MD In-state options beyond College Park

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish my child liked SMCM better. They gave significant merit aid for in-state and it would be the cheapest of all accepted schools to attend. But, the location is a deal breaker for my kid who wants an urban setting. SMCM is a great school for the right kid.

OP here. Thanks for the input. Do you mind sharing where you are looking instead?
Are there any restaurants or retail walkable from the St. Mary’s campus?

I honestly don’t think there is anything walkable. After we toured there, I looked in the GPS for restaurants and the closest was in a gas station about a mile away. There is a strip mall with typical stores (Target, grocery, fast food, etc.) about 10-15 minutes drive away. I went to an isolated college and loved it but my child wasn’t a fan. The campus is truly beautiful.

Schools accepted to include W&M, UMD, and a few smaller Catholic colleges in cities.

Hi OP, congrats on making it through 16 pages of this! I am the one with a kid at both UMD and St. Mary’s. The above PP is correct that there are no stores within walking distance (unless you count the gift shop and the cute new bakery in Historic St. Mary’s). This is why it is so important for your kid to figure out what they want in a school. St. Mary’s is bordered by woods, Historic St. Mary’s City, and the river so it is an amazing location for someone who wants to have close access to nature and beautiful places to walk around but is not the place for a kid who wants tons of walkable off campus dining and shopping options. As PP noted, there are plenty of shopping and dining options that are not that far away. My DS has a car now so it is very easy for him to make a Chipotle or Target run when he wants. Before he had a car, he never had a problem getting a ride with a friend into town. There are also shopping shuttles on the weekend and the school is on a public bus route that goes to Lexington Park. The convenience store on campus carries all the essentials, students run the free store (kind of like a thrift shop where everything is free!), and of course there is always Amazon. One benefit of the lack of walkable dining is that my DS has spent very little of his money on food compared with my kid at UMD! Another benefit is that students at St. Mary’s tend to stick around on campus and hang out by the river, the fire pits, or the school pub which serves food late at night once the dining hall is closed. But again, your DS really needs to prioritize what is important so he finds a school in a location where he will be happy.

[Anonymous]

Can somebody speak about the honors program at Towson? We visited UMBC and did not like the feel of it. My DS wants to study Computer Sci.

[Anonymous]

Bump

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UMD is $23,024 for just tuition and room/board.
UMD is $26,796 when you include books/supplies ($1,250) and transportation/other costs ($2,522).

I'm confused about why it would cost my child $2,522 to travel to a college 20 minutes from my home. If she wants to go out to a restaurant, that's on her.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMD is $23,024 for just tuition and room/board.
UMD is $26,796 when you include books/supplies ($1,250) and transportation/other costs ($2,522).

I'm confused about why it would cost my child $2,522 to travel to a college 20 minutes from my home. If she wants to go out to a restaurant, that's on her.

It’s an estimated full cost of attending. You don’t pay that to school

[Anonymous]

DD just got offered a nice scholarship to UMBC. Anyone know anything about their Scholars Day?

[Anonymous]

My biggest concern about UMBC is that only 35% or so graduate in 6 years. I've heard about many successful UMBC graduates (friends of friends). My coworkers who had kids who went to UMBC struggled and didn't graduate for many years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My biggest concern about UMBC is that only 35% or so graduate in 6 years. I've heard about many successful UMBC graduates (friends of friends). My coworkers who had kids who went to UMBC struggled and didn't graduate for many years.

Not true. Closer to 65%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My biggest concern about UMBC is that only 35% or so graduate in 6 years. I've heard about many successful UMBC graduates (friends of friends). My coworkers who had kids who went to UMBC struggled and didn't graduate for many years.

Not true. Closer to 65%.

Every kid I know who attended UMBC graduated in 4yrs. These were all fresh out of high school students whose parents were paying/helping to pay for college costs.

[Anonymous]

OP here. DC is in at UMBC and waiting to hear from UMCP. Would not even tour St. Mary’s, Salisbury or Towson based on perceptions about HS classmates who attend those schools.

With a 1440 SAT, a 3.5 GPA through junior year and a 4.3 GPA senior year, it will be interesting to see where kiddo lands.

Thanks for all the input.

[Anonymous]

Loyola in Baltimore Maryland gives very good Merit Aid and a great alternative for a small private school at a good price.

Don’t look at sticker price as the merit is good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My biggest concern about UMBC is that only 35% or so graduate in 6 years. I've heard about many successful UMBC graduates (friends of friends). My coworkers who had kids who went to UMBC struggled and didn't graduate for many years.

There are a lot of transfers from UMBC to College Park (or elsewhere). CP cohorts grow from ~5000 freshmen to ~12,000 graduates. There are some fields of study where UMBC has grown and are now provide a strong 4 year degree. Others seem weaker and for students that are decided about what they want. I wouldn't worry about graduation rate - that's driven more by student and circumstances factors, and not the school.

[Anonymous]

Some kids may have to transfer from UMBC to UM Baltimore for programs like Nursing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DC is in at UMBC and waiting to hear from UMCP. Would not even tour St. Mary’s, Salisbury or Towson based on perceptions about HS classmates who attend those schools.

With a 1440 SAT, a 3.5 GPA through junior year and a 4.3 GPA senior year, it will be interesting to see where kiddo lands.

Thanks for all the input.

Really? I find St. Mary's grads to be very interesting and thoughtful when I bring them in for interviews. Towson has a well-regarding teaching program for students who wish to pursue that path.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. DC is in at UMBC and waiting to hear from UMCP. Would not even tour St. Mary’s, Salisbury or Towson based on perceptions about HS classmates who attend those schools.

With a 1440 SAT, a 3.5 GPA through junior year and a 4.3 GPA senior year, it will be interesting to see where kiddo lands.

Thanks for all the input.

Really? I find St. Mary's grads to be very interesting and thoughtful when I bring them in for interviews. Towson has a well-regarding teaching program for students who wish to pursue that path.

DP here. I was going to ask about the St. Mary's comment too. My daughter visited and really liked it. She didn't apply to any other in state schools, although she had the stats for UMD. I was curious about what the PP meant?