Studying in Baltimore: New York, the White House and beaches next door

The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), founded in 1966, is a public, state 4-year university in Maryland.  It is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the Accrediting Board for Engineering Technology, Inc. and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.

UMBC is located on 500 acres 15 minutes from Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and 30 minutes from Washington, D.C.  The Baltimore-Washington International (BWI) Airport is only five minutes away, as are AMTRAK and light rail stations that make easy access to Washington DC and New York City. Due to its convenient location within the culturally-rich Washington, DC-Baltimore corridor, students can enjoy wide variety of ethnic restaurants, specialty shops, art galleries, museums, and other cultural attractions. Within a few hours students can access both the United States' beautiful suburban nature and also the big city lives in Washington DC, Philladelphia, and New York.

The ELI organizes field trips every session to local and regional places of interest including Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, Annapolis, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, beaches, and sports events. The ELI also organizes cultural and social events on UMBC campus for ELI students. Examples of on-campus events include U.S. and international holiday gatherings (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentine's Day, etc.), karaoke and dance events, sports events, International Education Week, and more.

UMBC offers two types of on-campus housing: dormitories and apartments, which ELI students may also apply for.  On-campus housing offers excellent cultural and learning opportunities:

   · Meet U.S. students and other international students

   · Become more involved in UMBC campus life and activities

   · Practice speaking English!

On-campus dormitories are:

   · Shared rooms (usually two students per room)

   · Shared bathrooms (usually four students per bathroom)

   · Includes basic furniture (bed, desk, chair, closet), Internet access (Ethernet), a telephone, and access to cable television

   · Special activities and events every week in the dormitories

Students have an option to live in dormitories that are open all year, including holiday breaks (called "continuous occupancy"). Most international students prefer this type of housing because it is always open (NOTE: In general, on-campus dormitories of many U.S. colleges/universities close during Thanksgiving, winter, and spring breaks).  Some dormitories offer special community options such as  "Intercultural Living Exchange" (for students with international interests), and "quiet lifestyle areas" (with longer quiet hours).

Off-campus housings are also available, and many ELI students live off campus in the neighborhoods around UMBC. There are free UMBC bus stops at several nearby apartment communities. We recommend that ELI students choose apartments near a UMBC bus stop.

The ELI provides the free Conversation Partner Program where each ELI student is matched with an English speaker for practing one-on-one English conversation as well as facilitating cultural exchange and international friendship.  By meeting regularly with a conversation partner, ELI students experience great improvements with their listening and speaking skills. To enhance the skill of speaking in a large group environment, ELI also offers the weekly Conversation Café program where group discussions takes place on topics related to American cultures and lifestyles.

Furthermore, UMBC ELI offers professional development for a group of students, teachers, and business professionals by customizing training to meet their specific needs. For example, we have had researchers from several different countries, executive officers of a large manufacturing company from Korea, medical doctors from Mali, nurses from Phillipines, governors as well as central government officers from Turkey, English teachers from Egypt, public school teachers and administrators from Korea, English professors from China, high school and college students from several different countres, and more.