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The University of Maryland - College Park

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TURTLE. my home
5th Year Male -- Class 2005
Campus Aesthetics: A, Surrounding City: D+
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I originally did not want to go toQuite Bright
I originally did not want to go to University, but because they offered me a full ride plus book money, I ended up attending my state college.

I do regret this choice at all. I think that the campus is absolutely beautiful. The surrounding city is not very pretty or safe, but the campus itself is beautiful, with many flowers and trees.

I do honestly have to say though that I do not think I would be as happy here if I did not join a sorority. The social life is great if you know the right people. People are friendly. The people in my classes are approachable.Classes are definately challenging. All classes are taught by professors, but TAs are allowed to run the discussion classes. Professors are required to hold office hours so you can go and ask questions. Most professors post their classes powerpoint slides online so you also have access to that.

3rd Year Female -- Class 2009
Social Life: A+, Perceived Campus Safety: F
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I was pleasantly surprised by this school's amazingQuite Bright
I was pleasantly surprised by this school's amazing facilities. So many student organizations exist. Teaching is not too great overall. Many good lectures though, but not a teaching school-my gpa reflects this. I have needed better explanations than what I've gotten and my opinion is you shouldn't have to go to office hours to get this. A good source for teacher reviews is pickaprof.com

The bad part of this school is the students. I was shocked by the lack of cute guys who attend here. In terms of the white guys, they all look like geeks! To me, girls who wouldn't have given these guys a second glance in high school, do nothing all day, then get all dressed up starting 10pm just to go to a bar and get attention from them. The few cute guys this campus has have a girlfriend or have so many girls all over them all the time because they are in such short supply!

I heard that in college you can be yourself but at this school, you really can't. Drinking dominates. Maybe it's like this at most schools, but weekends, evenings, it's all drinking. This school has something like 11% of students in sororities, but the mentality (getting drunk, being hard to deal with, casual relationships, etc.) is more like 90% of the girls. It is unbelievable to me how students who had high gpas in hs and so many extracirriculars then only care about drinking and grades in college. If you don't drink, no one wants anything to do with you. If you don't drink or aren't a hard core Christian, it is very hard to find a niche, because you don't fit anywhere!

Besides alcohol and grades, students also care for one more thing...sports! Basketball and football are big here. Students get drunk before games, go to the game, and scream the whole time they are there. Again, geeky guys cheering for the jocks so a little bit of a puzzle and girls who like to watch 4 hours of football...interesting. More watchable sports to me like baseball and golf are not supported by the students at all. Students also play intermurals, but for the most part, you need a team when you sign up and you have to be good, so playing for fun or to learn isn't really an option.

The area closest to the school is DC. DC is grimy and unsafe mostly. PG county is also unsafe. Students can take the metro to get to DC or some places in PG or Montgomery County, Maryland. Word of advice: try not to get off anywhere on the green line, except to change stops because the areas are not safe at all. Bethesda is the best place, most clean and safe, to go. Dupont Circle is alright too, lot of business / government people work there. Many students go to Georgetown to shop, but you have to take a bus from the metro to get there, which eats up a lot of time. It's better to go to Union Station, stores are right at that station. Arlington, VA is 35 minutes by metro and is a nice area with a good mall right there.

Overall, so many opportunities exist at this university. It is just a shame more students don't take advantage because with a lot of fun things the university offers, such as clubs where you can go on trips: sailing, surfing, white water rafting, hiking, etc. a person can't really go by themself. Because students can join or start clubs, it is very easy to grow in leadership skills which I have immensely--did nothing in hs, have an unbelievable resume right now.

3rd Year Female -- Class 2006
University Resource Use/ spending: A+, Surrounding City: D
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The University of Maryland - College Park
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