Anonymous wrote:So underwhelmed with Frostburg. And you need like a 2.0 to get in there, and it's cold. Like really, really cold. DD goes to Towson, and it is not suburban at all, quite the opposite. It's having a moment right now with some safety concerns... If your DD is interested in education or speech therapy or something, look no further than Towson.

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Anonymous wrote:OP here- to clarify, I was asking about in-state public schools. However, I am appreciative of some of the comments about our of state schools that might be brought down to similar costs due to aid. Thank you all!

Move to VA you will have more choice.

+100

So many more great schools

Like what?

Besides UVA/VT/W&M? GMU, JMU, VCU are all great schools, better than UMBC or Towson IMHO in terms of reputation and location. Depending on major or taste, CNU and ODU are also attractiive schools.

As PP noted, Virginia is a larger state with a more developed tertiary system. That makes for more variety in locations, although perhaps not in capacity relative to the population (which is why NOVA kids are increasingly headed to GMU/JMU/VCU).

This is a bit of an overstatement. Lots of VA state boosters here.

Virginia is a larger state but UMD basically functions as UVA and VT. By this I mean that unlike a state that separates the strongest tech from the strongest liberal arts (what VA and Indiana do, for ex), MD has the strongest engineering and liberal arts all in one university (like Michigan does).

Mason and Towson are very similar schools

VCU is a city school like UMBC but UMBC is stronger.

W&M is a public liberal arts school like St Mary's - Here, VA wins out and W&M is a stronger school.

JMU, ODU and CNU and such are tertiary schools - more like Frostburg and Salisbury. (JMU admissions is 80%, ODU admissions is 95%, CNU is 76.4%)

I agree with your general point about the systems, but I would align a couple of the schools differentlky. UMBC seems most similar to GMU- suburban, some commuters, emphasis on STEM, computer science, etc., dramatic recent improvements/investments. SMCM seems most like UMW. I think Towson fills a similar niche to JMU or VCU (perhaps without the arts emphasis). W&M is pretty unique and no other states have a school like that either. Both systems have a wide range of opportunities and serve their states pretty well.

VCU is linked to the Medical College of VA so, like UMBC, it has the medical majors of the state. VaTech is stronger at comp sci in VA (and UMd is stronger in MD).

Yes, UMBC has been saying it's getting stronger for the last 20 years but, really, the Meyerhoff Scholars Program is very, very selective and has brought prestige to the school. As a whole, it admits about 2/3 of its applicants. I

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Anonymous wrote:OP here- to clarify, I was asking about in-state public schools. However, I am appreciative of some of the comments about our of state schools that might be brought down to similar costs due to aid. Thank you all!

Move to VA you will have more choice.

+100

So many more great schools

Like what?

Besides UVA/VT/W&M? GMU, JMU, VCU are all great schools, better than UMBC or Towson IMHO in terms of reputation and location. Depending on major or taste, CNU and ODU are also attractiive schools.

As PP noted, Virginia is a larger state with a more developed tertiary system. That makes for more variety in locations, although perhaps not in capacity relative to the population (which is why NOVA kids are increasingly headed to GMU/JMU/VCU).

This is a bit of an overstatement. Lots of VA state boosters here.

Virginia is a larger state but UMD basically functions as UVA and VT. By this I mean that unlike a state that separates the strongest tech from the strongest liberal arts (what VA and Indiana do, for ex), MD has the strongest engineering and liberal arts all in one university (like Michigan does).

Mason and Towson are very similar schools

VCU is a city school like UMBC but UMBC is stronger.

W&M is a public liberal arts school like St Mary's - Here, VA wins out and W&M is a stronger school.

JMU, ODU and CNU and such are tertiary schools - more like Frostburg and Salisbury. (JMU admissions is 80%, ODU admissions is 95%, CNU is 76.4%)

I agree with your general point about the systems, but I would align a couple of the schools differentlky. UMBC seems most similar to GMU- suburban, some commuters, emphasis on STEM, computer science, etc., dramatic recent improvements/investments. SMCM seems most like UMW. I think Towson fills a similar niche to JMU or VCU (perhaps without the arts emphasis). W&M is pretty unique and no other states have a school like that either. Both systems have a wide range of opportunities and serve their states pretty well.

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Anonymous wrote:OP here- to clarify, I was asking about in-state public schools. However, I am appreciative of some of the comments about our of state schools that might be brought down to similar costs due to aid. Thank you all!

Move to VA you will have more choice.

+100

So many more great schools

Like what?

Besides UVA/VT/W&M? GMU, JMU, VCU are all great schools, better than UMBC or Towson IMHO in terms of reputation and location. Depending on major or taste, CNU and ODU are also attractiive schools.

As PP noted, Virginia is a larger state with a more developed tertiary system. That makes for more variety in locations, although perhaps not in capacity relative to the population (which is why NOVA kids are increasingly headed to GMU/JMU/VCU).

This is a bit of an overstatement. Lots of VA state boosters here.

Virginia is a larger state but UMD basically functions as UVA and VT. By this I mean that unlike a state that separates the strongest tech from the strongest liberal arts (what VA and Indiana do, for ex), MD has the strongest engineering and liberal arts all in one university (like Michigan does).

Mason and Towson are very similar schools

VCU is a city school like UMBC but UMBC is stronger.

W&M is a public liberal arts school like St Mary's - Here, VA wins out and W&M is a stronger school.

JMU, ODU and CNU and such are tertiary schools - more like Frostburg and Salisbury. (JMU admissions is 80%, ODU admissions is 95%, CNU is 76.4%)

Agree UMBC is stronger, but it is not a "city school." It's in Baltimore County, between Catonsville and Arbutus.

+1 UMBC on the rise in everything, esp b/c they give merit and so many qualified students not getting into UMD.

Nothing against UMBC but they've been saying that for at least 10 years, more like 15 maybe.

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Anonymous wrote:Pitt also gives good merit - brings the cost down tremendously

Kid who qualifies for merit at Pitt would probably get into UMD. My kid got into UMD but didn’t get merit aid for Pitt.

Anonymous wrote:Pitt also gives good merit - brings the cost down tremendously

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Anonymous wrote:As far as personalities...

Towson is a lot like GMU in VA: a pleasant campus in suburbia. Nothing like UMd or Florida State or even UCF.

Frostburg is a coherent campus but it's wayyyyy out in western MD and the academics aren't as strong.

St. Mary's is a liberal arts college way down by the water. It's gorgeous and a good deal if your child wants a slac, not a big uni.

UMBC is particularly well known for sciences and hosts the prestigious Meyerhoff Scholars program. It is where the health sciences majors are.

Native Marylander here and I agree with these descriptions. There is also Salisbury on the Eastern Shore - I believe the academics are similar to Frostburg - and also Morgan State, which is an HBCU.

As an alum, I will give a shout-out to SMCM. I went there way back when and loved it, but it is very small and in a very rural setting. It was life-changing for me in only the best ways.

I'm not sure that the bolded is true. Salisbury is know more for its business school, and is building up its health sciences programs as well.

Frostburg's admissions rate is 74%
Salisbury's admissions rate is 77.6%

Salisbury claims to have slightly higher SATs but it's a difficult comparison when so many schools accept kids without test scores.

Well, US News ranks Salisbury as "selective" and Frostburg as "less selective." Frostburg has an acceptance rate of 74%, and half the applicants admitted to Frostburg State University have an SAT score between 910 and 1130 or an ACT score of 17 and 24. Salisbury is "selective" with 78% acceptance rate and an early acceptance rate of 86.1%. Half the applicants admitted to Salisbury University have an SAT score between 1093 and 1268 or an ACT score of 20 and 24.

This is unscientific, but based on the people I know who go to to other Maryland schools, including Salisbury, UMBC, and Towson, very few of them apply to Frostburg.

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Anonymous wrote:As far as personalities...

Towson is a lot like GMU in VA: a pleasant campus in suburbia. Nothing like UMd or Florida State or even UCF.

Frostburg is a coherent campus but it's wayyyyy out in western MD and the academics aren't as strong.

St. Mary's is a liberal arts college way down by the water. It's gorgeous and a good deal if your child wants a slac, not a big uni.

UMBC is particularly well known for sciences and hosts the prestigious Meyerhoff Scholars program. It is where the health sciences majors are.

Native Marylander here and I agree with these descriptions. There is also Salisbury on the Eastern Shore - I believe the academics are similar to Frostburg - and also Morgan State, which is an HBCU.

As an alum, I will give a shout-out to SMCM. I went there way back when and loved it, but it is very small and in a very rural setting. It was life-changing for me in only the best ways.

I'm not sure that the bolded is true. Salisbury is know more for its business school, and is building up its health sciences programs as well.

Frostburg's admissions rate is 74%
Salisbury's admissions rate is 77.6%

Salisbury claims to have slightly higher SATs but it's a difficult comparison when so many schools accept kids without test scores.

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Anonymous wrote:My DD is a sophomore so we are just getting started at thinking about colleges. She is a good student, but not perfect, at a competitive MCPS school. Money wise, I think she will need to stay in state. It sounds like University of Maryland College Park might be too hard to get into. What are the personalities of the other in state schools

She does not know what she wants to major in, but wants the college experience.

Thank you for your help.

If she wants a small liberal arts college, SMCM is very good, pretty campus, in the middle of nowhere, but on the water so great if you like water sports. Not hard to get into, but they have a cutoff, so if your grades aren't good enough, you won't get in, even if they have space.

UMDCP isn't that hard to get into! If you want CS or Engineering, it's much harder, but for liberal arts, it's not impossible. If she's a B+ student with decent SATs, she has a good shot at UMDCP if she's planning on majoring in English or Sociology.

Salisbury and Towson are pretty much like CC, but a lot larger. Not academically challenging, and they accept pretty much everyone with a high school diploma. If your kid is a good student, I'd skip both of them.

UMDBC is fairly impressive, although the campus is UGLY. Ugh. My DD rejected it for that reason!! But I was impressed by the many programs, by the students, by the professors. It seems like a very solid school, definitely a cut above Towson or Salisbury.

I disagree about OOS merit aid if you're not going to a southern school like Alabama or Ole Miss or Florida, where you can get full rides if you're a decent student. But my kid completely rejected going to a large southern school. She's not into greek life, not a partier, not into football.

Liberal arts colleges (Dickinson, Muhlenberg, Juniata, etc.) will give your kid $20-30K in merit, but not enough to matchl in-state tuition in MD.

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here- to clarify, I was asking about in-state public schools. However, I am appreciative of some of the comments about our of state schools that might be brought down to similar costs due to aid. Thank you all!

Move to VA you will have more choice.

+100

So many more great schools

Like what?

Besides UVA/VT/W&M? GMU, JMU, VCU are all great schools, better than UMBC or Towson IMHO in terms of reputation and location. Depending on major or taste, CNU and ODU are also attractiive schools.

As PP noted, Virginia is a larger state with a more developed tertiary system. That makes for more variety in locations, although perhaps not in capacity relative to the population (which is why NOVA kids are increasingly headed to GMU/JMU/VCU).

This is a bit of an overstatement. Lots of VA state boosters here.

Virginia is a larger state but UMD basically functions as UVA and VT. By this I mean that unlike a state that separates the strongest tech from the strongest liberal arts (what VA and Indiana do, for ex), MD has the strongest engineering and liberal arts all in one university (like Michigan does).

Mason and Towson are very similar schools

VCU is a city school like UMBC but UMBC is stronger.

W&M is a public liberal arts school like St Mary's - Here, VA wins out and W&M is a stronger school.

JMU, ODU and CNU and such are tertiary schools - more like Frostburg and Salisbury. (JMU admissions is 80%, ODU admissions is 95%, CNU is 76.4%)

I agree with your general point about the systems, but I would align a couple of the schools differentlky. UMBC seems most similar to GMU- suburban, some commuters, emphasis on STEM, computer science, etc., dramatic recent improvements/investments. SMCM seems most like UMW. I think Towson fills a similar niche to JMU or VCU (perhaps without the arts emphasis). W&M is pretty unique and no other states have a school like that either. Both systems have a wide range of opportunities and serve their states pretty well.