College of the Day: University of Maryland

University of Maryland

Quick Facts:

Location: College Park, MD

Established:1856

Students Enrolled: 32,098

Applicants: 25,239

Male/Female Ratio: 53/47

The University of Maryland is a large college with a great deal of diversity and many different course offerings to suit a multitude of students. Maryland's 1,200 acre campus is located about eight miles outside of Washington, D.C. Students can easily access D.C. by the metro system if they need to get away from College Park's suburban campus. 

Maryland has many renowned programs; the best being engineering, physics, computer science, the Robert H. Smith School of Business, and the Phillip Merrill College of Journalism. The coursework is challenging, but the university provides bountiful resources for students to make it easier.  Class size is large in the lower level courses, but weekly discussions with teaching assistants allows students to get more personal attention.  Upper level courses typically have 20-40 students. 

Student Life:

The majority of the university's students are Maryland natives, but New York and New Jersey also have a sizable representation. Forty-seven percent of students choose to live on campus in student housing. Freshmen are guaranteed a room on campus. Most upperclassman choose to live off campus, but if students stay on campus all four years, they get major room upgrades.  

University of Maryland has had a party school reputation in the past, but has more recently become more of a haven for those who want to study.  Alcohol is banned for anyone under 21.  Recent crackdowns have curbed the amount of alcohol on campus.  Social life on campus is very lively with plenty of events such as concerts, movies, and speakers.  Greek life is fairly popular for Maryland students with fifteen percent of students going Greek.

Men's basketball is highly popular on campus and students take great pride in their team.  School spirit runs throughout the campus during basketball season.  Maryland's women's lacrosse, volleyball, and basketball teams are also very successful.  The school also offers an array of intramural and club-level sports for students to participate in. 

Applying:

If you are interested in applying to the University of Maryland you should have a Critical Reading SAT score of 580-690 and a Math SAT Score of 610-720. Maryland typically has at least 25,000 applicants each year with only 47% of applicants being accepted.  

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 Source: Fiske, Edward B. "University of Maryland." Fiske Guide to Colleges. Vol. 2015. N.p: 438-439. Print