many students walk/bike) to the metro and in 15 mins you are in the center of DC (which is anything BUT boring), so I would have to disagree, Maryland may be boring but since DC is so close, UMD CP is in a great location and offers its students lots to do.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, I am pretty sure I will get rejected from UMD-CP in a few days time but I still think it's a great school with a great business program and an awesome location.</p>
<p>you guys should stop cising up dc. You will not have enough time to go there and it is like a 1 hr ride from the metro because of all the stops. DC is really overrated and i don't know why people think it is so great</p>
<p>Whatever you say, you do live in Maryland after all. And it definitely didn't take an hour to get to DC when I stayed there, and that was during the summer.</p>
<p>My DH and I dated while he was there. I went to another college, so when I went to visit him we had very little funds. I can't count how many times we spent the whole day on the mall in DC (prior to the metro), or walking the campus at night. Yes we also went to the VOO and the cellar :), I will never forget Bullet saying you need to bring a pair of shoes you'll never wear again with you this time...huh :D, We also went to many football games and to Baltimore Inner Harbor. I look at UMD as my alma mater since I spent many weekends there over the course of 4 years and actually liked it better than where I went. Our children also love the campus and we have taken them there several times, the last time was for the UVA football game :( </p>
<p>My DS is now applying to UMD...and will be happy to go</p>
<p>Thank you to those of you who have helpfully posted your experiences with UMD! Keep 'em coming!</p>
<p>pima - what is VOO and the cellar? Clue me in, LOL!</p>
<p>Haha, V3ndetta is such a troll. "It takes an hour to get to DC from the metro because of all the stops," my a**! DC is like 3 stops from CP...which is like a 1 minute ride, not a 1 hr ride!</p>
<p>Also, DC is a really fun city, if you take the time to explore it. </p>
<p>V3ndetta sounds a lot like many of the kids who were itching to get out of state because Maryland is "boring" and they've "lived there all their life." Most of these kids came from the suburbs and haven't experienced half of what Maryland has to offer. It is an immature point of view, and it's not going to take them far in life...</p>
<p>lol i am a troll? i live in montgomery county, the richest county of the state and closest to Washington DC. You are adults and do not know how it feels to be a teenager. My county has the most to offer in the state, and you guys think DC is so amazing, which it isnt and overrated</p>