Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

They could have exactly the same classes at exactly the same times with exactly the same instructors, without labeling them "Freshman Connection".

What? Call it Spring Admit? I don't understand your issues with Freshman Connection.

No, just admit them as regular fall admission, instead of as fall admission with an asterisk.

Ok. So we are back to the space issues - not all FC students start in the fall by shuffling a bulk of students to spring helps to alleviate classroom and dorm crowding.......the solution is not unique to UMD CP.

Anonymous wrote:Maryland has only one top-tier public program: UMD. The UMD term can be used by UM, College Park, or UM, Baltimore, which do not have overlapping degrees. While there are definitely other good public colleges in Maryland, they are markedly lower caliber. UMBC, St. Mary's, and Towson are decent options.

UMCP programs with competitive admissions generally require that you start them as a freshman, which means you cannot transfer in after attending MC. However, there are plenty of other top programs at UMCP that are not competitive or take transfer students. That can be an excellent route to save money, too.

My friends kid did two years at CC then transferred into engineering. What programs are you talking about? CS?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

They could have exactly the same classes at exactly the same times with exactly the same instructors, without labeling them "Freshman Connection".

What? Call it Spring Admit? I don't understand your issues with Freshman Connection.

No, just admit them as regular fall admission, instead of as fall admission with an asterisk.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

They could have exactly the same classes at exactly the same times with exactly the same instructors, without labeling them "Freshman Connection".

What? Call it Spring Admit? I don't understand your issues with Freshman Connection.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

They could have exactly the same classes at exactly the same times with exactly the same instructors, without labeling them "Freshman Connection".

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I ask again, as I did before: who's teaching the FC classes? My kid isn't going there, so I'm confused as to why more of you who are happy about your kids going there aren't asking this, or wondering.

1.) Same prof teaching the regular class? (Doubling their workload?
2.) Same TA teaching the regular class? ". "
3.) Different prof or TA?

What determines who teaches what?

Again, I don't think you understand how classes are assigned at UMD. Professors don't "double" their workload, UMD establishes a baseline University instructional load of 5 course units (1 unit=3 credit hours) for tenured and tenure track faculty. Faculty can "buy-out" classes that reduces their instructional load. FC instructors are assigned just as they are for "regular" classes - so a student could have a regular Professor, a TA etc depending on the unit and class.

I don't have a dog in this fight, but I would note that the above describes the course assignment process well. But at most universities and in most depts, there are some courses that are more 'desirable' to teach than others, and the result is that the tenured/tenure-track faculty are often assigned those courses and what is left over is given to others. (UMD has a big contingent of teaching faculty, who are often better teachers than tenured/tenure track faculty... so having a tenured faculty member isn't necessarily better than having someone else.).

I've no idea if FC courses are more/less desirable than other courses in terms of faculty preferences. It usually has to do with whether a faculty member can teach multiple sections of the same course (one preparation), and sometimes timing (faculty are generally fine with a 3pm course, but if they go into evenings, they may be viewed as less desirable). Also, it's often easier to get adjuncts for evening classes.

Having said all of this, I would point out that we're only talking about one semester of their college career, and probably there's not much difference in instructor quality.

Anonymous wrote:I ask again, as I did before: who's teaching the FC classes? My kid isn't going there, so I'm confused as to why more of you who are happy about your kids going there aren't asking this, or wondering.

1.) Same prof teaching the regular class? (Doubling their workload?
2.) Same TA teaching the regular class? ". "
3.) Different prof or TA?

What determines who teaches what?

Again, I don't think you understand how classes are assigned at UMD. Professors don't "double" their workload, UMD establishes a baseline University instructional load of 5 course units (1 unit=3 credit hours) for tenured and tenure track faculty. Faculty can "buy-out" classes that reduces their instructional load. FC instructors are assigned just as they are for "regular" classes - so a student could have a regular Professor, a TA etc depending on the unit and class.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

+1
UMD-CP is high demand and space limited. The choice is to have spring admits, with FC option, or to just have fewer admits.

I ask again, as I did before: who's teaching the FC classes? My kid isn't going there, so I'm confused as to why more of you who are happy about your kids going there aren't asking this, or wondering.

1.) Same prof teaching the regular class? (Doubling their workload?
2.) Same TA teaching the regular class? ". "
3.) Different prof or TA?

What determines who teaches what?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. I'm not sure you understand how class space is assigned at UMD. There are limited seats per space. Space depends on the needs of the class (intro classes are going to get priority in the Lecture classrooms. Labs need specialized spaces. There are only so many places on the UMD campus that can manage a large-scale lecture-style classroom. FC helps to offset the need for classroom spaces. Using the space at "off times" provides small classes for FC students and helps to balance out the class assignment challenges the University is trying to meet. The University’s on-grid standard class scheduling patterns allow for maximum access to class offerings for students and facilitate the most efficient use of classrooms.

Seminar Room – small classroom, generally 20 seats or fewer
General Purpose Classroom – medium size classroom, generally 21-80 seats
Lecture Hall – large lecture-style classroom, generally 81+ seats
Computer Classroom – classroom with computers for instructional use

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

Which is sensible from a fiscal standpoint and benefits students who want access.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

They could achieve exactly the same goals by simply admitting the FC students as regular students.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hearing about many MCPS kids rejected from UMD this year with stats that would have bene likely to be admitted in years prior. Anyone asked their school's counselors about this? Rumor mill suggests many less kids admitted.

Back in my day, you could be admitted to UMD if you showed up with a checkbook on course registration day.

Oh yes, I remember those days! Graduated high school in the mid-80s and Maryland was definitely not the choice for high performing kids who could afford to go elsewhere. Also, College Park was hardly an optimal "college town".

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

It allows them to pack more students in with full use of dorms and classrooms. Spring students can take the place of students going abroad, and night students can use regular classrooms. Educate more students with the same facilities.

Anonymous wrote:What's the benefit of FC to the school?

revenue