University of Maryland-College Park Top Questions

Very rigorous/challenging, but definitely worth it. I am an engineering major, so i am glad that the academics is rather challenging because i am learning a lot.

The students are competitive, true, however the teachers that I have encountered have shown no favoritism, and are willing to help everyone.

This school is very challenging academically. Time spent in class is never enough to fully understand the material presented in lecture and often times it is necessary to read both before and after the class. Many professors take the time to learn students' names and if the class is too big, then the TA's make double the effort to get to know students. I once had a Professor who took the time to learn everyone's name before the class had even started by looking at their University ID pictures. Not all of the effort comes from the teacher, however, many students make study groups outside of class using contact information provided by the University. Many people ask questions in class, even lectures containing over 400 students. There are many academic societies within the school including a pre-Med society and a Psychology Honors Society. There are many chances to meet with people within one's major and meeting with the faculty outside of class is not difficult either. I have personally met with some of my professors and they are good to talk to for questions about the class or about their own career goals. The University of Maryland may have difficult classes but the knowledge and rewards that one gains is worth the hard work.

The academics here are pretty flexible. There is a class for every interest. Students are always studying, which makes a great learning environment. Professors will know your name in a large lecture hall if you gain there attention or tell them your name. Students are very competitive, which only brings out the best in everyone.

The academics are typical of a big school. Yes, as an underclassman, you may find yourself in a classroom with a couple hundred people. However, classes with these big lectures will always have a discussion section with about 20 people in them, usually taught by a graduate student. The professor will also have office hours which you can go visit and ask them questions. Also, even when you are in a big lecture, it is ok to ask questions during class. As you move higher up in your major, the class size goes down to about 20-30 people. There are a great range of classes that students can take at Maryland. Some of my favorite classes have been my electives which have nothing to do with my major. Maryland isn't a liberal arts school, but still has a set of general education requirements that every student has to fulfill, regardless of major. I don't feel that classes are Maryland are competitive. However, the level of difficulty and time spent studying greatly depends on your major.

Starting answering!My major is government/politics, with a minor in international development and conflict management. Honestly, all of the classes I have taken for my major have been fantastic. The professors are always willing to work with you and are also well versed on their subjects.

The University of Maryland is a research-based school. So there is no doubt that there academics will keep you challenged all year long. Entering freshman year, I realized the enormous class sizes with lecture halls filled with 250+ students. It was a little intimidating at times but eventually I got used to it. Only a couple of professors know my name but I try to sit near the front of the class at least to show my face. I believe students in my classes are competitive. They will do whatever it takes to get good grades and surpass their classmates. Many students utilize office hours, guided study sessions (GSS), and organize study groups with friends. Also, the site www.koofers.com offers past exams and answers keys which help students prepare for upcoming tests. I am currently a biology major so I have mainly taken introductory biology courses and chemistry courses. The most unique course I have taken was 'History of Sports in America'. While the title sounds interesting, the class was harder than I expected. I believe the academic requirements for my major are manageable and they definitely prepare their students for future jobs/grad school.

At the University of Maryland, College Park, most of my professors did not know my name. However, this didn't bother me at all because my TA's (teaching assistants) knew my name and even more about me! My teaching assistants cared a lot about me and actually wanted me to succeed. My favorite class at College Park was my Comm 107 class, mostly because of the professor that I had. He was such a passionate professor that cared so much about his students. He was the type of professor that realized that teaching has more of a purpose than teaching for the test. He taught his students for life. We learned valuable communication skills that will be beneficial for job interviews. The worst class that I have ever taken was BSCI 120. Let me make something clear. This class was my least favorite class because of my professor. She did not want to help her students, and would not answer emails. The style of her teaching was very raw and boring. Her lecture were forced out of her mouth and she was not passionate at all. The material itself was very interesting, but the professor was rude and unfair. It is important for students to research their professor before they pick the classes they are going to register for. Since I was a transfer student, I had last pick of classes and professors! My major is currently Letters & Sciences. However, I plan on applying to the Communication school after my second semester of my sophomore year. If I was not a transfer student, I would already be in the Communication school. Once I get into the school, I plan on following the Public Relations track. Social media highly interests me, and I also want to make sure that I have a job where I can be creative! That is why I am going to take around six art classes, so that I can put it as my minor on my resume. I don't want to minor in Art History, so I talked to my advisor and asked him what classes I would have to take in order to minor in Art. It is crucial that students realize they can minor in whatever they want to. By making a simple advising appointment with my advisor, I was able to realize that I can take four to six art classes and just write Art as my minor on my resume. I do not spend time with my professors outside of class. Unless I go to their office hours to discuss a question, I feel like it is kind of awkward to do that. For the most part, professors at Maryland are always available to discuss any concerns that a student may have. Office hours tend to be flexible as well. TA's also make themselves available to students if they have specific questions or need extra help. University of Maryland's academic requirements are very reasonable. I can give you a very specific example of why their requirements are reasonable. My boyfriend, a sophomore, is currently a Communication major. He plans on applying to the Business school soon, and has made a map of what classes he will need to take to graduate on time. He can double major and still graduate in four years. If this isn't reasonable, I'm not sure what is! At Maryland, most lectures are geared towards learning for its own sake, not towards getting a job. However, this is such a broad and vague statement. It is too hard to generalize and say that every class is geared toward getting a job, or vice versa. Overall, I would say that classes integrate real life experiences and learning experiences as well.

You're going to take more than a couple basic level classes with hundreds of students in one lecture hall and a weekly section taught by a foreign TA, though all of my TAs have been really knowledgeable and great. Students study, sure, but most students do about 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of their studying the several days leading up to the exam, and alot of people skip alot of class. If you're an engineering major, don't expect to graduate with a major above 3.0.

UMD ranked 8th among four-year institutions for providing outstanding education at an affordable price for in-state students and 10th for out-of-state in the top 10 of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine's list of Best Values in Public Colleges for 2011-12. This alone shows UMD's high standing academic values. -As I have only completed two semesters here at UMD (fall and winter) I have taken a limited number of classes. Despite this, I have met many professors and been exposed to a great deal of the academic programs here at UMD. In the major introductory classes with 200-300 people (and also depending on the professor) your teacher may or may not know your name. This truly depends on whether you seek them out, introduce yourself, attend their office hours, and/or make an effort not to be just another student out of the 300. I did meet with some of my professors out of the classroom, but for serious subjects such as Biology and Chemistry. For other classes such as Sociology and English I did not feel the need to meet with my instructors, but I am certain that had I wanted to they would have made sure to meet with me. -The most interesting class that I have taken is "MUSC205 History of Popular Music, 1950-Present". My teacher is young, interesting, very knowledgeable and I truly enjoy attending this class every day. This is also the most unique class that I have taken. My least favorite class was English101 as the curriculum is so standardized it seems like you are not there to learn, but only to fulfill a CORE requirement as a student here at UMD. -I would say that class participation is very common- both by students and teachers. I have not taken a class yet where I felt as though I couldn't ask a question if I needed to or voice my opinion on a discussion topic. -I can only truly speak for myself about study habits, but one may be assured that at all hours of the day students can be found studying at McKeldin (the main library). There is never a time where I do not have to study. That doesn't mean that I always DO study, but there is always material to review and new information to learn. I believe that many students do have intellectual conversations outside of the classroom. Walking through a cafeteria it is likely that one would hear academic discussions about coursework, teachers, homework, academic programs, etc. -It is safe to say that if you are a student at UMD, you are competitive. You wouldn't attend this college if you weren't competitive. Some 20,000 people applied for admission this past year and only about 5,000 were accepted. There is not a doubt in my mind that students here are competitive, but it is not something that you deal with on a day to day basis in classes or when interacting with other students. -I am currently following the Pre-Pharmacy track here at Maryland as they do not offer this as a major. It is a career pathway that will prepare me for pharmacy school and my future career, but I have decided as of recently to declare my actual major as chemistry. I find this subject very interesting and, not to mention, pharmacists make a lot of money!! -UMD is a tough school, it's as simple as that. The academic requirements for all students are referred to as CORE classes- they are supposed to expose you to different academic subjects and allow students to take a broad range of courses, all of which are informative challenging. This is a nice touch to the college experience, but in my opinion I would rather save my time and money and take only classes that I need to graduate and move onto my career. I feel that at UMD the main educational focuses are geared toward both obtaining a job and gaining a solid education. The teachers and professors that work for this institute are no joke...they know what they're talking about! They want you to learn for your own benefit and for that of your future.