University of Maryland - College Park Snapshot

Written by Paul Yu

Paul Yu

Hometown

Bethesda, MD

Major

Civil and Environmental Engineering

View all previous student authors

The University of Maryland, College Park is paradise compared to some schools and locations across America. Most students who join the campus community stay a while, and some don’t want to leave, even after being there for four or even five years. It’s universities like this that have contributed to the popular expression of college being four of the best years of your life. From students' first year on campus to their final days leading up to graduation, students’ academic, personal, physical, professional, and social lives come together to prepare them for the real world. Once entering such a world, many alumni look back and agree that, even if they could, they wouldn’t change a thing about their overall experience at UMCP.

There are also students who can’t wait to get out of here by the time graduation rolls around. But mark these words: There often comes a day or even a good four weeks where those new alumni miss the days of basking in the sun on McKeldin Mall, smile at the memories of sharing so many special moments with their friends for life, and nod their heads in recollection of waiting three or more semesters to finally be enrolled in human sexuality, stress management, or death-education courses. The best news of all is that after graduation students really never have to leave Maryland because they are and always will be a “Terp for Life!”