First:  Students Apply for 
General Admission to UM  

Then:  Additional Requirements for 
Limited Enrollment Programs (LEP's) are Reviewed

1. Enrollment in the Maryland Transfer Advantage Program (MTAP) - students who have completed the Transfer Certificate (30 credits) with a 3.0 GPA or who have earned 60 credits with a 3.0 and completion of an AA degree are guaranteed transfer admission to UM   - or - 
   
2. Completion of an AA degree or 56 credits toward an AA degree with a 2.0 GPA or higher. (Maryland Higher Education Commission Transfer Policy - MHEC) This second option is available to students on a space-available basis.  To date, UM has been able to admit students under this provision, but it is possible that the number of students qualified to enter with a 3.0 GPA in the future may reduce the spaces available under this second option. 

STUDENTS APPLY FOR GENERAL ADMISSION FIRST WITH ONE APPLICATION, INDICATING MAJOR(S) OF INTEREST.  If the major is a Limited Enrollment Program, then the application is next reviewed for admission requirements of the LEP

Limited Enrollment Program majors have
 competitive requirements, 
including Gateway Courses and specific GPA's.  

Limited Enrollment Programs are:

• Architecture

• Business

• Communication

• Education

• Engineering

• Government and Politics

• Journalism

• Landscape Architecture

• Psychology 

                                                                                               May 8, 2007  

Dear Extra Credit:

As a Montgomery College faculty member, I am writing in response to a parent's letter which ran in the May 3 column.  The father states that there are “many Montgomery County high school students who are qualified to attend four-year colleges but who end up at MC because it’s a well-marketed, easy path to take.”  The space provided for this column is not sufficient to completely and adequately describe Montgomery College students, nor the reasons they attend.  Many are well qualified to attend four-year colleges and often go on to do just that.

In 2006, 4,430 students transferred from Montgomery College to 338 different four-year colleges and universities in 43 states & DC.  About 1500 transferred to the University of Maryland College Park.  Other campuses within the University System of Maryland are also popular destinations.  Many local private colleges and universities, including American University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Johns Hopkins University, and Catholic University accept large numbers of MC transfers.   

Those who head to other out-of-state schools have chosen such diverse locations and schools as Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges, Clemson, Virginia Tech, Rice, Cornell, and the University of Hawaii.  Last week, two students informed me that they had been admitted to Carnegie-Mellon University.  One of those must chose between Carnegie-Mellon, Penn State, and Lehigh, and he is awaiting word from Emory.  Another outstanding student has William and Mary among the transfer choices now before her.  For those who transfer after completing two years at MC, the cost of their four-year education is almost cut in half. Their diploma is not. I must compliment this father on having such a wise and economically savvy daughter, since she indicated an interest in attending Montgomery College.  

The concerned father states that “every taxpayer dollar used to subsidize an MC education is a dollar that could have helped a student attend a four-year school.”  To the contrary, a fiscally prudent taxpayer might demand that all students attend a community college for the first two years.  According to the College Board, the average cost of tuition and fees at a four-year private college in 2006-2007 was $22,218.  At public four-year colleges those costs drop to $5,836 and at public two-year colleges the average is $2,272. 

On average, these costs cover roughly one third of the actual cost of educating a student.  This means that one year at a four-year, public school costs the tax-payer approximately $11,000 per student.  The same year at the community college costs the tax-payer less than $5000.  More students could be educated if more tax-dollars were directed at two-year colleges.

Some of the students who are steered, by well meaning parents and counselors, to four-year colleges, would benefit from starting at the community college.  Approximately 25% of Montgomery County Public School graduates will be taking courses at MC in the fall following their graduation.  A year later, that will grow to 30% and the following year to almost 40%.  Many students who have the GPA and SAT scores to get into a four-year college lack the maturity to succeed.   

Often, at enormous expense, they find themselves on academic probation or worse, and come to Montgomery College.  Time management, the lure of parties and alcohol, and poor study habits all contribute to this.  Had these students started at MC where they would have had the opportunity to adjust to some of the changes of post-high school life with some support networks in place, they might have enjoyed success that first year out of high school at considerable financial and emotional savings.  They then transfer, well prepared on many fronts.

If this daughter were to attend Montgomery College, we would welcome her and she would receive an outstanding education.  Tell her to take full advantage of the amazing offerings at MC.  Take honors classes.  Apply to the very selective Montgomery Scholars Program in which students have the opportunity to attend the Summer Institute at the University of Cambridge in England.  Attend all of the free lectures and concerts and myriad performances and exhibits that should be a part of an undergraduate education.  Make friends with students from the nearly 170 countries represented at MC; they will expand her horizons both in and outside of the classroom.  Invest the money saved and apply it to graduate school.  The possibilities truly are endless.  
                                                                        

Margaret Latimer  

Dear Extra Credit:

I am writing in response to the May 3 column titled “Do Regional School Woes Resonate in Fairfax ?”  As a graduating senior from Magruder High School who has decided to attend Montgomery College this fall, I was disturbed by this parent's take on what he calls the “Montgomery College Seduction”. 

Perhaps I should mention that my decision to attend Montgomery College came after I was accepted by and granted generous financial packages by all the institutions I had applied to, including Georgetown University .  At Montgomery College I was selected to be among twenty five students accepted into Montgomery Scholars, a lesser-known but equally rigorous and highly selective honors program, which includes a study-abroad experience at the University of Cambridge, England next summer and plenty of opportunities to intern at the Smithsonian Institution.        

It is important to understand that this decision was made not because of financial concerns, but mainly because I am familiar (having witnessed my sister’s experience in the same program) with the kind of preparation, both academic and personal, that the next two years at Montgomery College offers me. 

While students at my school do regularly refer to MC as “Magruder Continues”, I realize that this is primarily a reflection of a general lack of appreciation for and understanding of the magnificent resources and opportunities available to students at Montgomery College , whether they are in the Scholars program or not. 

As I debated whether I should choose Georgetown University or Montgomery Scholars at MC, I spoke to several students now in four-year universities who went to Montgomery College, and I have heard, time and time again, about how they remember professors at MC who are much better than many of those whom they currently have.   Professors who are passionate about what they teach and often carry real-world experience in their respective fields are just one of many reasons that Montgomery College is one of the top two-year colleges in the nation.               

True, perhaps many students who choose Montgomery College are indeed qualified to attend a four-year university.  But the assertion that these students are choosing MC simply because it is a “well-marketed, easy path to take” seems to me too simplistic and narrow in scope as it ignores a host of real issues and other factors at work in the decision process.

With all the wonderful offerings and richly diverse environment that Montgomery College has to offer, perhaps we should be excited that our taxpayer dollars are going towards an institution that truly provides “endless opportunities” to students of all ages, backgrounds, and socio-economic statuses, a goal worthy of higher education in today’s world.       

Javier 

May 7, 2007

Dear Mr. Mathews:

Montgomery College was definitely the right choice for me. When I graduated from Watkins Mill High School in 2004, I could have gone to a four-year college.  However, I chose to be a part of the Biomedical Scholars Program at MC. Now, I am a biological sciences major earning my degree from the University of Maryland College Park while attending classes at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG).  I’ve earned a cumulative 4.0 GPA this year as a full-time student.

For me, the MC alternative allowed me to stay home, so I could help my mom care for my younger brother who is autistic. Not only was the location favorable but MC was more affordable, and I hope to use the savings to attend medical school once I earn my BS in 2008.  MC and Shady Grove also offered me smaller classes with professors who give students more individual attention than they might get at many four-year colleges.  My classes at USG are taught by University of Maryland faculty. 

MC is recognized as one of the best community colleges in the country.  Two weeks ago a New York Times article listed it as one of the country’s ten best community colleges.  

Looking back, the Montgomery College-Shady Grove option turned out to be the best decision I could have made. So, parents and columnists can rest reassured that students, like me, aren’t being seduced nor are we taking the easy way.  We’re choosing MC because it is a good school, with a good reputation, that prepares us to go on to good universities and graduate programs.

Sincerely, 

Parissa

Dear Extra Credit:

   I am writing in response to your recent column entitled “For Community Colleges, ‘Seduction’ in Marketing?” The letter included within this column displayed an elitist attitude and ignorance regarding the value of Montgomery College and of community colleges in general.  Your readers should not be misled into believing that sending “so many students to a two-year college is just plain wrong for the students, wrong for society and wrong for taxpayers.”  Little could be further from the truth. 

   As someone who has earned four college degrees – my first from a community college, and my last from Harvard University , I can provide expert testimony regarding the relative value of community college, university, and ‘elite’ university education. Unquestionably, of greatest value to me, was my two years spent at my local community college.

   Community colleges provide much smaller classes, much lower tuition costs, less abrupt transition for students away from high school and their families, and easy transfer to university study. But the main advantage of community college education is educational quality. Community college education is often superior to undergraduate university education because faculty members at community colleges are generally more motivated to teach and to become better teachers.  

   At community colleges, faculty members are first and foremost teachers. Typically they: see themselves as teachers, teach a full-time load of five classes each semester, are evaluated based on their teaching, and work hard to improve their teaching. 

   At major universities the story is usually quite different. Faculty members are first and foremost researchers. They are evaluated primarily based on their research and grant attainment success. Knowing this, many faculty members must prioritize research over teaching, especially if tenure is being sought. Faculty members typically maintain a very part-time teaching load and rarely pursue professional development to improve their teaching skills. Of course, there are many fine teachers among the faculty at major universities such as the University of Maryland (I also have graduated from this fine school). Such teachers succeed, however, despite the perverse incentives facing them. Many other faculty members spend the majority of their time and effort becoming better researchers, at the expense of becoming better teachers.

   Personally, I felt so strongly about the mission and value of community college education that I left a position paying twice as much to teach full-time at Montgomery College . I know my dedication to teaching is shared by many faculty members at Montgomery College . Wouldn’t you want your children to be taught by faculty with such dedication to teaching?

   Given the misconceptions that persist regarding the quality of community college education, there is good reason for Montgomery College to aggressively market its product.

Bruce Madariaga
Professor, Economics
Montgomery College
Germantown Campus