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College and University Discussion
University of Maryland - what's right and what's wrong about it?
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Anonymous
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I'm a foreign national living in MD with a European University education. I would love to hear people's thoughts on UMD in terms of those who have attended themselves, or their kids are currently attending.
I'd particularly like to hear about academic rigor. I've seen the website, I know the breakdown of courses offered, I'd like to know how good they are, particularly journalism, history and english. Thanks. |
Anonymous
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Journalism is excellent (can't comment on the other 2)
Much of the general comments are outdated. UMD is much better and more rigorous than it was 25 15 even 5 years ago. Solid honors program as well |
Anonymous
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Excellent school @ reasonable cost (for in-state students anyway.)
Only downside (for some) is there is no "hand-holding" for students. It's sink or swim kinda school. |
Anonymous
| Huge school with varying degrees so you won't get one single answer. Agree with PP that it's sink or swim given its size. I've gotten to known graduates from both ends of the spectrum--high achieving professionals and bottom-dwellers who majored in partying. |
Anonymous
| If your student is proactive in her education, you can get as good an education here as anywhere. If your kid wants to do the minimum possible, it may not be the best place. |
Anonymous
I always assumed the handholding stopped after HS for all college students... Apart from maybe a junior college. |
Anonymous
No, sadly it still continues in certain colleges. Colleges and parents who pay 60-70k/year don't want to see kids fail/drop out. At UMD, if your kid drops out, well, he drops out. Someone will take his place tomorrow. |
Anonymous
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"I always assumed the handholding stopped after HS for all college students... Apart from maybe a junior college."
There are lots of different types of handholding. Many schools do things like testing to see if students are starting in the correct level math class rather than just taking the 4 on your AP test and throwing you into the meat grinder way they teach math compared to HS. These days many schools have also watered down classes so that to get an A all you have to do is to learn 90% of the material taught rather than test you on as much as they can claim you should have read in the book. No matter how you slice it, in a class with one professor and 30 students, there is more handholding going on than in a class with one professor and 250 students. Even things like bothering to distribute questions equally around the classroom is a type of handholding. |
Anonymous
| When I went to a few sessions at U-MD Day in February, they stressed how each student was assigned an advisor and they meet with them at least once a quarter. Does this not happen, or is this not very helpful? |
Anonymous
I am the OP and I read about this as well. It sounds like perfectly normal, standard practice. |
Anonymous
You can schedule/meet with an advisor when you want/need to but if you don't show or schedule, it's on you. They won't call you. Forces kids to grow up (or drop out) real fast. |
Anonymous
| Anyone else who can comment on the quality of the teaching and the courses and not dwell so much on the abstract concepts of hand holding or not. Thanks for those who have contributed so far but I'd love to get back on track and not be sidelined into that. Thanks. |
Anonymous
I was under the impression that every student is assigned an academic advisor. Some are more attentive than others. When I went to UMBC many years ago, my advisor had to sign my course selections before I could register for the next semester. I was initially assigned a random advisor. She wasn't even familiar with the course catalog. I walked into the department of my major and asked a professor I liked to be my advisor. He agreed. By the way, the University of Maryland has several campuses. The main one is in College Park and is huge. The one I went to in Baltimore County (UMBC) is smaller and has an excellent reputation for STEM majors. Great school! |
Anonymous
Support is not the same as "hand-holding." Support means prioritizing student development. http://www.gallup.com/poll/168848/life-college-matters-life-college.aspx In a nutshell, this study shows that for college to have a lasting, positive impact on students’ lives, several key things need to occur: First, early in their academic career students have to connect to a faculty member who cares about them, connects with them, and knows how to catalyze them in ways that help them to become academically engaged, excited and confident. In other words, students need a faculty mentor. Second, students have to be involved in a co-curricular activity in some depth and across time, allowing them to develop good management, leadership and life skills, values and habits. And third, students need an opportunity to pull everything together through some type of experiential opportunity — research projects, capstone experiences, internships, and so forth. Another piece of research comes from the sociologists Dan Chambliss and Christopher Takacs, who spent 10 years following 100 students through a liberal arts college. The data forms the basis for their book, How College Works. http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674049024 What they find is that education is a relational process. A key passage states: People, far more than programs, majors or classes, are decisive in students’ experiences of college. … So students who want to both enjoy college and get the most from it in the long run must find at least a few good friends, and a couple of great teachers. A great mentor — a trusted adult advisor, if one can be found, adds a tremendous advantage. (How College Works, p.163) But perhaps the most interesting statement in the book is, “College works when it provides a thick environment of constant feedback, driven by the establishment and maintenance of social relationships.” It’s pretty simple. Students need to be in an environment with plenty of face-to-face relationships with faculty, peers, and others. Writing improves when professors sit with a student and go over the prose. Speaking improves when a student is in small classes and must engage. Ethical development comes when students confront and learn to resolve personal conflicts with their peers. All of this can be found at UMD, but a student needs to be proactive about it in such a large environment - it's easier to find at e.g. a SLAC. |
Anonymous
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Right: lots of things
Wrong: college park is so ugly and depressing. Looks like a war zone a few miles off campus. Student body is too large. Needs to reduce by 50%. Feels like Walmart sometimes Solution - cut student body size by half, invest in campus and surroundings to make it look like boulder |