University of Maryland-College Park Top Questions

Starting answering!This college has the chillest students ever. Students sometimes show up to class wearing pajamas. One aspect I love about this campus is its diversity.

The majority of students at UMD are from DC, Maryland, New York (the main city or Long Island), and New Jersey. Of course, there are tons of students from other states...but the majority of people that you will talk to are from those places. There are so many students here from different backgrounds, heritages, countries, and everything in between that it is difficult to classify them under one category. The only way to do this would be to call them all TERPS! We all love Maryland and that makes us all the same. No student would be out of place here as this is not high school. You don't need to be accepted by anyone to be a student at UMD. People wear all types of clothing to class. In general here are some guidelines: Girls: -leggings/sweatpants -hoodie/sweatshirt -jeans -t shirts -comfortable clothes -cute outfits -NO party/club wear or heels (some girls do wear heels and all I can think when looking at them is "Take those heels off, everyone knows how badly your feet hurt" lol) Guys: -jeans -sweatpants -t shirt -hoodie/sweatshirt -chill clothes -stylish outfits Obviously anyone can wear whatever they'd like but these things are what most students wear to class. Many students come from wealthy families and many come from families with an average income. You will find that those students living at The View or The Varsity are typically wealthier as those housing options are quite costly (so worth it!!!) but this is not always the case. Also, many students involved with Greek Life come from wealthier families...but again, these are all generalizations. Wealth is not a factor that determines whether you make friends or how well succeed at UMD. All types of students interact with one another, especially in the classroom. Not only in discussions or by participating in class, but classes are a great way to meet people who are from different areas, clubs/organizations, and people who will be your lifelong friends. I met two of my best friends in my classes...and countless other people who I am friends with!

My classmates are some of the most intelligent, decicated, and focused people I have ever met,

My classmates are very grade-conscious and will not hesitate to form study groups in order to do well.

There are a wide variety of clubs and organizations on campus. When I walk past the student union, I tend to see LGBT groups promoting themselves to students on campus. In classroom settings, my professors also tend to bring up LGBT topics, racial topics, etc. I do not believe that any student would feel out of place at the University of Maryland, College Park. With such a large amount of students on campus, there is bound to be a large amount of diverse students. I pass a different type of ethnicity every time I walk to class. It is quite amazing what a college campus can do. Maryland brings together so many different cultures and allows students to realize that their race is not the only one. For example, if a student came from a rural town with all caucasians and got accepted into the University of Maryland, this student would come to realize that there are a lot of other races that exist! Sometimes students get narrow minded because of being surrounded with the same type of people. At Maryland, students can also become actively involved and politically aware through clubs and organizations. For the most part, students will see that Maryland is more of a liberal college, leaning towards the left. Students tend to bring up the fact that since they attend Maryland, they will automatically make a decent amount of money. For the most part I would say that this is true. However, it definitely is not a guaranteed thing that students who go to Maryland will automatically make a lot of money. Maryland just provides its students with an amazing education and the right resources to succeed.

UMCP has a diverse campus - you meet students from all racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds. Students are friendly, approchable and helpful. You also meet a lot of out-of-state and international students on campus.

Just as I specified in the "stereotype" question - there is a diverse culture here in College Park. There are African Americans, caucasians, latinos, asians, straights, gays, rich, working class, in-staters, and out-of-staters. As at most colleges, our campus is fairly liberal. There are clubs however for all political parties including Democratic and Republican.

We're all here. Jocks, frat boys, nerds, internationals, stoners on stoners on stoners. This place is huge and increasingly heterogenous; you can always find what you're looking for.

With such a large student population, there is a good chance that whatever people you're looking to hang out with, you'll find them. The number of student organizations accurately reflects the wide array of student interests and advocacy initiatives, from supporting the LGBTQ community to educating college students about sexual health, from growing food on rooftops to playing Starcraft. Although Maryland is a state university, there are a considerable number of students from out-of-state. This only adds to the diversity of Maryland's student portait. Even in my own group of friends, half are working to put themselves through college, several are intensely politically active, most are incredibly involved in at least three organizations on campus, while a few are extremely focused on academics but little else. Having such a great variety of students around is one of Maryland's strengths--you can have as many friends as you want, in as many different places as you like.

A lot of people in greek life and on athletic teams, but you find your group of friends that fits you best.