Visit UMBC November 11th

Our admissions counselors visit hundreds of high schools during each season of recruitment travel.  From Maryland, to Connecticut, to South Korea – our staff does our best to inform students of the #1 Up-and-Coming National University, right here in Catonsville, MD.  Some of our visits to your high school may be your first point of contact with UMBC, but the most important contact will be your visit to us!

On Wednesday, November 11th, we’ll host a Visit Day for prospective freshmen (high school seniors and juniors).  The day will run from 8:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m. and all are welcome to take tours, attend workshops, sit it on classes, and ask dozens of questions.  If you already applied Early Action, or if you’re still mulling over the application before our Regular Decision deadline of February 1st, a campus visit is absolutely vital.

We may have the perfect academic major (54) to fit your interest.  We may have a national reputation.  We  may have the type of hands-on learning that gets our students jobs when they graduate.  But you don’t have to take my word for it…

Come register and see it for yourself!

 

Corporate Visibility Days

We’ve said it before but UMBC students do well when the graduate!  This is in part because of the resources that are available right here on campus.  One amazing office is the Career Services Center which hosts several corporate visibility days during the academic year.  Employers actually come to UMBC so students can network, learn about career opportunities and get an insiders perspective on the interview process.  Just take a look at the list of employers visiting with UMBC students.

On another note, the Early Action deadline was over the weekend (November 1) and we saw an amazing number of applications.  Early Action applicants can expect to receive an email in the next few weeks with directions on how to check the status of your application online.  EA applicants can also expect to receive a decision letter during mid-December.  The Regular Decision deadline for Freshmen applicants is February 1 so keep those applications coming!

As always, feel free to contact our office if you have questions.  You can also schedule a visit with UMBC if you would like to learn more about our campus.  Our next Visit Day is November 11, hope to see you there!

 

Check Out Our Spotlights!

Happy Friday once again, blog readers!  As the recruitment travel season winds down here in Undergraduate Admissions and we gear up for another fall application reading season, I wanted to take a moment to point out that while we’re all stressing about applications, deadlines, etc., there are a lot of fun things happening on our campus!

It’s easy this time of year for Admissions Counselors and prospective students alike to focus on applications, applications, applications, and not much else.  It’s refreshing, however, to remember that this is also a time of  year when campus life is in full-swing, and events ranging from Karaoke Night for Breast Cancer Awareness to an illustrated lecture on the Politics of Tourism Development in Tunisia are taking place on a daily basis. 

Want to get an idea of what events are coming up in the next couple weeks?  UMBC’s Spotlights give you a quick run-down of lots of upcoming student organization events, special lectures, performances, etc.  Browsing through Spotlights today I noticed, among other things, a Witchcraft 101 workshop where myths of witchcraft will be dispelled, an announcement about a new Blacksmith Club (see high school students, I told you we have a club for everything!), a notice about a Car-Free Challenge that’s asking people to avoid using their cars for one day this month, and a Raekwon concert ad.  Oh, and then I saw an ad for a Diwali celebration and another for a Procrastination Workshop.  I hate to sound like an infomercial here, but I think by just checking out this one site you’ll find there truly is something for everyone on this campus!  So keep an eye on everything we have to offer you outside the classroom and, as usual, let us know if you have any questions!

 

Spring 2010

When the Admissions Counselors are on the road during this time of year we are often focused on meeting with students interested in next Fall.  Meanwhile we leave the other UMBC Admissions staff back in the office to run the show, and among the many things they do to keep things operating smoothly is working with our Spring 2010 applicants.  The deadlines for Spring transfer applicants are coming up as quickly as the deadline for Fall 2010 applicants.  In fact, the Priority deadline for the Spring 2010 semester is November 1!  The same day as our Fall 2010 Early Action deadline!  Crazy!  Of course we also have a December 15 Regular Decision deadline for the Spring 2010 semester, but for full scholarship consideration it is recommended that transfer students apply by the November 1 Priority deadline.  More information about applying can be found here.

If you are a student who updated your application to the Spring 2010 term from the Fall 2009 term and we will be waiting for your Fall 2009 grades to make a decision, please send your transcripts once they are available.  We understand that often your transcripts are not available until after the December 15 deadline but as long as we have your other materials your application will still be considered for the Spring.

For those who have already applied for the Spring semester and completed your applications you can expect to hear from our office soon.  We will be sending out our first batch of Spring decision letters shortly so keep your eye on those mailboxes.

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On another note, be sure to check out our UMBC student bloggers: http://umbcretrievers.wordpress.com/

 

A Nationally Recognized Honors University in Maryland

This is beyond a tagline.  The definition of UMBC as an honors university in Maryland is now more resonant than ever before. There are 11 state schools in the University System of Maryland, and while  they all share a common pride in USM values – only UMBC sits among the national list of outliers, the schools that “do a much better job than others of teaching their undergraduate students.”

1. Dartmouth College

2. Princeton University

3. Yale University

4. UMBC

4. Stanford University

source: http://www.umbc.edu/bestcolleges/

Though rewarding, this ranking is no surprise to faculty and students at UMBC.  The proof is in the teaching.  We have a Howard Hughes Medical Investigator in Dr. Michael Summers.   His students and others at UMBC go on to pursue Master’s and Ph.D programs at schools like Harvard, Stanford, Duke, the University of Pennsylvania, M.I.T., Berkeley, Yale University, Johns Hopkins, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, and NYU.

We have a a mathematics professor who the New Yorker feels is capable of penning a  “sensuous, nuanced portrait of motherhood.”  That portrait is in Manil Suri’s bestselling novel, The Age of Shiva.  Dr. Suri is a tenured professor in the department of mathematics and statistics at UMBC.  I  can only imagine his lecture on the sensuous, nuanced portrait of numerical analysis.  His work captures the essence of liberal arts at UMBC.

These professors are just two of an all-star cast of faculty who UMBC trots out to their students every single year.  This is why UMBC is the number one public school in the country for teaching undergraduate students.  Our students then respond to the challenges of these endearing know-it-alls, and that is why UMBC is an honors university in Maryland.

 

Career Fair 2009

Did you know that this past Spring a UMBC graduate was offered a job with Exxon Mobile with a starting salary of $90,000?  Yes, you heard me right.  The student had just finished up his Bachelors degree in Chemical Engineering and he was off to a great start.  He wasn’t the only student who was walking off of that graduation stage with a job lined up.  UMBC students do very well after they graduate for a variety of reasons.  UMBC students have access to Undergraduate research, internships and excellent faculty and staff.

Tomorrow the university continues to connect students with employers with the annual Career Fair, taking place at the RAC (Retriever Activity Center)  from 11:30am-3:30pm.  During the Career Fair UMBC students and alumni will have the chance to meet with around 120 companies!  Just check out the link and tell me you wouldn’t want to talk with the folks from NASA or T. Rowe Price.  Yep, UMBC students are still going strong.  Good luck to those UMBC students “suiting up” for the big day tomorrow!

 

Deadlines, Decisions, Recommendations

This is the time of the year when applicants start wondering, asking, calling, and e-mailing about different deadlines and dates.  “When is the deadline for…? When will I find out if I got in?  What office should I send this to?  How many letters of recommendation do I need?”  Below I have provided a basic overview of important dates, deadlines, and facts about applying and receiving admissions decisions.

Deadlines for Applying (and dates of notification)

The Early Action deadline of Nov. 1 (11/1/09) is only a month away.  Applicants who submit all of their materials (postmarked) by this date, will receive notification of our decision by the end of December.

The Regular Decision deadline is Feb. 1 (2/1/10).  For applicants who are still gathering materials for the application or who plan to take the SAT or ACT again, please note that we will consider all available scores when reviewing an application.  If a current test score or GPA is hurting an applicant’s chances of admission, we will hold for any pending test scores or grade reports (to be submitted with an official test score report or an official mid-year transcript before Feb. 1) before making our decision.  Please do be sure to fill out the appropriate portion on the application to note all SATs or ACTs that you have already taken, or will take in the future. Applicants who apply by the Regular Decision deadline should receive word of our decision by the spring of 2010.

Honors College Application Deadline and Information

Admission to the Honors College is separate from admission to the University.  For full consideration for admission and scholarships from the Honors College, the Honors College application must be completed by January 15th. Applications received after January 15th will be reviewed on a space-available basis; however, no consideration will be given for The Honors College scholarships.

It is important to note that the materials for the Honors College Application should not be sent to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions but the Honors College.   The Honors College application, writing sample, and answers to questions on the application should be sent to:

UMBC Honors College

1000 Hilltop Circle

Albin O. Kuhn Library, room 216

Baltimore, MD 21250

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Application Deadlines for Six Scholars Programs

Center for Women and Information Technology (CWIT) Scholars Program
Humanities Scholars Program
Linehan Artist Scholars Program
Meyerhoff Scholars Program
Sherman Teacher Education Scholars Program
Sondheim Public Affairs Scholars

These scholarship programs require students to fill out applications that are separate from the undergraduate application to the University.  The Meyerhoff Program also requires students to be nominated prior to their application (the deadline for nominations was Oct. 1).  The deadline for applying for the following programs is Jan. 15, 2010, unless otherwise noted.

Center for Women and Information Technology

Humanities Scholars Program

Sherman Teacher Education Scholars

Sondheim Public Affairs Scholars

Linehan Artist Scholars Program (Deadline JAN 1, 2010)

Meyerhoff Scholars Program (Deadline DEC. 1, 2009)

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Also, as is stated in the application for each scholarship, please be aware that students should have their Undergraduate Application for UMBC submitted to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions before the deadline of their respective scholarship program application (listed above). All who apply should also pay close attention to the mailing address of each separate scholarship program (listed in the application).

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Recommendation Letters

For Admission to UMBC

One letter of recommendation will suffice for applying to UMBC (though it is not required), and we will accept up to three letters from each applicant.

For Admission to the Honors College

Letters of recommendation are not required.

For Admission to Six Scholarship Programs

Each program has their own recommendation policies listed on their respective application.

 

Some common questions answered…

Ah, yes.  It’s that time of year again.  High school seniors are busy with college visits and applications.  Admissions counselors are busy on the road, recruiting the best and brightest students.  You thought I was going to write about changing leaves and pumpkins and stuff, didn’t you?  Either way, the arrival of fall implies in Admissions-land that a number of common questions are coming up again and again at high school visits and college fairs.  Since I’m not running into superheroes on the road here in Connecticut, I figure I’ll use some of my spare time to list some common questions and their answers to hopefully help those of you we don’t run into during our recruitment travels…

• What’s the most important thing you consider when making an admissions decision?   Strength of curriculum is the most important thing we look for in an application.  We want to see that you’re challenging yourself from freshman year all the way through senior year.  It’s especially important that you continue to challenge yourself this year, as it will help you prepare to transition to an honors university!
• What’s the average GPA and SAT score for an admitted freshman applicant?  The average admitted freshman applicant has a 3.6 GPA and an 1800 on the three-part SAT exam (yes, we do consider the writing score).  Twenty-seven is the average composite score we see on the ACT exam from an admitted applicant.  We will use your highest SAT scores from multiple seatings.  If you submit both SAT and ACT scores, again, we’ll use your highest scores for admissions and scholarship purposes.
• If I take the SAT’s in October will you receive them in time for the November 1 Early Action deadline?  Yes, as long as you request to have the scores sent when you take the exam. 
• Do you require SAT II exams?  No, we do not consider SAT II exams. 
• Can I receive credit for my AP exam scores?  Yes, depending on the exam and the score you received.  For a complete list of required scores for AP exams and what courses they would satisfy, please see http://www.umbc.edu/catalog/appendices/Appendix_II.pdf (the same information for CLEP and IB scores required for transfer credit can be found here, as well).  Just be sure to have your official scores sent to UMBC to receive credit!
• Can freshmen have cars on campus?  Yes, and the best part is, you don’t have to shell out extra money for parking every semester!  The only catch is that as a freshman you’ll have to park in a satellite lot.  It’s a short walk from campus, but if you’re in a hurry or are feeling lazy, we have a shuttle that can take you back and forth.  You can park on campus at night and on the weekends.
• Is housing guaranteed for freshmen?  Yes, as long as you submit your housing application by May 1.

Hopefully this information helps you out.  Of course, you can always call or email our office with your questions about applying, or about UMBC in general (410/455-2292 or admissions@umbc.edu). 

Good luck with the college visits and applications.  I hope to meet more of you prospective students out there this fall!

 

Gotham City is in danger…

…because apparently Batman is going to college next year.  Yes that is correct, while on a recent high school visit in northern Virginia Bruce Wayne apparently sat in on my information session.  I didn’t realize it at the time but I was in the company of a super hero.  I’ll keep my fingers crossed that Bruce decides to enroll at UMBC.  Check out the picture below for proof (sorry for the low quality picture from my camera):

 

Update: Fall 2010 Application

The Fall 2010 application is now available online!  Just a reminder, our Early Action deadline is November 1 and our final deadline is February 1.

Have a great weekend!