The University of Maryland, the flagship state university in College Park, is a very beautiful campus and an impressive academic institution with 30,000 undergraduates. It's increasingly difficult to gain admission, especially for the strong programs in computer science, engineering, journalism and business. Criminology and criminal justice are also very strong here. Plan on having top rigor and grades if you want to be a competitive applicant.

Like most medium to large state universities, the University of Maryland attracts all kinds of students so almost anybody can find their people here. Greek life isn't a huge deal, with less than 20% of students participating. I really love that Washington, DC is a half hour away by metro, which is fabulous for internships and just getting off campus and having some fun. In fact, you can see the Washington Monument from the top of Maryland Stadium.

Students apply directly into the major of their choice when applying to the university, and some popular programs have specific gateway requirements and have limited space, and are therefore much more competitive. These programs include Computer Science, Communications, Psychology, Business, Criminology, and numerous science programs. Make no mistake, the University of Maryland is getting harder and harder to get into every year, especially for out of state students.