“UMBC’s outstanding academics are the chief reason we chose it for this book and we strongly recommend it to applicants,” says Robert Franek, Princeton Review’s senior VP-publisher. The 2017 guide includes the top 15% of U.S. colleges and universities, judged through administrator and student surveys across eight categories.

Princeton Review’s UMBC profile highlights the strength of a UMBC education and the university’s commitment to student success. “UMBC wants to see every student succeed—they provide you with the tools, people, and resources to make sure you get where you want to go in life,” one student shared. Others remarked that UMBC has “extremely intelligent professors that have a knack for inspiring the students” and “this is a university where teaching comes first.”

UMBC’s proximity to Baltimore and Washington DC earned high marks, with one student noting, “The location of UMBC is true brilliance.”

The university community itself was recognized as a welcoming environment that values inclusive excellence. “UMBC is a place where it is cool to be smart, and everything about the campus, including the students, exudes ‘nerd-chic,'” said one student. “The school has a strong reputation for diversity,” the profile notes, quoting one student’s comment that students feel diversity “enriches our school.”

At UMBC, the Princeton Review writes, the student experience is about finding your passion and exploring issues that matter, in the classroom and the community. “People fit in by being intellectually creative and finding a community with which to discuss important issues,” one student says. Another shares that in addition to a commitment to doing well academically, “almost every student at UMBC is involved with at least a couple of extracurricular activities, which connect them to the campus.”

The Princeton Review’s final verdict: At UMBC “students are happy,” “career services are great,” and “the school is well run.”

Earlier this year, UMBC was also featured in Princeton Review’s 2016 edition of Colleges That Pay You Back, among the nation’s best colleges for students seeking an exceptional education with great career preparation at an affordable price. That publication’s profile of UMBC noted:

Arguably the “best public college in Maryland,” UMBC is an “extremely diverse school” that manages to maintain a “small community feel.” And from the moment you set foot on campus it’s evident that the university is focused on “providing exceptional education and research opportunities for students.”

For more information, see UMBC’s page on the Princeton Review website.

Header image: UMBC library. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.