University of Maryland-Baltimore County Top Questions

Most of the professors in my department know my name. In fact, one of my "more professional" professors calls every student by their last name. I'm Mr. Low, and I spend most of my time in the library because the engineering program is very challenging. Some students seem to get by without having to work too hard and I envy them.

1. Yes. But then I'm a bit of a jackass and people come to know me quickly. 2. My favorite classes are the philosophy ones. I enjoy arguing and looking at things from multiple points of view. My least favorite was my spanish 102 course. The professor was indonesian, raised in germany, lived in spain for a couple years, and came here. There was a definite problem with accents, not to mention she was a ridiculously tough grader who would spring projects on us with little time to complete them. 3. Depends on the student. 4. Depends on the class. 5. Depends on the conversation. I could say that a conversation about "A Modest Proposal" might be intellectual. 6. Maybe? 7. Philosophy of Humor 8. We think. A lot. Most of the stuff we go over is bullshit that was spewed forth by men that have been wormfood for a long time already. 9.not at all. I don't think they would approve or could handle the sick sense of humor and heavy drinking. 10. They're average. 11. That depends on the professor whose class you're taking.

Most of my classes have been in the 30 student range, but my absoulte favorite classes have been the ones with ten people or less, (which are common in the upper level electives) that way you can talk w/o monopolizing the conversation and there is generally a good heated discussion. one of my fav classes was American Studies 200- with Dr. Donovan b/c we read so many books I would have never read otherwise and I loved every single one of them. Most of my proffesors know my name, but I think you need to make an effort for that to occur. If you attend class, sit in the back and don't participate you won't build a relationship with your proffs.

Academics for the most part are very personal. In most of my classes (speaking from the humanities disciplines and not the big seminars in science and engineering) the professors establish good relations with the students. I have had many incredible teachers, some so so, and a few bad. Most of the professors will know my name by the end of the semester, know me after the class has ended in the following semester if I make and effort to talk to them outside class, and will usually at least recognize that I was in their class at one point. Students study a lot here; it is a very hardworking school. We have had great discussions in class, always made more enjoyable by the oddballs in the class, and many times the discussions continue or start outside the classroom. I feel UMBC depending on your major trains you for your job and for the sake of learning. As a humanities major, I am receiving skills that will help me get a job that could require strong writing and critical thinking, but most of my classes have a major part that exist for the sake of learning and the professors love to impart that knowledge to us.

Great. Classes are fairly small, teachers know you by name. However, some professors do not seem to understand that we take more than just their classes.

Some, Many of my classes were lecture hall sized, I could count on one hand the professors who actually knew my name, but those few were the most amazing teachers I have ever had. Favorite class would be Philosophy 100 or 152 with Jim Thomas, probably one of the best teachers ever. Least Favorite class is a tie between Biology, Chemistry, and Physics... Many of the lower level courses the teachers do not know your name because the class size is pretty large, but when you get to the upper levels they tend to learn your name, usually.... Many students study all the time, of course there are the typical slackers but most study often, it also depends on the major, you will find science majors studying a lot more and social science majors doing more reading and paper writing, not necessarily always the case but a generally. Class participation is common in some classes, but not all, it really depends. Some classes base grades on participation in which case there is a lot more participation. Also some of the bigger classes use a clicker system so people answer but 200 people can answer in a minute, which is pretty neat and can help with participation. Some students have intellectual conversations outside of class, but it really depends on who you are talking to. Students are pretty competitive, even though none of my classes had a true curving system where only a few could get an A. That was one good thing, if grades were low teachers would "curve", but only to make grades higher, never to fit a curve. The most unique class I took, and also one of the best was the Psychology of HIV/AIDS. This class can really change your perspectives on the world and opens your eyes. A very informative and awesome class!!! My major/department is mixed good with bad. It has many very very good professors, as well as many very bad professors. There are about 5 professors that are awesome and absolutely amazing (only counting teachers I've had, but I've avoided certain ones based upon other students reviews), but the rest are just not very good at all. I have had bad experiences with advising. My advisor was assigned to me, and I know many of my friends were able to choose their advisors and have had better outcomes. From the start, since I had a sort of double major (Psychology and Pre-Allied Health), my advisor never really knew what was going on, they were never prepared, never knew what I had to take/needed to take, thankfully I was on top of things and always knew, with the exception of one semester that could have changed my life. So here's the short version, I went to my advisor after making some adjustments to my schedule to take 21 credits so I could graduate early, and I asked my advisor, "If I take all these credits will I be able to graduate?", I wanted to be sure everything I was taking would count. My advisor said yes, and I can imagine you know where this is going, of course 1 of my 21 credits "didn't count" because of a rule about repeating something, a rule that was in a handbook that no one really reads(word of advice, if you go to UMBC, read the handbook/course catalog that is given to you, not the one online or else you will not see ALL of the rules and it will be your fault!!). Basically my advisor did not catch this, and I did not know it was a rule, so I was told on the day after registration for the next semester ended, that I had not graduated. About a month of trying to resolve this issue with no help, I finally went to the top (once I found out how to reach the top), and they were able to help resolve the issue, but you can imagine the distress when you have a job, and are told that you in fact do not have a degree, and it is too late to register for classes for the current semester so you will not receive your degree until after the summer semester, all because of a rule you did not know about and your advisor did not catch (which is a departmental rule, so the departmental advisors should know about it). Basically they were able to say that it was not my fault, and sign me up for an alternate winter class that I had taken but not for credit, and I was able to get my degree, but I was lucky, someone else may not have been so lucky. I spent time with maybe 2 professors outside of class getting help. The academic requirements are fine I suppose. The education at UMBC is in my experiences geared towards going to graduate school and doing research. Not really getting a job.

-yes, classes are usually 30-100 students -Favorite = Philosophy, the teacher was hilarious. Worst = Fluid mechanics, teacher was horrible -Varies, some never study, some never do anything else -Class participation is common when teachers ask questions. Otherwise there is only 1 jackass in every class that will interrupt to ask a stupid question -Intellectual conversations happen outside the classroom -Students are fairly competitive - engineering projects, intramural sports, and unfortunately World of Warcraft -Scuba diving -My professors in the mech/E department are for the most part nice and approachable, but some are grumpy old men. I've never just hung out with any professors. -UMBC used to have very high academic requirements, which have dropped a lot recently due to less applicants. With UMBC making the tourney I believe application rates will increase a lot, and thus the academic requirements will also increase back to normal -Getting a job, there is a Career Service Center which is constantly setting up job fairs, resume critques, mock interviews, etc

I know all of my professors' names this semester, but I haven't during previous semesters. My favorite class is political sociology because in it we discuss current events, past events and the social affects of them. I do not dislike any classes I am currently taking. Some students study all of the time and some students study only right before exams. Class participation is common in most classrooms and encouraged. The sociology and anthropology departments are helpful and encouraging. These two departments are informative, and if they do not have the answers they work to find them for me.

I think all my professors know my name. My favorite class is child developmental psych (psych 200). The professor is an amazing teacher, the material is WELL organized and interesting. My least favorite was music 100. The music department seems to not have its act together. there is at ANY campus always at least one person studying... we might do a little extra at UMBC esp if taking science courses. Class participation is a must in a lot of smaller classes. I don't think it is a competitive i have to do better than you more i have to do better compared to ones self. Unique... hmmm I have had several. Its amazing but hard! I have started to go to office hours more often. the professors enjoy seeing your active engagement in the class and like that you care. Also a lot of them are nice and fun to talk to. (also there are good opportunities for undergrad research here (which is rare)). They aren't the easiest but it makes for a GOOD student. Its geared toward learning and sometimes you find more job based courses. The classes are really enjoyable!

I am in the largest major at UMBC so most of my classes are huge. In smaller classes all of my professors have known my name - also in large classes if I make the time to get to their office hours. My favorite class has been Developmental Biology with Dave Eisenmann - an interesting subject with an amazing professor. Cell biology sucked - both teachers couldn't use the lecture hall equipment and were boring as heck. There are some students studying somewhere constantly. Many people participate in class either by asking questions or using the electronic participation systems. We have a lot of people from diverse background, so even the everyday conversation can quickly turn into a very intellectual one. As a pre-med student, everybody around me is competitive. Any class with Joel Glasser is a guaranteed trip. Bio is huge, but there are some spectacular professors there. Make sure you get matched up with an adviser you can stand because you'll have to go through them to make a lot of things happen. I sometimes spend time with professors outside of class but usually in venues related to academics. There are a few I might be inviting to my wedding. UMBC's academic requirements are pretty solid, I think. Education at UMBC focuses on encouraging students to excel.

Name recognition depends on class size, and whether you make a name for yourself, and also the professor. Some of them don't remember you from one day to the next; some remember hundreds. Favorite class -- theatre makeup, partly because the instructor is a little crazy and partly because we made wax noses yesterday. Study habits -- depends on the people. Some do nothing but study, some never study. Class participation -- in theory required;in practice required only if the instructor notices you're not participating or has an objective system of determining whether you are. Students -- the smart ones have intellectual discussions. Theatre is a less competitive major than most (the production side, anyway) partly because a show is a group effort. I know a few people who all but have betting pools on who will fail out first, though. Most unique --see above; favorite. Major/department -- see above, competitiveness. Spend time with professors outside of class -- not really. Academic requirements -- somewhat nebulous and often confusing. Education -- I like learning for its own sake and I know my skills will land me a job. I don't really worry about what the classes are geared towards; a diploma is just a piece of paper anyway.

Academics at UMBC are held to a high standard. Professors are generally very interested in their field of study and interested in sharing what they know with their students. Many freshman courses are held in large lecture hall students which afford students little face-to-face time with their professors but as students declare majors and join departments it becomes much easier to gain a personal knowledge with their professors. Education at UMBC is very much geared towards job placement. There is an office on campus called the Shriver Center that schedules job fairs and brings employers to the campus to conduct interviews. They also manage a database of employers with internship or entry-level job opportunities.